Monday, March 6, 2023 - 3:03pm
The significance and shape of the land now known as San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site has evolved over time. Prior to the battle that ended the Texas Revolution, this place was a frontier cattle ranch; in the aftermath, it was a bloody wreck. Between 1899 and the 1930s, the state acquired parcels of land for a historical park. In this...
Monday, August 8, 2022 - 9:53am
Before it was the site where Texas won its independence, the San Jacinto Battleground was a cattle ranch owned by Peggy McCormick.
Peggy was born in Ireland, likely around 1788. Along with her husband, Arthur, and two sons, John and Michael, Peggy immigrated first to New Orleans in 1818 and then to Texas in 1823 or 1824, making the McCormicks part of Austin’s Old Three Hundred...
Friday, July 22, 2022 - 11:41am
Lots of places in Texas fly six flags, but the six flags flying in front of the San Jacinto Monument are unique. Instead of the traditional six flags of Texas, we fly six flags that represent key sites from Texas’ struggle for independence.
Texas won its independence at San Jacinto, but the battle didn’t happen in a vacuum. These six flags represent events and locations that...
Tuesday, November 2, 2021 - 11:42am
By Cait Johnson, Lead Educator, San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site
The San Jacinto Battleground might be best known as the site of the final battle of the Texas Revolution, but that’s not the only victory that has taken place here.
On San Jacinto Day in 1868, the Battleground was the site of one of the first official baseball games in Texas.
Organized...
Friday, April 23, 2021 - 10:21am
In April 1836, the future of Texas hung in a balance. Since independence had been declared on March 2, the Texian Army had suffered two crushing defeats at the Alamo and Goliad, and the government, along with most of the population, was fleeing east.
The fate of the young Republic rested in the hands of General Houston and his small army, and on April 21, 1836, at an abandoned...
Wednesday, April 7, 2021 - 4:50pm
By Andy Rhodes, Managing Editor, The Medallion
To this day, the Republic of Texas captures the imagination of people across the globe. On March 2, 1836, the founders set in motion a series of events which created an identity that transcended politics and still lasts with us.
Some of the Republic’s most legendary locations—San Jacinto Battleground, Washington-on-the-...
Tuesday, March 2, 2021 - 12:10pm
It was called “Tejas,” an enormous Mexican territory—far from civilization. Soon, an epic story would be written across this terrain. Battles would be fought and legends would be born. Unspeakable tragedy—and a final, shocking victory.
The Texas Historical Commission hosted "The Birthplace of the Republic of Texas," a digital history webinar on March 2, 2021. Judge Ken Wise,...
Friday, February 5, 2021 - 10:50am
Step back in time and experience the period of the Texas Republic in person or virtually at one of these Texas Historical Commission state historic sites.
San Felipe de AustinCommemorating the location where, in 1823, Stephen F. Austin established a headquarters for his colony in Mexican Texas, San Felipe de Austin State Historic Site and its museum share the stories of early...
Friday, May 22, 2020 - 2:46pm
By Katelyn Shaver, Educator, San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site
Before refrigeration and canning there was hardtack: the original MRE (meals ready to eat). Hardtack was a flat, hard cracker made of flour, water, and salt. Holes were poked in the dough to make sure it stayed flat, and it was baked several times in order to remove the water. It didn’t taste great, but...
Wednesday, April 22, 2020 - 10:39am
The battlefield of San Jacinto is the site of the final, shocking, and decisive conflict of the Texas Revolution that took place on April 21, 1836. Gen. Sam Houston and his army of about 1,000 Texian soldiers routed Gen. Santa Anna’s 1,400-man army—in just 18 minutes.
Screened by trees and rising ground, Houston's men formed with Edward Burleson's regiment at center, Sidney Sherman'...
