17th Regiment, Texas Infantry (Allen's) (Confederate)

Brief History
The 17th regiment was organized in March 1862 at Camp Terry, Austin, Texas. On June 2, 1865, the regiment surrendered to Union forces at Galveston, Texas.

The 17th regiment was a part of the Third Brigade of the Walker Texas Division also known as the "Greyhound Division," or "Walker's Greyhounds."


 * A brief history of regiment can be found on: Texas State Historical Association website.
 * Details and descriptions of campaigns in "The Campaigns of Walker's Texas Division" by Joseph Palmer Blessington. Online at: Hathitrust.org
 * Note: "Units of the Confederate States Army" by Joseph H. Crute, Jr. contains no history for this unit.

Companies in this Regiment with the Counties of Origin
Men often enlisted in a company recruited in the counties where they lived though not always. After many battles, companies might be combined because so many men were killed or wounded. However if you are unsure which company your ancestor was in, try the company recruited in his county first.

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database lists 1,970 men on its roster for this unit. Roster.

Men making up this regiment were from: Angelina, Bastrop, Bell, Burleson, Burnet, Caldwell, Colorado, Falls, Fayette, Lampasas, Lavaca, Smith, Trinity, Travis, and Williamson counties.

Other Sources

 * Muster rolls can be found at the University of Texas in Austin and the Texas State Archives.


 * Beginning United States Civil War Research gives steps for finding information about a Civil War soldier. It covers the major records that should be used. Additional records are described in ‘Texas in the Civil War’ and ‘United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865’ (see below).


 * National Park Service, The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, is searchable by soldier's name and state. It contains basic facts about soldiers on both sides of the Civil War, a list of regiments, descriptions of significant battles, sources of the information, and suggestions for where to find additional information.


 * Texas in the Civil War describes many Confederate and Union sources, specifically for Texas, and how to find them.. These include compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.


 * United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865 describes and explains United States and Confederate States records, rather than state records, and how to find them. These include veterans’ censuses, compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.