yes sir jedi ........... thanks ......... I have spent lots of hours in the last couple nites trying to match what Rodger, my hunting partner ,found .... That 5th Texas is the closest I have found ................. My thoughts are some soldier bought it from a sutler and had it engraved ... The 9th Texas was in a couple big battles near big cities in 1861 and 1862 and early 1863, so it could have been purchased then.... This unit led the raid on Holly Springs Ms, led by van Dorn .. It doesn't seem likely to me that it was issued early on , because the soldiers did not know what unit they were gonna be attached to..... On the other hand , I can hardly see a soldier having the funds to buy such a fancy piece... Maybe an officer with some cash wore it ........ may never find out ........... It is in amazing condition considering it came out of a field that has been in cultivation since the 1840s....
