Consolidated Regiment of the 8th and 19th Arkansas Infantry Battle Flag

The 19th Arkansas (Dawson’s) Infantry consisted of seven companies organized of men from Hempstead, Pike, Polk, and Sevier counties in the southwestern portion of the state.

They mustered into service at Nashville Arkansas in November of 1861. By March 1862, three additional companies were added bringing the total number up to ten The regiment was commanded by Colonel C.L. Dawson. Like Col. Dawson, most of the officers and many of the enlisted men were veterans of the Arkansas State Troops and had already had combat experience during the battle of Wilson’s Creek, after which the State Troops were disbanded thus freeing up the men to join the Confederate States Army.

The 19th was present at the Battle of Pea Ridge on March 7th and 8th, but because the men were not yet adequately supplied and armed, they were not involved in combat, Instead, they were assigned to guard duty. After Pea Ridge, the 19th was assigned to the Indian territory for the next few months where many of the men died from disease. The graves of some of the men can be found in Atoka Oklahoma today. The 19th was finally sent back to Arkansas where they were reorganized and issued new arms and equipment on August 13th, 1862, and assigned to the 5000-man garrison at Fort Hindman in Arkansas Post to defend the fort. On January 11th, 1863, in what is known as the Battle of Arkansas Post, Union forces totaling around 30,000 men equipped with ironclad gunboats and some 40 cannons, attacked the fort compelling the badly outnumbered Confederate defenders to surrender as the walls of the fort were destroyed from the heavy cannon fire. Except for the very few that were able to escape, nearly the entire garrison was captured.

Three months later, most of the men were paroled on a prisoner exchange, including the 19th Arkansas Infantry. Because of their significantly reduced numbers, they were consolidated with the 24th Arkansas (also captured at Arkansas Post) and assigned to a brigade made up almost entirely of former Arkansas Post prisoners and fought at the Battle of Chickamauga on September 19th and 20th. After Chickamauga, the Arkansas units were reorganized and assigned to Cleburne’s Division in the Army of Tennessee.

The 24th Arkansas was detached from the 19th and assigned to the 2nd and 15th Arkansas while the 8th and 19th Arkansas were united into one consolidated regiment. The battle flag they received in early 1864 was a Hardee pattern flag inscribed with the previous battle honors “Shiloh”, “Perryville”, “Elk Horn”, “Murfreesboro”, “Arkansas Post”, “Liberty Gap”, “Tunnel Hill”, Chickamauga”, and “Ringgold Gap”. “8th & 19th Ark Regts” was painted on the white ellipse above and below a crossed cannon honor in the center of the flag. The crossed cannon honor was for regiments that succeeded in capturing federal artillery.

Through the passage of time, “8th” can no longer be seen on the original flag today as it has almost completely faded away. The flag was captured at Jonesboro Georgia on September 1st, 1964 by the 74th Indiana Infantry. It was returned to the state of Arkansas in 1905 In 1911, the flag was used in a Confederate reunion parade. In 1915 it was placed in the care of the Arkansas Historic Commission and finally, in 1960, the flag was turned over to the Old State House Museum where it remains today. Of the nearly 1200 men who served in the 19th Arkansas Infantry, only 49 were present and fit for duty at the time they surrendered along with the rest of the Army of Tennessee on April 26th, 1865.

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