Daniel Showalter (1830–1866), was a

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

miner, state legislator, duelist, secessionist, and

Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...

military officer in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

Early life

Daniel Showalter was born in

Greene County, Pennsylvania Greene County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 35,954. Its county seat is Waynesburg. Greene County was created on February 9, 1796, from part of Washington County and named for Gene ...

and came to California in 1852, settling in Coulterville.

Career

Showalter became a miner in

Horseshoe Bend Horseshoe Bend may refer to: Places Australia * Horseshoe Bend, New South Wales, an inner city suburb in the City of Maitland in the Hunter Region * Horseshoe Bend Station, a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in the Alice Sprin ...

Mariposa County Mariposa County () is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 17,131. The county seat is Mariposa. It is located in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, north of Fresno, east of ...

. He ran for and won a seat in the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The A ...

6th District in 1857–1858 and 1861–1862. In 1861, he voted against a state resolution for California to stay in the Union (which passed the assembly). During the vote, Charles W. Piercy prevented him from saying why he was opposed to it. The two men argued and Piercy challenged him to a duel. Despite dueling being officially illegal in California at the time, it proceeded nonetheless on Saturday afternoon, May 25, 1861, near the residence of

Charles S. Fairfax Charles Snowden Fairfax, 10th Lord Fairfax of Cameron (March 8, 1829 – April 4, 1869) was an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic politician of California. He held a Peerage of Scotland, Scottish peerage. Fairfax was lured we ...

, three miles west of San Rafael in

Marin County Marin County is a county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat and largest city is San Rafael. Marin County is acros ...

. The weapons chosen were rifles, to be fired at a distance of forty yards. The first fire was ineffective and Showalter demanded another. On the second fire, Showalter shot Piercy in the mouth and killed him. This was the last of the duels between political figures in California. Now a fugitive as a result of the duel, Showalter made his way south to

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...

, joining with friends and fellow secessionist sympathizers who wanted to go east to join the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

. This party was caught at Minter Ranch on November 29, 1861, by a

1st California Cavalry Regiment The 1st Regiment California Volunteer Cavalry was a cavalry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was first formed of five companies as 1st Battalion, 1st Regiment California Volunteer Cavalry between August and October 31, ...

patrol under Second Lt. C. R. Wellman from Camp Wright, in the mountains southwest of the

Warner's Ranch Warner's Ranch, near Warner Springs, California, was notable as a way station for large numbers of emigrants on the Southern Emigrant Trail from 1849 to 1861, as it was a stop on both the Gila River Trail and the Butterfield Overland Mail stag ...

, in the San Jose Valley of eastern

San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fi ...

. On December 10, fearing a large rescue party was coming from El Monte, the commander of Camp Wright sent them under guard to

Fort Yuma Fort Yuma was a fort in California located in Imperial County, across the Colorado River from Yuma, Arizona. It was on the Butterfield Overland Mail route from 1858 until 1861 and was abandoned May 16, 1883, and transferred to the Department of ...

. Eventually they were released after swearing allegiance to the Union. Showalter then went on to Texas where he was made

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

of the 4th Arizona Cavalry Regiment. In March 1864, Lt. Col. Daniel Showalter joined the force under

John Salmon Ford John Salmon Ford (May 26, 1815 – November 3, 1897), better known as "Rip" Ford, was a member of the Republic of Texas Congress and later of the State Senate, and mayor of Brownsville, Texas. He was also a Texas Ranger, a Confederate colonel ...

and led his regiment in fighting around

Brownsville, Texas Brownsville () is a city in Cameron County in the U.S. state of Texas. It is on the western Gulf Coast in South Texas, adjacent to the border with Matamoros, Mexico. The city covers , and has a population of 186,738 as of the 2020 census. It ...

, to drive the Union troops out of South Texas. After the Union troops evacuated, Showalter occupied Brownsville, June 30. When his commander, Colonel Ford, fell ill, Showalter was found drunk and unable to command the army. On May 12, 1865, General Day attacked Showalter at Palmito Hill, Showalter was drunk again and unable to command his unit and the enemy artillery caused the 4th Arizona to panic without leadership.

George Henry Giddings George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Preside ...

came up with his battalion, rallied the disorderly unit and stabilized the defense some miles east of Palmito Hill. Showalter was immediately relieved of his command of the 4th Arizona and it was given to Major F. E. Kavanaugh. After the war he went to Mexico in August 1865, and managed a hotel in

Mazatlán Mazatlán () is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding ''municipio'', known as the Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of ...

Death

Showalter died of lockjaw, a result of a bar fight in 1866 in Mazatlán, Mexico.Mariposa County History and Genealogy Research site: Mariposa Free Press and Mariposa Gazette Vitals 1863 - 1923; March 10, 1866, Mariposa Free Press, DEATH OF COL. SHOWALTER.
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Showalter, Daniel 1830 births 1866 deaths Members of the California State Assembly Confederate States Army officers People of California in the American Civil War Deaths from tetanus People from Greene County, Pennsylvania People from Mariposa County, California American expatriates in Mexico 19th-century American politicians Military personnel from Pennsylvania