The General - Texas Governor Series LbNA #29833

Edmund Jackson Davis was the fourteenth governor of Texas. On October 26, 1863, a whole Confederate company deserted in the dead of night and two weeks later joined the First Texas Cavalry of the Union Army commanded by Brigadier General Edmund J. Davis, a transplanted Floridian and Texas Unionist. Although 14,697 men of voting age registered their opposition to secession in the statewide referendum of February 1861, fewer than 2.000 Texans actually took up arms against the Confederacy. Most could not bring themselves to kill friends and relatives and either enlisted in the southern army or did their best to boycott the bloodbath. Judge Edmund J. Davis was the bold exception who had the courage of his unpopular convictions. In sharp contrast to other prominent Unionists content to safely sit out the war in the north, Davis wanted to fight for his principles. He surprised the federal staff at New Orleans in 1862 by showing up with several dozen fellow renegades, the nucleus of the First Texas Cavalry. His service record was not remarkable and he endured several close calls, at one time being captured by rebels and invited to a necktie party, only to be spared by a superior officer with equally superior judgement. Nevertheless, Davis was well-rewarded for his efforts. In addition to the rank of brigadier general, he was allowed the satisfaction of being present at Galveston in June 1865 for the formal surrender of all southern forces west of the Mississippi. As the sun set on the Confederacy, his own ambitious star was rising. Four years later, Edmund Jackson Davis came back to haunt Texas as the iron-fisted governor of the Reconstruction regime. Bound and determined to make the ex-Confederates pay dearly for their secessionist treason, punishment was the order of the day.

McKinney Roughs Nature Park is one of the developed parks managed by the Lower Colorado River Authority. It includes several trails through rolling box canyons, wildflower meadows, lazy river bends and a diverse biological population. It also includes an exhibit hall featuring live creatures native to the area and a science center offering educational and recreational programs. Included in your entrance fee is the opportunity to borrow one of three different nature packs: Birding Pack (includes binoculars and a guide book), Plant Pack (comes with a magnifying glass and explanation of what plants to look for) and a Kid Pack (includes bug containers and reational children’s books describing the plants, birds and insects found at the park).
Directions:
McKinney Roughs is located on Hwy 71 13.2 miles east of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and 8.4 miles west of Bastrop on north side of road. Drive through entrance and park by Visitor Center. Go in and pay the entrance fee.
Clues:
From the Visitor Center, walk north behind the Mark Rose Science Center to the Ridge Trail at the far left. You will notice numbered marker posts as you go. Follow the trail to marker R10, where the Woodland Trail intersects the Ridge Trail. Follow the Woodland Trail downhill to a bench and a switchback at marker W2. Sit on the bench and look straight ahead down the hill for a dead stump. The letterbox is in the cavity of the stump under rocks. Recover well.