TIPTON, JOHN E. (1844 ~ 1910). Confederate veteran John E. Tipton was born in Missouri in 1844. Tipton moved to Texas in 1854 and settled in Hill County.
With the outbreak of the Civil War, Tipton enlisted in Captain William J. Neal's Company in the 4th Regiment of the Texas Volunteers. After traveling to Camp Herbert, near Hempstead, the men were mustered into Confederate service on October 28, 1861, and became known as the 4th Texas Dragoons. Though their designation was changed in 1862 to the 12th Texas Cavalry, the men continued calling themselves the Dragoons throughout the war.
By the spring of 1862, the unit was sent to Arkansas, where it took part in numerous battles, including Whitney's Lane, Cache River, or Cotton Plant, and L'Anguiville Ferry. Toward the end of the War the unit moved south to Louisiana, where it fought at Tensas Bayou. The unit participated in the Red River Campaign from April to May of 1864 and took part in skirmishes at Blair's Landing, Cane River, Cloutierville, Monett's Ferry, Alexandria and Yellow Bayou. By the end of the War, the 12th Texas Cavalry was stationed in North Texas to guard against Union advances from the Indian Territory.
Tipton's military records indicate he was captured and held as a prisoner of war. His records do not show the date or location of his capture, so it is difficult to obtain an accurate accounting of his time in the War. All that is known of his imprisonment is that he was paroled on September 12, 1865, in San Antonio.
After being paroled, Tipton probably returned to Hill County. He eventually moved to Waco, where he worked as a butcher. On June 30, 1910, suffering from poor health and the effects of old age, Tipton (a widower), moved into the Texas Confederate Men's Home in Austin. He died at the Home on July 25, 1910, and was buried in the Texas State Cemetery.
Upon entering the Home, Tipton listed his brother, Layton, of Tulare County, California, as his next of kin.
Information taken from: Compiled Military Service Record; National Park Service website, http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss; 12th Texas Cavalry website, http://members.aol.com/dkrocket/12hist.htm; and Confederate Home Roster.
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