At its inception in October 1835, with the battle of Gonzalez, the Texas Revolution emerged as the culmination of many conflicts between Mexico and Anglo-American settlers in Texas. Following the imprisonment of Stephen F. Austin and Antonio López de Santa Anna’s attempts to abolish the Constitution of 1824, the citizenry of Texas formed an army in response to Mexican incursions. Commanded by Austin, James Bowie, and James W. Fannin, Jr., the Texas Army was composed solely of volunteers. After winning several engagements, including the battle of Concepción and the Grass Fight, the Texas army was overpowered by Mexican forces in the battle of the Alamo on March 6, 1836. Fannin and nearly 350 Texans were subsequently executed during the Goliad Massacre a few days later. The Texas Revolution finally concluded with the decisive battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, wherein Texas forces led by Sam Houston surprised the Mexican Army at San Jacinto, killing 630 and taking 730 prisoners while losing only 9 Texans. At the close of the Revolution, Texas independence was realized following Santa Anna’s order for Mexican troops to withdraw and the signing of the treaties of Velasco.
Sources:
Barker, Eugene C., and James W. Pohl.
Kemp, L. W.
Comprised of newspaper clippings, the Texas Revolution Scrapbook, [ca. 1930-1941], documents the legacy of the Texas Revolution during the 1930s and 1940s. The clippings from several Texas newspapers concern a variety of subjects, including surviving widows and families of Texas revolutionaries and the discovery of new historical documentation. Additionally, the collection contains biographical sketches of revolutionaries, such as James W. Fannin, Jr., and Benjamin R. Milam.
This collection is open for research use.
Texas Revolution Scrapbook, [ca. 1930-1941], Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.
Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s