Texas Tales

The term Filibuster was originally used by the English to describe Sea Pirates. Later the French changed the word to Filibustier to describe a Land Pirate or one who acquired land illegally from a country. The Spanish used the term to describe illegal immigrants from the U.S. who tried to steal Texas from the Spanish crown. 15 Years after the Mexican Revolution, Santa Anna used Fillibuster to describe the Texas Revolutionaries - as Land Pirates could legally be put to death by El Presidente.

In the 1880's, a Van Horn rancher, A.S. Goynes suggested the town slogan of: "Van Horn is so Healthy, We had to Shoot a Man to Start a Cemetery." The slogan was placed on a sign and prominently featured inside the Clark Hotel. A short time after that, Goynes was shot and killed by his brother-in-law in a feud over a watering hole, thus becoming the first man buried in the Van Horn cemetery!

Sam Houston was the only American who held the title, General in two armies, The Tennessee Militia and The Texian Army. He was also a governor of two states, Tennessee and Texas. And Sam was also the only American to be a President, Senator, and Congressman of another country-The Republic of Texas!

Conrad Hilton came to Texas in 1919 intent on buying a bank in one of the booming oil towns of Breckenridge or Cisco. Turned down in Breckenridge, Hilton cut a deal in Cisco only to see the bank owner renege on their agreement. Tired from his dealings, Hilton tried to rent a room at the only hotel in Cisco but was told, "We're full up." The hotel owner, H.L. Mobley did confide that the rooms were rented three times a day and to come back in 8 hours. Hilton later purchased the hotel, and thus began the Hilton Hotel chain!     (Photo - Mobley Hotel. Conrad Hilton's First Hotel.)

Mike Kearby's Texas Copyright 2011

Juan Nepomuceno Seguín

Only one company of Houston's assembled troops at San Jacinto were composed of native Texians (Tejanos). These men were under the command of thirty-year-old, Captain Juan Seguín.

Seguín’s company participated in the ouster of General Cos from San Antonio in December 1835 and entered the Alamo with Travis and others in February 1836. Seguin left the Alamo as a courier on February 25 escaping the fate of seven of his men. ( Image - Juan Nepomuceno Seguín)

After the battle, it fell to Seguin to inter the ashes of the heroes of the Alamo.

At San Jacinto, Seguín and his company were attached to Sidney Sherman's Second Regiment and wore white pasteboard in their hats to distinguish themselves from enemy combatants during the battle.

Seguín served in the Second, Third, and Fourth Congress of the new republic as a senator, he was the only Tejano Texian in the legislature. In 1841, Seguin was elected Mayor of San Antonio. The city of Seguin in Guadalupe County, Texas is named after Juan Nepomuceno Seguín.

Mike Kearby's Texas copyright 2010

The McCormick League

The San Jacinto battlefield, a prairie located eight miles north of New Washington, was situated within a league of land owned by Margaret (Peggy) McCormick. Buffalo Bayou bordered the league on the northwest, San Jacinto Bay on the northeast, and a large swamp known as Peggy's Lake on the southeast.

Eight miles to the southwest lay Vince's Bridge, which led to Harrisburg, the only escape route for the Texian and Mexican armies before the battle. Deaf Smith, and six volunteers, Peter Alsbury, Moses Lapham, Denmore Reaves, John Coker, E.R. Rainwater, and John Garner, burned the bridge on April 21 before the fighting began.

Photo- Henry McArdle's Battle of San Jacinto 1895

Peggy McCormick moved to Texas in 1824 with her husband, Arthur and sons, Mike and John. The McCormick's were members of Stephen F. Austin's first colony. Arthur McCormick drowned in Buffalo Bayou in 1824 leaving Peggy and her two young sons to work the land as best they could. The widow McCormick made ends meet by raising and selling cattle.

Peggy and her sons fled their ranch in late April as Gen. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna's troops approached. Days after the battle of San Jacinto, Peggy returned home to find her cattle pilfered by both armies and her land strewn with the bodies of Mexican soldiers. She confronted Sam Houston and Santa Anna demanding that one or both men bury the dead. Both refused. Peggy and her sons buried what bodies they could.

John J. Linn who arrived at San Jacinto with Vice-president Lorenzo de Zavala after the battle and later interviewed Santa Anna recalled the conversation between Peggy and Gen. Houston that day. Linn said Houston told Mrs. McCormick, "Madam, your land will be famed in history." To which Peggy replied, "To the devil with your glorious history!"

Peggy later petitioned the Republic of Texas for damages caused by the two armies to her property. The new government refused her request of one hundred forty head of cattle, seventy-five bushels of corn, and two horses. Later county surveyor, George M. Patrick re-surveyed the McCormick league and unbeknown to the family, moved almost half of the McCormick land east into the San Jacinto swamp. The "new" western land produced by the re-survey was assigned to a veteran of San Jacinto who quickly resold the land to Patrick.

Peggy died in a suspicious fire in her home in 1854. Speculation was that the widow, who had once owned one of the largest cattle herds in Harris County, had been robbed and possibly murdered before the fire was set.

Mike McCormick drowned in Buffalo Bayou in 1875 near the spot where his father had drowned in 1824. During the revolution, Mike, acting as a courier between Gen. Houston and Pres. Burnet, warned Burnet of the approaching Col. Almonte at New Washington thus saving the lives of Burnet, his wife, as well as other members of the provisional government…but that…well that's a whole 'nuther story...

Read more about Peggy McCormick at: http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/MM/fmcbs.html

Mike Kearby's Texas Copyright 2009 All Rights Reserved

The "Twin Sisters"

During the 3rd quarter of the Cowboy - Bengal game a few Sundays back, a Bengal running back fumbled after his team had just recovered a crucial on-side kick. My wife commented that Cincinnati had just given the Texas lads a real "gift." I replied not as big as the gift the Ohioans had given a bunch of Texas boys in 1836. Photo -Twin Sister Replicas built by the University of Houston College of Technology.


For in 1836, during the Texas struggle for Independence, the citizens of Cincinnati , Ohio, furnished Sam Houston's army with two artillery pieces that later came to be known as the "Twin Sisters."


According to the Bulletin of the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio, [Volume 10, 1952 written by E.N. Clopper] on November 17, 1835, a group of Cincinnatians', Friends of Texas, met in the Court House to consider the reports of ward committees on giving aid to Texas insurgents. The Ohio gentleman who presided over this meeting was Nicholas Clopper, also the brother-in-law of David Burnet, who would later serve as president of the Republic of Texas.



Also present at the meeting was a former United States legislator, Robert T. Lytle, who offered several resolutions, one being, "-That we approve and recommend to the citizens of this meeting a plan by which the citizens of Texas, shall be supplied through their agent, Mr. Smith, (William Bryan) by our contributions with such an amount of hollow ware as he (Smith) may deem sufficient, to contain other provisions, by which they shall be filled, according to his judgement and sound discretion."



The resolution was unanimously accepted.


The cannon were manufactured at the Eagle Foundry [also referred to in some documents as Eagle Iron Works] in Cincinnati, and later shipped down the Mississippi to New Orleans to Galveston to Harrisburg and finally to the Texian army at Groce's Plantation. The Eagle Foundry was owned by Miles Greenwood and Joseph Webb. The "Twins" were passed through customs as "hollow ware" which was the customs designation for glass ware and bottles. The fact that United States customs allowed the pieces through is indicative of Andrew Jackson's "neutrality" during the conflict.



Nicholas Clopper personally contributed half a ton of cannon-balls to the cause.



Greenwood's Iron Eagle Works burned to the ground in 1852. Later, after re-building his foundry, Greenwood put together Cincinnati's first fire department and the United States' first paid fire department complete with a horse-drawn steam engine water pumper.



In the Bulletin of the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio, [Volume 11, 1953, written by E. N. Clopper] Clopper offers a letter excerpt from Hugh C. Mitchell of Washington D.C., written by his grandmother, Elizabeth Rice. Elizabeth's father, Dr. Charles W. Rice, joined the Texas Navy in 1836. Elizabeth and her twin sister, Eleanor, were aboard the same steamboat as the cannon in April 1836. All arrived in Texas together. Legend has it that Elizabeth and Eleanor were taught a short presentation speech to formally present the cannon to Texas . . . and from that time on the cannon were referred to as the "Twin Sisters." Elizabeth also wrote, "I have not made much noise in this world, but my Namesake did."



And the "Twin Sisters?" Well as the Texian troops departed Groce's Plantation on April 14, 1836, businesswoman, Pamelia Dickinson Mann, agreed to allow the army use of a yoke of her oxen to pull the "Twin Sisters" through the mud and to the safety of Nacogdoches. Days later at the famous "fork-in-the-road", Houston's men marched toward Harrisburg, Santa Anna, and their victorious destiny.



But Mrs. Mann would have nothing of it, and when Wagon Master, Conrad Rohrer refused her request to take back her stock, Mrs. Mann let loose with a fit of swearing that made Houston throw up his hands in exasperation. Mrs. Mann jumped from her horse, cut her oxen loose, and headed up the road toward Nacogdoches. It's said that Captain Rohrer later gave pursuit of Pamelia to retrieve the oxen. . . but that . . . well that's a whole 'nuther story. . .

Read more about the Twin Sisters at The Handbook of Texas Online.

http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/TT/qvt1.html



Copyright 2008 Mike Kearby