http://www.history.com/news/cleaning-of-alamo-reveals-historic-graffiti
And the following excerpts from an article reveal the strength of the KGC in San Antonio
"Texas, in the early years of the Civil War, found itself controlled by a secret society of expansion-embracing secessionists who at times employed terrorist tactics. This society, the Knights of the Golden Circle, or KGC, played a instrumental role in Texas politics during the months preceding secession in February, 1861. Members of the assemblage from all over Texas participated in significant Civil War events through use of secret vigilante tactics as well as fighting alongside the Confederate Army in battle. Many Union sympathizers remained quiet for fear of the KGC. The San Antonio Castle of the Knights kept order in the town by means of the Mitchell-Childress committee—the self-proclaimed law enforcement of Civil War times. Any support for the North voiced in those times put the speaker at great risk for consequences from the mobocracy (Sturmberg 121)."
"On May 9, 1861, Col. Reeve and his Union troops were stopped 15 miles west of San Antonio at Adams Hill by the commander of Confederate Troops in Texas (Young Battle). No shots were fired in this confrontation, but it did result in the unconditional surrender of Reeve's 320 Union men to Colonel Earl Van Dorn's large force consisting of Confederate soldiers, Texas Rangers, and Knights of the Golden Circle."
James P. Newcomb: a Newsman’s Challenge to San Antonio Confederates
By Andrea Kurth
http://www.uiw.edu/sanantonio/JamesP.Newcomb.html
The Knights of the Golden Circle Research and Historical Archives
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Knights_of_the_Golden_Circle
http://knights-of-the-golden-circle.blogspot.com
http://knightofthegoldencircle.wordpress.com
