Ms Stanfield,

Let me give you a couple of leads on the hard-fighting 17th Texas Cavalry. First of all, if you want to see a good picture of on of their flags, go www.tsl.state.tx.us/treasures/flagsandmaps/flags/historic-flags.html
This flag was one of those exhibited earlier this year at the Houston Fine Arts Museum. If you are interested in purchasing a nice framed replica of this flag, contact George Zoes . If you are interested , contact me by email and I'll give you his phone number. He's here in the Houston area most of the year.
Now, as to the history of this outfit : They ( the 17th) were organized in early 1862 and dismounted in April 1862. They were surrendered at Arkansas Post on Jan. 1, 1863 , exchanged during April 1863 and consolidated with the 18th Texas Cavalry during July 1863. They were further consolidated with the 24th and 25th Texas Cavalry regiments in July 1864. At the end ( surrender at Bentonville , NC ) they were further consolidated with the 6th , 7th and 10th Texas Infantry Regiments as weel as the 15th Texas Cavalry (all these Texas Cavalry units had been dismounted ). The resulting group was referred to as the First Infantry Regiment Consolidated, ( not to be confused with the 1st Texas Infantry Regiment in the east, fighting with General Lee's Army of Northern Virginia).
Your man's outfit was placed in the Patrick Cleburn's Division , 2nd Corps, Army of Tennessee in May of 1863. In November of 1863, they were placed in Granbury's famous Texas Brigade , Cleburn's Division , 1st Corps Army of Tennessee.
Beginning with the battle of Chickamauga in September of 1863, their combat record indicates that they were in almost every major engagement the Army of Tennessee fought until their surrender near Bentonville , NC in April of 1865.
That list includes battles of Chickamauga, Chattanooga, Pickets' Mill, New Hope Church, Atlanta Siege, Jonesboro, Franklin, Nashville, Carolinas Campaign and Bentonville , NC. (My refernce for most of the foregoing information is from " Compendium of the Confederate Armies: Texas" , by Stewart Sifakis, published by Facts on File , 1995) .
There are several books that discuss the history of Granbury's Command , of which your man was a member. I'll mention two of them and you can take it from there.
" This Band of Heros: Granbury's Texas Brigade" by James M. McCaffrey , published by the Texas A&M University Press. The other one is "One of Cleburn's Command: the Civil War Reminiscences and diary of Capt Samuel T. Foster "
Cleburn's Command " by Samuel T.Foster , published by the University of Texas Press .
Generals Granbury and Cleburn were both killed at Franklin in the frontal assaults they led against the formidable Federal breastworks in the vicinity of the Carter House and the Columbia Pike. If you ever get near Franklin, Tenn . , I'd recommend that you stop by the little bit of preserved ground that still remains from the Battle of Franklin. The Carter House Museum is a good place to start . Since so much of the battlefield ( almost all of it ) has been overwhelmed with development , it is very difficult to get your bearings about the battle site without getting a perspective from the folks at the Carter House. Mr Cartwright is probably the best one of the staff there to give you an idea of where certain things took place. You have to imagine a lot since a Pizza Hut ( or Dominos) sits on the site where Patrick Cleburn was killed etc. But , there is enough to see there that you should go if you get the chance. Mr Cartwright, or other staff and volunteers "can paint the picture for you".
When you consider how many men made this assault ( actually several repeated assaults across mostly open ground ) it bogles the mind. Many people do not realize that this assault was made by more Confederate soldiers than participated in the much more famous "Pickett's Charge" at Gettysburg.
PLEASE, OTHER READERS OF THIS NOTE: THIS COMMENT IS NOT INTENDED TO STIR A DEBATE HERE. NONE IS DESIRED ON MY PART! I'M NOT SLAMMING PICKETT , GENERAL LEE OR THE HONOR OF THE ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA. I had folks in Marse Robert's Army too.
Ms. Stanfield, I hope this gets you started in the right direction.
Best Regards, Craig