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Lorenz, Gilliam, Hafner, Gullett |
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Families:
History:
Rev 0908 |
Fort Crockett and the occupation of Veracruz, Mexico In 1900, prior to the great hurricane,
Galveston, with a population of 37,000, was the 4th lar Because of unstable conditions in Mexico, on Feb 23, 1913, as a precautionary measure, President William H. Taft ordered 3 transports and 2 brigades to Galveston. The officers of the 2nd Division were
"old and tried Indian fighters", and practically all except
the junior officers had seen service in the Philippines. They dealt The 5th Brigade, comprised of 4000 men, were sent
to Galveston and camped on a restricted area, mostly the parade grounds
of Ft. Crockett, a small post which accommodated Coastal Artillery
within the limits of the city. Owing to traffic regulations requiring
animals to be unloaded at intervals, the last of the trains did not
arrive until March 3, 1913. The organizations encamped at Galveston
comprised of Company E, engineers; 5th Brigade, 4th, 7th, 19th and 28th
Regiments of I As a precaution to the event of forward movement, all organizations, except those of the 5th Brigade, were instructed to prepare camp sites as near as possible to the available roadways in the edge of Texas City, with the thought to utilize them for hauling supplies. Army transports McLellan, Sumner and Kilpatrick were docked near convenient railroad switches, being provisioned for a 14-day journey. Sheltering more than 4000 animals presented
a funding challenge, and for 3 months the horses, mules, and their feed
remained exposed to the elements, causing major concern for the health
of the animals. When shelter
and crude mangers were procured the animals' health greatly improved. As soon as troops were permanently located in camp, the process of hardening them for actual service began. Road marches with increasing distances, a course in target practice and field firing, swimming lessons, and lessons in the handling of pack-mule trains became routine. Texas City, being a small town, had no regular police force. An arrangement was made for a provost guard to maintain order amongst the men pertaining to the division within the town limits, and served as a training tool should the division be called upon to occupy and maintain order in a town or city. Major General Wm. H Carter said, "Taken as a whole the men of this division have shown themselves to be a self-respecting, intelligent, and splendid lot of soldiers, drawn from the average citizenship, upon whom the Nation may rely with perfect confidence in time of emergency." Though atmospheric conditions were not favorable to aviation, the 2nd Division was joined by an aero squadron comprised of aviators, students, and enlisted men of the Signal Corps. By early June all but 3 officers and a small detachment of these men were relieved of duty with the division. Porfirio Diaz at one time was seen as one of
the heroes in Mexico's struggle against French rule. Through a series of
revolts he took the title of P A long string of diplomatic insults by Huerta and his government came to head when in April 1914 nine unarmed American sailors from the USS Dolphin, in the process of procuring gasoline for their small boat, were arrested for allegedly entering a prohibited zone in Tampico. Though the sailors were released an hour and a half after their capture, when Huerta refused to apologize, Wilson had an excuse to invade Mexico. Early on April 21, 1914, General Mass, the
Mexican military commandant, was notified that US forces intended to
take charge of the Custom House and was urged to "offer no resistance
but to withdraw in order to avoid loss of life and property of the
people of Vera Cruz." He, for the most part complied, but the
commander of the Naval Academy and unorganized pockets of individuals
offered resistance. Ships of the Atlantic
Fleet started bombardment of Veracruz. By 11:30 AM the first detail of
787 soldiers, of whom 502 were marines, landed and seized the custom house, and an urban
battle ensued in which many civilians are said to have taken part. The
defense of the city also included the release of prisoners held at the
feared San Juan de Ulua prison. In the meantime, the building of the
Naval Academy was being bombarded by the USS Prairie. American troops
occupied most of the town by that evening. The USS San Francisco and USS
Che General Huerta and Constitutional Army leader Venustiano Carranza were too focused on the Revolution to make any resistance to the American occupation. Carranza eventually overthrew Huerta. The occupation brought the US and Mexico to the brink of war and worsened relations between the two countries for many years. Out of a total of 6000 US Marines landed, 18 were killed. 400 Mexican civilians were killed. On April 30th the army's 5th Infantry Brigade, led by General Frederick Funston, went ashore to relieve the marines and occupy the city under a military government. Occupation lasted until Nov. 23, 1914.
Other items of interest: -The USS Chester was one of 2 military vessels that had responded to the SOS calls of the Titanic in 1912. -Tampico and Veracruz were the 2 largest ports in Mexico. - Other Forts along the Texas-Mexico border that were supplemented with troops in 1913 and 1914 included Ft Huachuca, Arizona. - A category 3 hurricane struck Galveston Island August 16, 1915. Though the Galveston Depot had 6 foot of water, and 14 lives were lost (of which 4 were soldiers), the newly constructed seawall is believed to have prevented the scale of destruction that had occurred 15 years earlier. - Notable names in military history also at Texas City, Galveston and Veracruz in 1914 were: George C. Marshall, John J Pershing - So many immigrants entered the country in Galveston it was often called as the Ellis Island of the South.
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gest and most
sophisticated city in Texas. On September 8th, the hurricane made
landfall, bringing 130-mph winds and a tidal wave that killed more than
6,000 people and destroyed one-third of the city. In 1902 measures were
begun to prevent such as catastrophe from occurring again. The 10.4 mile
Galveston seawall was constructed, the level of the island was raised,
and structures on the island were jacked up. Construction of the seawall
was completed in 1910, and the raising of the elevation was completed in
1928. The construction of the causeway linking the island with the
mainland took place 1909-1912. The elegant Hotel Galvez opened in 1911. 
with
the cold rainstorms of South Texas and effectively established camps at
Texas City, Texas, on the mainland opposite Galveston. The battalion of
engineers laid out camps and drainage systems, constructed roads and
bridges, and maintained them in repair, giving valuable comfort to the
camps through the bad weather. Encamped at Texas City were Division
headquar
ters; a battalion of engineers, less one company; 4th Brigade,
23rd, 26th, and 28th Regiments of Infantry; 6th Brigade, 11th, 18th and
22nd Regiments of Infantry; 4th Regiment of Field Artillery (mountain);
6th Regiment of Cavalry; Field Ambulance Company No 3; Field Hospital No
3; Field Company D, Signal Corps; detachment, Company B Signal Corps;
First Aero Squadron; field bakery No 2, five units; and 3 pack trains.
nfantry; and field bakery, No. 2, 6 units.
The concentration of troops at Galveston and
Texas City gave the first opportunity to try the new field supply and
pay department - the Quartermaster Corps. Specifications insured
uniformity for field kitchens, latrines, animal shelters, mangers, and
picket lines as much as was practicable. Enlisting bakers, teamsters,
and mechanics relieved the regiments from having to furnish extra-duty
men. Trucks were found useful for delivering stores when the weather was
good, but in Galveston's heavy rains the shell roads disappeared in the
mud making mule teams the most reliable mode of transport in all
weather. The operation of the field bakery was reorganized. Details of
administration and supply were simplified, and regimental paperwork
minimized.
resident of Mexico in 1876, and proved
himself to be a shrewd and ruthless individual, curtailing basic
freedoms, and squelching any and all dissension through the use of
violence. Through his economic programs the rich benefitted greatly,
much of the country's agricultural and mineral resources were sold to
foreign investors, and the poor became destitute. In a 1908 interview
with a U.S. reporter, Diaz flippantly welcomed opposition parties in the
1910 presidential election. Francisco
Madero, a popular author, won that
election, and Diaz had him jailed, then claimed to have been re-elected
himself. Madero called for an armed uprising, and a rag tag army of
revolutionaries ousted Diaz by April 1911. Madero assumed the
presidency, but through his lack of political skills he made the mistake
of leaving Diaz' men in positions of influence. Madero was soon captured
and assassinated along with his vice president. An unscrupulous General
Victoriano Huerto named himself President of Mexico and the 2nd phase of
the Mexican revolution began. Many American capitalists supported
Huerta, but President Woodrow Wilson did not. 
Wilson ordered the U.S. Navy to prepare for
the occupation of the port of Veracruz. While waiting for authorization
from congress, he was alerted to a German delivery of weapons to General
Huerta. He issued an immediate order to seize the port's customs office
and confiscate the weaponry. The weapons shipment, in fact, originated from the
Remington Arms company in the U.S., and was being shipped to Huerta via
Hamburg, Germany as a way to skirt the arms embargo.
ster continued the bombardment of the Naval Academy building until
the following day. The first-ever combat observation mission flown by a
Navy plane was at Veracruz, Mexico on April 25th.