Charles L. Pyron
Encyclopedia
Charles Lynn Pyron was a soldier in the U.S. Army
in the Mexican-American War and a Confederate Army
officer in the American Civil War
. He fought at the Battle of Monterrey
in the Mexican-American War, and during the Civil War fought in the West, including at the battles of Valverde
and Glorieta Pass
.
, the son of Charles Pyron. In the late 1840s he purchased a ranch along the San Antonio River
in Texas
. He married in 1849.
He served in Confederate Brigadier General Henry Hopkins Sibley
's New Mexico Campaign
, an invasion of New Mexico and Colorado
with the goal of capturing the Southwest United States, including the Colorado gold fields and California
.
Pyron raised a company of cavalry for the Confederates at San Antonio
, which served as Company B of John Baylor
's Second Texas Mounted Rifles at Fort Lancaster
and Fort Stockton.
Pyron was a major in the Confederate Army and in March 1862 commanded a Confederate force of 200–300 Texans
on an advance expedition over the Glorieta Pass
. The pass was a strategic location on the Santa Fe Trail
at the southern tip of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains
southeast of Santa Fe
. Control of the pass would allow the Confederates to advance onto the High Plains
and to make an assault on Fort Union
, the Union stronghold along the invasion route northward over Raton Pass
. After a few small battles, Union forces forced the withdrawal of the Confederates.
He was promoted to lieutenant colonel
after the New Mexico campaign and was given command of Baylor's Second Texas Mounted Rifles, which was reorganized as the Second or Pyron's Texas Cavalry. He was later promoted to colonel
.
He lived on his ranch in San Antonio, Texas after the war, and died in 1869.
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
in the Mexican-American War and a Confederate Army
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
officer in the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. He fought at the Battle of Monterrey
Battle of Monterrey
In the Battle of Monterrey during the Mexican-American War, General Pedro de Ampudia and the Mexican Army of the North was defeated by U.S...
in the Mexican-American War, and during the Civil War fought in the West, including at the battles of Valverde
Battle of Valverde
The Battle of Valverde, or the Battle of Valverde Ford from February 20 to February 21, 1862, was fought near the town of Valverde at a ford of Valverde Creek in Confederate Arizona, in what is today the state of New Mexico. It was a major Confederate success in the New Mexico Campaign of the...
and Glorieta Pass
Battle of Glorieta Pass
The Battle of Glorieta Pass, fought from March 26 to 28, 1862 in northern New Mexico Territory, was the decisive battle of the New Mexico Campaign during the American Civil War. Dubbed the "Gettysburg of the West" by some historians, it was intended as the killer blow by Confederate forces to break...
.
Biography
Pyron was born in 1819 in Marion County, AlabamaMarion County, Alabama
Marion County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Marion County was created by an act of the Alabama Territorial General Assembly on February 13, 1818. The county is located in the northwestern part of the state, bounded on the west by the state of Mississippi. It encompasses . Marion County...
, the son of Charles Pyron. In the late 1840s he purchased a ranch along the San Antonio River
San Antonio River
The San Antonio River is a major waterway that originates in central Texas in a cluster of springs in north central San Antonio, approximately four miles north of downtown, and follows a roughly southeastern path through the state. It eventually feeds into the Guadalupe River about ten miles from...
in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. He married in 1849.
He served in Confederate Brigadier General Henry Hopkins Sibley
Henry Hopkins Sibley
Henry Hopkins Sibley was a brigadier general during the American Civil War, leading the Confederate States Army in the New Mexico Territory. His attempt to gain control of trails to California was defeated at the Battle of Glorieta Pass...
's New Mexico Campaign
New Mexico Campaign
The New Mexico Campaign was a military operation of the American Civil War from February to April 1862 in which Confederate Brigadier General Henry Hopkins Sibley invaded the northern New Mexico Territory in an attempt to gain control of the Southwest, including the gold fields of Colorado and the...
, an invasion of New Mexico and Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
with the goal of capturing the Southwest United States, including the Colorado gold fields and California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Pyron raised a company of cavalry for the Confederates at San Antonio
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
, which served as Company B of John Baylor
John Baylor
John Robert Baylor was a politician in Texas and a military officer of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War.-Biography:...
's Second Texas Mounted Rifles at Fort Lancaster
Fort Lancaster
Fort Lancaster, one in a series of forts erected along the western Texas frontier, is located in the Pecos River Valley in Crockett County, Texas, United States. The fort was established by Captain Stephen Decatur Carpenter on August 20, 1855, to guard the military supplies, commercial shipments,...
and Fort Stockton.
Pyron was a major in the Confederate Army and in March 1862 commanded a Confederate force of 200–300 Texans
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
on an advance expedition over the Glorieta Pass
Glorieta Pass
Glorieta Pass is a high mountain pass in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of northern New Mexico. The pass is at a strategic location near at the southern end of the Sangre de Cristos in east central Santa Fe County southeast of the city of Santa Fe.Historically, the pass provided the most direct...
. The pass was a strategic location on the Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe Trail
The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century transportation route through central North America that connected Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1822 by William Becknell, it served as a vital commercial and military highway until the introduction of the railroad to Santa Fe in 1880...
at the southern tip of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains
Sangre de Cristo Mountains
The Sangre de Cristo Mountains are the southernmost subrange of the Rocky Mountains. They are located in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico in the United States...
southeast of Santa Fe
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and is the seat of . Santa Fe had a population of 67,947 in the 2010 census...
. Control of the pass would allow the Confederates to advance onto the High Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
and to make an assault on Fort Union
Fort Union National Monument
Fort Union National Monument is a unit of the National Park Service located north of Watrous, Mora County, New Mexico, USA. The national monument was founded on June 28, 1954....
, the Union stronghold along the invasion route northward over Raton Pass
Raton Pass
Raton Pass is a mountain pass on the Santa Fe Trail along the Colorado-New Mexico border in the United States. Raton Pass is a federally designated National Historic Landmark...
. After a few small battles, Union forces forced the withdrawal of the Confederates.
He was promoted to lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
after the New Mexico campaign and was given command of Baylor's Second Texas Mounted Rifles, which was reorganized as the Second or Pyron's Texas Cavalry. He was later promoted to colonel
Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...
.
He lived on his ranch in San Antonio, Texas after the war, and died in 1869.