Texian Exodus : The Runaway Scrape and Its Enduring Legacy.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hardin, Stephen L.

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource (526 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Austin : University of Texas Press, 2024.

Summary:

A narrative account of the evacuation of the Texians in 1836, which was redeemed by the defeat of the Mexican army and the creation of the Republic of Texas. Two events in Texas history shine so brightly that they can be almost blinding: the stand at the Alamo and the redemption at San Jacinto, where General Sam Houston’s volunteers won the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. But these milestones came amid a less obviously heroic episode now studiously forgotten—the refugee crisis known as the Runaway Scrape. Propulsive, lyrical, and richly illustrated, Texian Exodus transports us to the frigid, sodden spring of 1836, when thousands of Texians—Anglo-American settlers—fled eastward for the United States in fear of Antonio López de Santa Anna’s advancing Mexican army. Leading Texas historian Stephen L. Hardin draws on the accounts of the Runaways themselves to relate a tale of high stakes and great sorrow. While Houston tried to build a force that could defeat Santa Anna, the evacuees suffered incalculable pain and suffering. Yet dignity and community were not among the losses. If many of the stories are indeed tragic, the experience as a whole was no tragedy; survivors regarded the Runaway Scrape as their finest hour, an ordeal met with cooperation and courage. For Hardin, such qualities still define the Texas character. That it was forged in retreat as well as in battle makes the Runaway Scrape essential Texas history.

Contents:

Cover

Half-title

Title Page

Copyright

Contents

List of Illustrations

A Note on Etymology

Witnesses

Preface

Introduction

1. "To Revel in an Unknown Joy": Planting Texas Roots

2. "No Quarter Will Be Given Them": Santa Anna Advances

3. "Hurry and Stir": Santa Anna Arrives

4. "The Confusion and Distress Will Be Indescribable": Politics and Pandemonium

5. "Heavy Rains and Dreadful Roads": Turbulent Weather

6. "Cramps, Colics, and Diarrhea": Death and Disease

7. "A Feeling of Wondrous Kindness": Assistance and Cooperation

8. "To Take Advantage of the Misfortunes of Others": Texians Plundering Texians

9. "Without Shelter and Almost Without Subsistence": Galveston Island

10. "Fight Then and Be Damned": A Runaway Army

11. "The Most Grateful News That Was Ever Told": Starting Over

12. "In This Great Time of Trouble": Ripples

Epilogue. "Come What May, Texas Will Abide": Legacy

Acknowledgments

1836 Chronology

Notes

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

9781477330067

1477330062

OCLC:

1458764305