United Confederate Veterans William P. Rogers Camp No. 322

The camp's namesake reached Texas by way of Mississippi and Mexico. In the Mexican War William P. Rogers commanded Company K of the First Mississippi Volunteer Infantry, the Mississippi Rifles, under Col. Jefferson Davis, was among the first over the walls at Monterrey on September 21, 1846, and fought at Buena Vista. President Zachary Taylor made him consul at Veracruz in 1849. He later practiced law at Washington-on-the-Brazos and taught in Baylor's law department, and after Lincoln's election he joined the pro-slavery secessionists, signing the ordinance of secession on February 1, 1861.

What the plaque says

United Confederate Veterans William P. Rogers Camp No. 322 The United Confederate Veterans (UCV) began in 1889 and grew in popularity following the death and burial of former Confederate president Jefferson Davis a few months later. Camps formed across the South, and annual reunions allowed Confederate veterans to renew friendships and honor the war dead. In 1893, veterans in San Saba County organized the William P. Rogers Camp No. 322 of the UCV. A hero of the battle of Corinth, Col. William P. Rogers was a native of Georgia and never lived in San Saba County, but his daughter, Fannie Alabama, married one of his officers, George Harris, in 1863. The Harrises moved to San Saba in 1880 and were the driving forces behind the organization of this camp. A former county judge, George Harris was elected first commander of the William P. Rogers Camp. Members, who included farmers, state legislators, city and county officials, and local businessmen, held their camp meetings at the San Saba County Courthouse. In April 1900, the United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC), then called the National Association of the Daughters of the Confederacy, organized the George Washington Lafayette Fly Chapter No. 377 in San Saba. Together the two groups developed educational programs for the local schools and supported the placement of monuments to Confederate heroes across the South. In particular, the UDC chapter worked to erect a monument to honor Col. Rogers at Corinth, Mississippi. The camp continued to meet until the early 1930s, when the declining number of veterans resulted in its demise. (2002)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Colorado Bend State Park — 17 mi
  Old ranch country on the Colorado above Lake Buchanan, where a spring-fed creek drops 70 feet over fern-covered travertine at Gorman Falls.

More markers nearby

• Camp McMillan, C.S.A., Texas Civil War Frontier Defense — steps away
• Edmond E. Risien, Pecan Pioneer — steps away
• The Texas Rangers and the San Saba Mob — steps away
• American Legion Wiley B. Murray Post No. 27 — steps away