texas – Page 39 – Texas History Notebook

Burk Burnett and Farley Sayers

The May 23, 1912 issue of The Eagle out of Bryan, Texas carried a sensational one sentence article stating that well known rancher Burk Burnett had shot and killed another man named Farley Sayers that day.

Elm Creek Massacre

October 13, 1864 was a key day in the lives of several north Texas families. In a valley known as Elm Creek, located roughly ten miles south of the town of Newcastle in the western part of Young County, several hundred Kiowa and Comanche tribesmen raided several homes. The settlers (some black and some white) had been living there a while and their homes were scattered along Elm Creek.

Moseley Baker

The name Moseley Baker might not be too familiar to many people but he was soldier during the Texas Revolution. Baker was born on September 20, 1802, the third of four children in Norfolk, Virginia to Hance Baker (1760-1831) and Rebecca Moseley Baker (1771-1812). Rebecca died in Virginia in 1812. Some time later, Hance and the rest of the family moved to Montgomery, Alabama. Hance passed away there in 1831.

Washington-on-the-Brazos

On April 29, 1900, the Houston Post carried an article commemorating an address in Brenham given by the Hon. Harry Haynes, formerly of the state legislature serving Washington County the previous San Jacinto Day. Haynes recounted some of the early history of Washington County. In it, he said that on June 17, 1819, a force of 30 men under General James Long left Natchez, Mississippi for the area to the west that was then under the control of Spain. By the time they arrived at Nacogdoches, they numbered 300 men. Long split the forces to explore both the Brazos and Trinity Rivers and establish fortifications. Along the way some of the troops encountered Spanish or Mexican troops, dispersed and returned to Louisiana. Among those who remained, some of them serving under a Captain James Walker came to a place on the Brazos which Walker initially called La Bahia. Captain John W. Hall had also passed through the area several years earlier and had been attracted to it but there was little or no settlement there by Anglos until the early 1820s.

The Alamo

So much has already been written about the Alamo and the battle of 1836. We present here a brief history of the mission itself and a timeline of the days leading up to and including the battle.