texas revolution – Texas History Notebook

James Kerr

James Augusta Kerr was one of the more interesting people in the early days of Texas. He was born September 24, 1790 in Boyle County, Kentucky to Reverend James Kerr II (1749 – 1811) and Patience Wells Kerr (1759 – 1799). He was the seventh child and second son of the couple’s ten children born over a twenty year period from 1777 to 1797. The father, James, was a farmer and a Baptist minister, more accurately described as a circuit riding preacher. A descendant, James Kerr Crain, writes that Patience, the youngest of a large group of children, had eloped with her husband to be after her parents objected to the relationship, but the union lasted until her untimely death. The mother, Patience, died in 1799 after taking ill on a horseback trip to visit one of their older children. Her husband preached the funeral, which was said to be the first Protestant sermon preached in the sparsely populated Upper Louisiana Territory. Rev. Kerr married a widow by the name of Phoebe Bonham one year after the death of Patience. The family moved to St. Charles County, Missouri in 1808 and Rev. Kerr passed away there in 1811.

Margaret “Peggy” McCormick

Peggy McCormick was the owner of the land where the Battle of San Jacinto took place. Her husband was Arthur McCormick. Peggy’s maiden name is unknown. Arthur was born in Ireland in the late 1780s and Peggy is believed to have been about the same age, also born in Ireland. Arthur and his young family had first settled in Louisiana in 1818 before coming to Texas around 1822 as part of the Austin Colony’s “Old 300” group of settlers. Arthur had been trained as a lawyer, but tried to establish himself as a stock raiser after he received his land grant in 1824. He was the head of his family unit and his was one of three Old 300 family groups with the same last name, though the three families do not appear to be closely related. All three families were farmers. Arthur and Peggy had two sons, Michael (1818 -1874) and John (1820 – 1839).

Manuel Fernández Castrillón

Manuel Fernández Castrillón is believed to have been born in Havana, Cuba although his date of birth and the exact details of his ancestry, marital status, descendants (if any) are currently unknown. He served the Mexican Army under Gen. Antonio López de Santa Anna for many years, at least since around 1820. He is remembered as having been a loyal soldier and combatant on behalf of the Mexican Army during the Texas Revolution. Castrillón is also mentioned as having recommended clemency on behalf of prisoners of the Mexican Army, specifically after the battles of the Alamo and Goliad. In both cases, Castrillón was overruled by Santa Anna and the prisoners were executed.

Goliad Massacre

The Goliad Massacre occurred March 27, 1836 and is considered to be one of the pivotal events in the Texas Revolution. After the battle at the Alamo, Colonel James W. Fannin and around 350 men were surrounded by Mexican forces under Santa Anna at the presidio at Goliad. One week earlier, after the battle at Coleto Creek, Colonel Fannin had surrendered to General José de Urrea of the Mexican Army with the understanding that they would eventually be released.

The Immortal 32

The Immortal 32 is a name given to a group of men who responded to an appeal from Colonel William Barrett Travis for help in defending the Alamo. These men were from Gonzales and they arrived March 1, 1836. Travis had sent letters to several other settlements but Gonzales was the closest to the location. All of the Gonzales contingent died in the battle.