Historians Examine Individuals’ Impact On Battle of San Jacinto

Any seventh-grade history student in Texas can recite the significance of April 21, 1836, but dates alone are meaningless. History is about people and how their actions affected the events of the time in which they lived. An in-depth look at some of the individuals who shaped the history of Texas will be the focus of the Battle of San Jacinto Symposium 2002: Personalities of San Jacinto. Expert historians will take a fresh look at some of these personalities during the symposium that will run from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Friday, April 19, at the JW Marriott Hotel, 5150 Westheimer near Houston’s Galleria.

“Sam Houston and San Jacinto: It Wasn’t Supposed To Happen This Way” will be addressed by Austin-based author James L. Haley. Haley has written more than a half-dozen books devoted primarily to Texas history. He currently is touring behind his new 500-page book, Sam Houston, published by the University of Oklahoma Press. For much of his research, Haley relied on documents only recently made available to unravel the mystery and controversy surrounding the commander of the Texian forces.

Houston’s military leadership during the Texas Revolution will be examined by Stephen L. Hardin, Ph.D., in “Houston’s Generalship: The Method, the Meaning, and the Myth.” A Professor of History at The Victoria College, Victoria, Dr. Hardin has written several books and is best known for his Texian Iliad: A Military History of the Texas Revolution, 1835-36. Texian Iliad was singled out for recognition by the Texas Historical Commission, the Sons of the Republic of Texas and the American Association for State and Local History.

Josefina Zoraida Vázquez, Ph.D., will examine the leader of the opposite camp, “The Enigmatic Antonio López de Santa Anna.” Armed with Ph.D.s from both Universidad Central de Madrid and Universidad Autonoma de México, as well as postdoctoral work at Harvard University, Dr. Zoraida Vázquez has written more than 20 books concerning the history of Mexico. Among those that focus specifically on the cross-border conflicts of the mid-1800s are La Intervención Norteamericana, 1846-1848 and México al Tiempo de su Guerra con Estados Unidos. Fellowships awarded to her include the Organization of American States, Rockefeller and Fulbright.

Tejanos’ role in the struggle for independence, “From Rear Guard to Front Line: Juan Seguín and His Tejano Company at San Jacinto,” will be presented by Jesús F. de la Teja, Ph.D. After earning his Ph.D. from the University of Texas Austin, Dr. de la Teja served as Director of Archives and Records at the Texas General Land Office and is now Professor of History at Southwest Texas State University in San Marcos. He edited A Revolution Remembered: The Memoirs and Selected Correspondence of Juan N. Seguín, which received an award from the Sons of the Republic of Texas. His book, San Antonio de Bexar: A Community on New Spain’s Northern Frontier, received recognition with the Presidio La Bahia Award and from the San Antonio Conservation Society.

Gerard Kendall, a lifetime member of the San Jacinto Chapter of the Sons of the Republic of Texas, will discuss one of his ancestors, “Sidney Sherman: A Contributor to the Establishment and Development of Texas.” Kendall is Senior Industrial Relations Representative for Halliburton Company in Houston.

Noted map collector and preservationist, J.P. Bryan will present “San Jacinto – Who Wears the Coat of Many Colors?” for symposium participants. The Senior Managing Director of Torch Energy Advisors in Houston, Bryan is a former President of the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). He restored the Gage Hotel in Marathon, and he and his wife Mary Jon, through TSHA, have an annual Leadership in Education Award to reward history teachers for excellence.

The Battle of San Jacinto Symposium 2002 is organized by the San Jacinto Historical Advisory Board and co-sponsored by the Texas State Historical Association, San Jacinto Museum of History Association, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, the Harris County Historical Commission, and the San Jacinto Chapters of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, the Sons of the Republic of Texas, and the JW Marriott, with major funding by The Summerlee Foundation.

Registration, including lunch, is $30 per person. A special $73 “San Jacinto Symposium Rate” is available for attendees desiring overnight accommodations at the JW Marriott, 713/961-1500. For reservations, send checks payable to San Jacinto Symposium to Evelyn Buchner, San Jacinto Museum of History Association, One Monument Circle, La Porte, Texas 77571. For more information, call Buchner at 281/479-2421, or email her, ebuchner@sanjacinto-museum.org.