In 1861 the Hill boys of Hill's Prairie (near Bastrop, Texas) rode off to war. They had signed on with Col. Benjamin Franklin Terry's 8th Texas Cavalry, better knows as Terry's Texas Rangers, one of the most celebrated Confederate regiments of the Civil War. They fought in approximately 275 engagements in seven states. The missives contained in this volume were penned by John, Robert and D.O. Hill to their sister, Mary Scott Hill, during the War Between the States. The letters show the daily camp life of the soldiers of the Confederacy, their privations, their worries for one another, for their families back home and for the South. They demonstrate in the most candid and personal manner the trials and hopes of the Confederate soldier during one of the tumultuous periods in American history.

A Quebecer, a Scot, an Englishman, an Irishman, some Yankees, some Southern gents, a couple of Tejanos...listening to the duelling accents alone would have been well worth the price of admission. Some had led the quiet lives of family men. Others were known for drunkenness, noted for bravery, celebrated for military acumen and one was notorious for castrating a couple of guys back in his home state. Five signers resided on land that was technically in Arkansas. Two fathers who lost sons at the Alamo saddled up next to the father of the man who had burned their bodies. A couple of signers had been "permanently" tossed out of Texas after their participation in the Fredonian Rebellion. Low on provisions, in the cold, away from their homes and families, with the looming threat of Santa Anna kicking in the door, 59 individuals created an independent Texas. Despite all of the diversity and adversity, they managed to get it done. In the wake of their deliberations and pen strokes was born the storied Republic and the state that would define western expansion and reshape the United States. In this book, Mr. Kemp serves up each signer to us so that we might place each, in our mind's eye, in that rented building in Washington. He tells us where they came from, how they got here and where they ended up. We need to know these men because they're the men who made us Texans

Flogging, mutiny, captured islands, maverick commodores and cabinet members, lack of funds and nasty political rivalries...welcome to the two Texian Navies. God Favors the Bold gathers previously unpublished journals of Texian Navy sailors for the first time to give a true and genuine voice to an arm of the Texas Revolution woefully neglected by students of Texas history. It serves as a reminder that Texas did not win her independence from Mexico by land battles alone. Remember the Alamo Remember Goliad But don't forget the Battle of the Brazos, or the likes of Commodore Edwin Ward Moore and Secretary Samuel Rhoads Fisher-each viciously attacked and dragged through the mud by the anti-navy Sam Houston and each a colorful addition to the landscape of Texas history. Through the writings of Samuel Cushing, Cornelius Cox, Alfred Walke, George Fuller and James Mabry, we learn about life on board the naval vessels of the Republic of Texas. Through the speeches and writings in defense of Moore and Fisher, we understand a bit more about the inner workings of the Republic and its leadership. And with the help of contemporary newspaper articles compiled by Lt. William A. Tennison, who served in both Texas Navies, we are afforded a clear chronology of the mighty seafaring branch of the Republic of Texas.

Forty-three true stories of Indian troubles on the Texas frontier, compiled and published originally by Mr. Hilory Bedford in 1905. At that time he had lived fifty-four years in Texas, most of them on the frontier. He was an eyewitness and participant in many of the heartbreaking and terrifying events. The rest he got straight from the mouths of those who were there or from their surviving kin. From the scalping of Josiah Wilbarger to the raid on Parker's Fort, it is here in disturbing detail, available for the first time in more than a century.

Originally published in 1931, The Alamo Defenders is the culmination of almost a decade's worth of Alamo research, and is the foundation upon which most later works addressing the subject of the souls who occupied the Alamo during the siege. Omitting much of the romance, legend and myth associated with the storied fortress, The Alamo Defenders calls forth the facts, gleaned from letters and primary documents, to bring us closer to those who served with Travis. The roll of Alamo victims has changed only slightly since Ms. Williams conducted her research nearly 75 years ago, and her work remains a valuable research tool and starting point for Alamo studies today. Includes data on 187 Alamo defenders, as well as messengers. Footnotes and bibliography.

At four o'clock one April afternoon 172 years ago, 934 men, unwashed, underfed, caked with mud and dressed in rags, began a slow walk through knee-high grass. A half hour later they crested a low hill. What they did in the next eighteen minutes made our world possible. These were the Soldiers of San Jacinto. Most historians will tell you that the Battle of San Jacinto was fought by newcomers from the United States who flooded across the border in search of land and glory when they heard a fight was brewing. And they are wrong. J. B. MacDonald did the all the footwork, gathering bits of information from hundreds of sources, and proved that it just wasn't so. And she did it in 1922 when you couldn't find out much just sitting at your desk. She did it the old fashioned way, compiling 877 biographical entries and hand typing over 1900 footnotes. It also includes the most concise account of the the battle ever published, The Battle of San Jacinto in 900 Words, complete with maps showing how the action evolved over those eighteen minutes. It brings to battle to life in your mind's eye and gives you a real understanding of exactly what happened.

The history of banking in Texas from the Republic era through the Great Depression is a tale of uncertainty, distrust and confusion, but it is not without a cast of heroic figures. This is the story of the pioneering institutions and individuals that laid the foundation for the current system of banking in Texas, despit enormous legislative and economic obstacles. The Texas Revolution, repeated constitutional prohibitions on banks, civil war and unstable economic conditions hampered the development of an established system of dependable institutions. From the embattled history of the first bank chartered in Mexican Texas (The Commercial & Agricultural Bank) to far more obscure firms, the essential facts are here. The product of years of research drawing on primary documents, this work has been cited extensively in subsequent works relating to Texas and southern banking. Originally published in 1930 by the Fort Worth National Bank upon the death of the bank's founding father, this title has been out-of-print since. This new edition has been wholly revised and re-designed for improved readability.

In addition to a brief history of French and Spanish land measures in North America, Reasonover's Land Measures is composed of extensive conversion and reduction tables for these measures used on the continent during the 16th through 19th centuries. 2nd Edition. 108 pages.