Remember the Alamo

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This date, March 6, is a significant day in Texas history. It was 188 years ago that the siege of the Alamo ended with the deaths of every combatant on the Texian side. Four days after Texas declared its independence from Mexico the 13-day standoff at the former Catholic mission (the Misión San Antonio de Valero) in San Antonio ended with every soldier dead. Some civilians survived, but Mexican general Antonio López de Santa Anna obliterated the military, going as far as to burn the corpses. A month and a half later, on April 21, 1836, Santa Anna learned about Texans the hard way. In the final battle of the Texan Independence War, at San Jacinto, Santa Anna’s army was crushed in less than half an hour. He was captured in the battle. San Jacinto‘s battle cry was “Remember the Alamo!” And, for nearly 190 years, we have. The area looks like Bugs Bunny’s rabbit hole in that cartoon where he fought the highway construction crew when they planned to put a road over his house. I walked through a mall (shops, restaurants, that kind of mall) to get to the site. Modern buildings and hotels tower above the mission. That wasn’t going to stop me from enjoying it! I got an audio narration device, and Asleep At the Wheel’s Ray Benson talked me through the grounds. You learn about the days as a Catholic mission and its conversion to a military fort along the way. It is pointed out several times, both in plaques and on the audio, that a lot of what we believe about the Alamo is legend. Since no soldiers survived, it’s all hearsay. Still, the legends live. Two of them in the photos above are included: a marker where “legend has it” that David (he never liked to be called “Davy”) Crockett fell during the battle (outside and to the left of the main church doors); and, a statue of William Travis drawing the “line in the sand” for those willing to defend the fort to cross. The top photos are the outside and inside of the Alamo. History needs to be preserved, and despite all the construction they’re remembering to save the Alamo. COLLAGE: (Top left) Exterior of the Alamo and the courtyard (Top right) The interior of the former mission turned fort (Bottom left) Marker showing where David Crockett died in the battle (Bottom right) Statue of William B. Travis drawing the line for volunteers to cross.