HOLCOMBE, H. C. (1848~1920) H. C. Holcombe, Confederate veteran, was born in Mississippi in 1848. After enlisting in the Confederate Army, he was mustered into Company C of the 1st Mississippi Cavalry.
The 1st Cavalry was mustered into Confederate service in the spring of 1862, with the majority of its troops coming from the counties of Carroll, De Soto, Tishomingo, Itawamba, Quitman, Noxubee, Bolivar, and Pontotoc. It was first assigned to serve in the Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana, but was later reassigned to the Department of Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana. Throughout its service, the 1st Cavalry saw conflicts in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia, where Holcombe, according to his service record, was wounded on February 28, 1864. He was missing an arm, but no information is available to show if he lost it during the War, or not. On May 4, 1865, the 1st Mississippi Cavalry surrendered at Citronelle, Alabama, and was paroled at Grenada, Mississippi on May 19, 1865.
After the War, in 1873, Holcombe immigrated to Texas and eventually settled in Austin, where he was a farmer and a newspaper man. On November 8, 1912, Holcombe moved into the Confederate Men's Home in Austin. After living in the Home for a while, he was moved to the Austin Lunatic Asylum, now called the Austin State Hospital.
After living in the Asylum for a year and a half, Holcombe was discharged on November 19, 1915. After returning to the Home, he died on January 28, 1920, and was buried in the Texas State Cemetery the next day.
Holcombe was married and had four children. His wife's name is not known. While he was living in the Home and the Asylum, Mrs. Holcombe was living in Austin on West 7th Street.
Information taken from: Compiled Military Service Records; First Mississippi Cavalry Regiment webpage at http://www.misscivilwar.org/cavalry/1st/1stmscav.html; Confederate Home Roster; Records, Austin State Hospital, Austin, Texas; and Death Certificate # 3321. |
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