LUCK OF THE IRISH SAVES TEXAS

As the sun rose over the southeastern corner of Texas on the morning of Sep. 8, 1863, four Yankee warships began the bombardment of the pitiful excuse for a fort at Sabine Pass. Union strategists resolved in the summer of 1863 to compensate for the embarrassing New Year’s Day loss of Galveston with a surprise attack of their own. Rebel spies were spoon-fed false intelligence hinting at an enemy of…