The first part of the book is an updated version of an article Smith wrote in 1996 for the Southwestern Historical Quarterly analyzing combat operations by the US Army in Texas against indigenous nations.

The fourth part of the book is a list of US Army regiments stationed at each post and their commanding for every year from 1849 to 1881.

The fifth part is a summary of all 249 violent confrontations between the US Army and the indigenous nations of Texas in the same time period.

The sixth part is a bibliography of books, articles, archives, and other resources for the study of Texas military history.

"[6] Michael D. Pierce, writing for The Journal of Southern History, called the book "a very useful beginning point for reference and research".