The Blood of Heroes: The 13-Day Struggle for the Alamo--and the Sacrifice That Forged a Nation

by James Donovan

  The estimate of the number of Cós’s troops is contained in a report from Bowie and Fannin to Austin dated October 22, 1835: “Their whole force does not reach 600, according to the report of a respectable gentleman, who escaped, with his family, from town this morning, and now with us” (PTR 2, p. 191). Another estimate of the number of Cós’s troops comes from Samuel Maverick, a resident of Béxar, who counted 647 men on October 18, and seven hundred on October 26 (Green, Samuel Maverick, p. 30). The description of Cós is in Robinson, Mexico and Her Military Chieftains, p. 46, and also in Kuykendall, “Sketches of Early Texians” (box 3F82, folder 6, Jonathan Hampton Kuykendall Papers, BCAH). In a letter written on September 2, 1835, Béxar resident John W. Smith reported 150 Morelos infantrymen, a third of them officers, and between three hundred and 350 cavalry, “which have come from Monterey and the town on the Riogrande” (box 2B42, Don Carlos Barrett Papers, BCAH).

  The Austin broadside is quoted in Barker, “Stephen F. Austin and the Independence of Texas,” p. 275. Austin’s private letter declaring his feelings about Mexico was written to William Hardin on October 5, 1835 (Hardin Family Collection, BCAH).

  The males left in Gonzales after the Army of the People departed for Béxar were described as “12 men, most of them invalids” (in a letter from John Fisher to Stephen Austin dated November 3, 1835, reprinted in Barker, The Austin Papers, p. 233). The quotes regarding both the sorry condition of the army’s weapons and its appearance can be found in Smithwick, The Evolution of a State, p. 75.

  FIVE: THE ARMY OF THE PEOPLE

  The epigraph is from a letter by William Barret Travis to John Rice Jones dated October 3, 1835, and reprinted in PTR 2, p. 28.

  The road between Gonzales and Béxar—Lockhart’s blazed trail—is described in Berlandier, Journey to Mexico, p. 302.

  The lack of tents and shelter is mentioned in Greer, “Journal of Ammon Underwood,” p. 139. Samuel Maverick stated in his diary on October 18: “The actual number, officers, soldiers, guards, etc. of Effectives is 647” (Green, Samuel Maverick, Texan, p. 30).

  The information regarding Erasmo Seguín’s Casa Blanca, and his treatment by Cós, is from de la Teja, A Revolution Remembered, pp. 5, 88. The fourteen deserters are mentioned in Garcia and Garcia, Tejano Participants in the Texas Revolution, pp. 171–72: “They were joined by fourteen privates of the old Company of the Alamo for the most part, sons of San Antonio who deserted from Mexican forces of General Cos and joined Seguin’s command with arms and baggage.” See also “Notes for Manuel-Antonio-Santiogo Tarin-Leal” in “Descendants of Don Francisco Joseph de Arocha” at www.somosprimos.com/inclan/arocha.htm, accessed December 1, 2009.

  Charles Ramsdell, in his flavorful San Antonio: A Historical and Pictorial Guide, pp. 4–5, provides an excellent account of the San Antonio area’s early history. Cooley, in “A Retrospect of San Antonio,” p. 55, discusses the width and depth of the San Antonio River, as does the anonymous author who visited the town in 1837: “… thirty yards in width and three to four feet in average depth in the neighborhood of the city” (Muir, Texas in 1837, p. 98). The description of the Béxar fortifications is in Field’s Three Years in Texas, p. 183.

  This account of the Concepción fight derives primarily from James Bowie’s undated report to Austin, in Foote, Texas and the Texians, vol. 2, pp. 121–25; DeShields, Tall Men with Long Rifles, pp. 36–42; Ornish, Ehrenberg: Goliad Survivor, pp. 131–33; Yoakum, History of Texas, pp. 373–76; Smithwick, The Evolution of a State, pp. 77–80; “General Austin’s Order Book For the Campaign of 1835”; Austin, “Account of the Campaign of 1835”; and Hardin, Texian Iliad, pp. 77–91. The Bowie quote is from Smithwick, p. 77.

  The tallies of the Mexican dead at Concepción vary, but the estimate by Alwyn Barr in Texans in Revolt seems the most logical and accurate. Samuel Maverick claimed thirty-eight dead—twenty-three left dead on the field, and forty-two wounded, of which fifteen died (Green, Samuel Maverick, Texan, p. 33), and both Bryan (PTR 2, p. 107) and Austin reported sixteen (Gaddy, Texas in Revolt, p. 29). Smithwick states: “They left about sixty killed and a number wounded” (Smithwick, The Evolution of a State, p. 80); and Taylor writes: “The Mexican loss in this affair is said to have been 60 killed” (DeShields, Tall Men with Long Rifles, p. 40). The last two accounts have the ring of rumor and magnification to them, and DeShields may have borrowed the number from Smithwick, since other parts of his book echo Smithwick’s. Bowie reported one hundred total casualties and “say 67 killed” (Johnson, A History of Texas and Texans, vol. 1, p. 281), likely a gross exaggeration. General Vicente Filisola, who was not there but was diligent in securing accounts from participants, wrote that there were thirteen dead and thirty-five wounded (Filisola, Memoirs, vol. 2, p. 68). See Pohl and Hardin, “The Military History of the Texas Revolution: An Overview,” for an excellent discussion and analysis of strategy and tactics of this and other battles of the Texas Revolution, and Hardin, Texian Iliad, for the best one-volume work on the military side of the revolution.

  About Houston’s election as general, one council delegate wrote: “Mr. Houston was unanimously elected, there being but one name except his mentioned for the office. That was Robert Potter. Potter was an excellent young man, as loyal and brave as the best” (Dixon, The Men Who Made Texas Free, p. 89). Houston’s loss of an empresario grant is mentioned in Haley, Passionate Nation, p. 109, and in McLean, Papers, vol. 7, p. 31.

  Regarding the number of men in the regular army, Steen writes, in “Analysis of the Work of the General Council,” p. 333: “A committee of the Convention reported, March 10, 1836, the number of privates in the regular army as sixty; thirty of whom were stationed at Goliad and thirty at Bexar. The thirty privates stationed at Bexar should not have been counted, for the Alamo had fallen and with it exactly half the enlisted men in the regular army of Texas.”

  Houston’s October 8, 1835, proclamation is reprinted in PTR 2, pp. 68–69.

  The Béxar weather is noted in Samuel Maverick’s diary, as reprinted in Green, Samuel Maverick, Texan, p. 36.

  The requisitioned military manuals are noted in Steen, “Analysis of the Work of the General Council,” p. 326. The quote about literary tactics is in Smithwick, The Evolution of a State, p. 73; the quote about the obedience of the men is in Joseph Lopez’s pension application (reel 226, frames 246–53, ROT [Republic of Texas] Claims, TSLA).

  Though the New Orleans Greys were described by more than one eyewitness as wearing a uniform—e.g., “The color of our uniform was a grey jacket and pants with a sealskin cap” (Ebenezer Heath to his mother, March 10, 1836, Harbert Davenport Papers, BCAH) and “Their fine uniform caps and coats attracted the notice of the [Cherokee] chief, Bolles” (Adolphus Sterne, in Morphis, History of Texas, p. 121)—it is by no means clear that these were “uniforms” as generally thought of, i.e., manufactured with a military purpose in mind. One surviving Grey, Herman Ehrenberg, said nothing about uniforms when he described their clothing: “All of us had speedily acquired for ourselves clothes suitable for life on the prairie, clothes which we found ready-made in the numerous storehouses. From the grey color of these garments originated the name of our company” (Ornish, Ehrenberg: Goliad Survivor, p. 87).

  The quote beginning “We then broke into small groups” is from Ornish, p. 133, as is the story of the men blasting cannon shots at the Alamo, p. 135. Another participant described the men chasing down the cannonballs in Crimmins, “The Storming of San Antonio de Bexar,” p. 102. The catchphrase “going after that cannon” is found in Smithwick, The Evolution of a State, p. 81. The volunteer pay is mentioned in Newell, History of the Revolution, p. 67. Austin’s request to the General Council to stop sending alcohol is reprinted in PTR 2, p. 322.

  The murderer who was convicted and hanged is mentioned in Court of Claims file 2304, GLO. The description of the camp’s slaughter area is in Ornish, Ehrenberg: Goliad Survivor, pp. 131–33.

  Austin’s request to be relieved is quoted in Cantrell, Stephen F. Aus
tin, p. 326.

  The description of Edward Burleson is based on Jenkins and Kesselus, Edward Burleson: Texas Frontier Leader, pp. 10–11.

  SIX: THE BATTLE OF BÉXAR

  The epigraph is in a letter from Edward Burleson to Stephen F. Austin dated December 11, 1835 (but almost surely dated incorrectly; the much likelier date is December 8), PTR 3, p. 155.

  This portrait of Ben Milam is based on Garver, “Benjamin Rush Milam.” The claim that Milam “would never serve a king” is in the 1857 Texas Almanac, p. 137. Smithwick describes Milam as being “near six feet” (The Evolution of a State, p. 74). A discussion of the forensic evidence of Milam’s arthritis and bad back can be found in Tennis, Exhumation of a Hero.

  Several witnesses left accounts of Milam rallying the men to attack Béxar. This version, with Milam stepping across a path, was supplied by Creed Taylor on page 20 of John Warren Hunter’s “Literary Effort Concerning Activities of Creed Taylor and Others in the Mexican War” (TSLA). Frank Sparks, another Béxar veteran, claimed that Milam drew a line in the dirt—“a mark on the ground”—“and said, ‘Who will follow old Ben Milam in to San Antonio? Those who will, cross to my side’ ” (Sparks, “Recollections of S. F. Sparks”). Milam may have done just that. Writer James DeShields changed Creed Taylor’s original account, which described the “line” as a path in front of Burleson’s tent, to a description of an actual line in the dirt. It is also possible that Milam was selected by a group of men, probably Greys, and asked to lead them, since that scenario is mentioned in more than one account. See the 1844 letter of Greys leader W. G. Cook in Smither, The Papers of Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar, vol. 4, p. 44, in which he states: “I then marched up and down the lines calling on volunteers to unite with us—We succeeded in raising 300. I then marched to headquarters and halted them, and proposed the name of Benjamin R. Milam as the leader in the attack—He was elected unanimously.” Another volunteer, Sherwood Young Reams, claimed that he was the one who hunted up Milam and asked him to lead the men into Béxar (in “Statement of S. Y. Reams,” box 2J110, Caryl Clyde Hill Papers, BCAH). Another witness claimed that “a flag was planted and volunteers cald for to attempt to storm the town before day” (letter from Henry C. Dance to an unidentified editor, April 25, 1836, in PTR 6, p. 57). Francis (Frank) Johnson, in his posthumously published A History of Texas and Texans (which was completed after his death by Eugene C. Barker and Ernest W. Winkler), vol. 1, p. 352, claims that he himself “suggested to Colonel Milam to call for volunteers.” He may have, but he is the only primary source to say so.

  Sources employed in the writing of this account of the battle of Béxar include Barr, Texans in Revolt; Johnson, A History of Texas and Texans, vol. 1; Yoakum, History of Texas, vol. 2, pp. 24–32; DeShields, Tall Men with Long Rifles; Ornish, Ehrenberg: Goliad Survivor; the reports of Burleson and Johnson as reprinted in Foote, Texas and the Texans, vol. 2, pp. 220–28; Garver, “Benjamin Rush Milam”; Smithwick, The Evolution of a State, pp. 74–81; Jenkins and Kesselus, Edward Burleson: Texas Frontier Leader; Warren, “Col. William G. Cooke”; Crimmins, “The Storming of San Antonio de Bexar in 1835,” which includes the account of New Orleans Grey Charles B. Bannister; Henry C. Dance’s letter of April 25, 1836, in Smither, The Papers of Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar, vol. 5, pp. 95–99; Joseph Lopez’s pension application (reel 226, frames 246–53, ROT [Republic of Texas] Claims, TSLA); and John Warren Hunter’s “Literary Effort Concerning Activities of Creed Taylor and Others in the Mexican War” (TSLA).

  That some of the men begged Milam’s volunteers not to throw away their lives is attested to in a letter from A. H. Jones to William E. Jones dated January 15, 1836, reprinted in PTR 4, p. 31.

  Bowie’s terse acknowledgment of Austin’s orders is found in a letter from Bowie and Fannin to Austin dated October 31, 1835, reprinted in Johnson, A History of Texas and Texans, vol. 1, p. 283.

  This number of volunteers attacking Béxar is in Steen, “A Letter from San Antonio de Bexar in 1836,” p. 514. James Fannin also supports a similar number of attackers—he later wrote, “If 216 could & did take Bejar, how many of Sa. Annas men will be left him, should this force encounter him?” (Fannin to Mexia, March 11, 1836, reprinted in PTR 5, p. 47). Another participant claimed that the volunteers numbered 220, “100 of our men having backed out” (letter from Henry C. Dance to an unidentified editor, April 25, 1836, in PTR 6, p. 57), and another, W. B. Scates, wrote that “216 men, myself among that number, immediately turned out” (1873 Texas Almanac, p. 79).

  The bexareño who invited the Texians to a fandango in the midst of battle is mentioned in Joseph Lopez’s pension application, reel 226, frames 246–53, ROT (Republic of Texas) Claims, (TSLA), as is the quote about the house resembling a pigeon nursery. The anecdote about the opponents conducting a discussion while on either side of a wall is in Field, Three Years in Texas, p. 21. The actions of William Carey’s gun crew are related in a letter from Carey to “Dear Brother and Sister,” dated January 12, 1836, as quoted in Chariton, 100 Days in Texas, pp. 135–36. Although it is not clear on what day these actions of Carey’s occurred, this date seems likely.

  Evidence that Milam carried a spyglass or some kind of field glasses comes from a letter written by participant Henry Dance: “From his situation with his glasses he was constantly in possession of a full knowledge of our situation” (letter from Henry C. Dance to an unidentified editor, April 25, 1836, in PTR 6, p. 62). Dance, in the same letter, also supplied the quote about Milam’s death (p. 59).

  The description of Henry Karnes is from a letter written years later by his sister, Mrs. Susan H. Corley: “Fare complexion & blue eyes & very red headed about 6 feet high, wore his hears [hair] verry short divided on each side” (Henry Arthur McArdle, The Battle of San Jacinto, McArdle Notebooks, p. 238, TSLA).

  The number of wounded is from Warren, “Col. William G. Cooke,” p. 214, and Smither, The Papers of Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar, vol. 4, p. 45.

  The Mexican reinforcement troops are discussed in a letter from Frank Johnson to Robert Williamson dated November 18, 1835, reprinted in PTR 2, p. 464, and in Filisola, Memoirs, vol. 1, p. 91. Sánchez’s diary, which also relates the reinforcements’ activities, is translated and reprinted in Huneycutt, At the Alamo, pp. 3–5. This officer’s name is often written today as José Juan Sánchez-Navarro, but he signed his name without “Navarro.” Biographical information about him is also derived from his article “A Mexican View of the Texas War,” pp. 65–67, and Jackson and Ivey, “Mystery Artist of the Alamo: José Juan Sánchez,” pp. 2–3.

  The proximity of the attackers’ heads to the guns in the windows above them is mentioned in Johnson, A History of Texas and Texans, vol. 1, p. 357.

  The assault force’s lack of ammunition is mentioned in Joseph Lopez’s pension application, reel 226, frames 246–53, ROT (Republic of Texas) Claims (TSLA): “We… on the fifth day had not two loads of powder to each man, so short was the Texans of ammunition,” and in a letter from a participant that appeared in the Portsmouth Journal of Literature and Politics (New Hampshire), February 20, 1836, reprinted in PTR 3, p. 501: “Our little army had but one keg of powder, besides a few rounds in their pouches.” The action inside the Priest’s House is recounted in Mag Stiff’s “Notes on the Storming of San Antonio in December 1835,” PTR 3, pp. 388–92. Sánchez’s confrontation with Condelle is recounted in his diary, translated in Huneycutt, At the Alamo, pp. 13–18.

  That some of the men were unhappy with the agreement is evident in Steen, “A Letter from San Antonio de Bexar,” p. 515, quoting a letter from battle participant William R. Carey: “The enemy on the third day of the siege raised a black flag (which says no quarters) and when we had whipped them by washing the flag with the blood of about 300 of them we should have made a Treaty and not a childs bargain… after we took the place and the child’s bargain made.” However, Sánchez, in his memoirs, wrote: “General Cós approved the provisions with some changes…. Never, never did he promise anything which s
tained our honor. And he specifically directed that two following ticklish articles be withdrawn concerning our withdrawing with all the honors of war, referring to: ‘The señor General, officers, and officials are to bind themselves not to oppose the people if they wish to declare themselves for the Constitution of 1824’ ” (Huneycutt, At the Alamo, p. 30). This indicates that there may have been some misunderstanding as to the exact meaning of this part of the capitulation agreement, perhaps due to faulty translation.

  Though several Texian accounts mention figures of one thousand or 1,100 men marching with Cós, the general himself reported that he had 815 men (Cós’s report to Santa Anna, December 29, 1836, box 2Q173 [Texas 1835–1836], Archivo General de la Nación México, BCAH). The Mexican casualty figure is taken from Barr, Texans in Revolt, p. 69, the best single book on the battle. There is no dispute over the five Texian deaths.

  The fact that most of the presidiales were unmounted is found in two places: Huneycutt, At the Alamo, p. 35, and Cós’s report to Santa Anna dated December 29, 1836 (box 2Q173 [Texas 1835–1836], Archivo General de la Nación México, BCAH). The list of captured items can be found in Newell, History of the Revolution in Texas, appendix 5.

  A list of the supplies sent to Béxar by the provisional government can be found in a letter from army subcontractor Matthew Caldwell to governor Henry Smith dated December 19, 1835 (PTR 3, p. 253).