Born and raised in the small town of San Benito (about as far south as one could go in Texas), raised in Brownsville, and later in Hollywood, California. He graduated mgana cum laude from Princeton University, and returned to Texas where he raised cotton in the Rio Grande Valley. He's also a combat veteran of the Korean War ...
oh, and he wrote, too ... frequent contributions to some of the nation's leading magazines, and several books, including Lone Star: A History of Texas and the Texans. And while that may not be the last word on Texas history, it remains among the best, and still pops up in reviews of more recent tomes on Texas history, comparing one to the other.
It is certainly one of the most colorful, the most vivid ... like his account of the last, brutal stage of fighting at the Alamo, once the Mexican army was finally able to break into the fortress and close with the defenders ... and his analysis of the aftermath, the devastating casualties on both sides of the battle, and the eventual consequences of Santa Anna's victory.
In fact, the Keystone State'r in me notes there were thirteen Pennsylvanians among the Alamo's defenders, and plenty of other dang-Yankees-from-back-east, as well. It is a story for us all ... not just for Texans. Check it out - or check it out again - if you get a chance.
2 comments:
I'm shamed to say I own the book, but never read it.
It sits proudly in my glass-doored bookcase, front and center, but I just don't remember to grab it when I run out of something to read.
Have to rethink my reticence.
Miss Pattie, thanks for stopping in. Hope all is well with you and yours in Cowtown. I definitely recommend getting it out, and leaving it someplace where you can get at it easily for that next time ...
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