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Texans
love the story of the Alamo.
Although it was a battle lost, remembering the courage of its defenders
thrills later Texans, even "adopted Texans," yet. Less well recalled
is the Runaway Scrape produced by the fall of the Alamo
and the massacre at Goliad
a couple of weeks later.
The Runaway Scrape was a mad dash to safety by civilians, even government
officials, to escape the Mexican army in the aftermath of these two
bloody losses. Previous military clashes between Texans and Mexican
military forces resulted in decisive, even one-side victories at Velasco
and Nacogdoches
in 1832 and Anahuac,
Gonzales,
and San Antonio
in 1835. Given the times, many Texans considered victory over Mexico
inevitable. They reckoned without the overwhelming numbers Santa Anna
brought to Texas to deal with rebelling subjects. With over 6,000
troops in Texas, about two-thirds of them in San
Antonio facing 180-something Alamo
defenders and the other third at Goliad
to conquer James Walker Fannin's 500 or so men, Santa Anna simply
overwhelmed Texan forces.
When news of the Alamo's
fall reached Gonzales,
made worse by the loss of some member of every household in the community
who had gone to the Alamo's defense after the siege began, grief overwhelmed
the nearly 400 men who had gathered there on the way to fight in San
Antonio. Some wanted to attack Santa Anna immediately, but Sam
Houston knew that rashness and bravery would not overcome Santa
Anna's great numbers. He ordered his "army" eastward. Within days,
Texans learned of the loss of Fannin's command at Goliad.
The Runaway Scrape, then, resulted from three items of bad news in
close proximity: losses
at the Alamo and Goliad
and the only remaining Texan military force in retreat. Settlers joined
the migration and became refugees. As more and more crowded roads,
panic increased. Food, ready to eat, was left on tables. Keepsakes
hastily packed in saddlebags, valises, or wagons were cached or simply
abandoned along the way when panic forced a quicker pace. Spring rains
enlarged streams, which created bottlenecks at crossings. The Runaway
Scrape was an unpleasant experience.
Some traveled all the way to Louisiana, considered beyond the reach
of the Mexican Army, especially after President Andrew Jackson stationed
US militia commanded by Edmund Gaines there. Some stopped in Nacogdoches
or east of Harrisburg to await developments. Word of Houston's
victory at San Jacinto
brought relief and the opportunity to return to homes sometimes more
likely to have been burgled by other, less scrupulous Texans than
sacked by Mexican soldiers. No wonder Texans do not like to remember
the Runaway Scrape. It does not fit their self-image.
All Things Historical
March
3-9, 2002 column
(Archie P. McDonald is Director of the East Texas Historical Association
and author or editor of over 20 books on Texas) |
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