Part of an old map of the San Jacinto area from the Texas Revolution

Veteran Bio

Texian Location:  Participant

The Kemp Sketch

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WILLIAMS, MATHEW R.-- Arrived in Texas sometime between May 2, 1835 and March 2, 1836. In the Headright Certificate issued to him Jan. 9, 1839 for a league and labor of land by the Board of Land Commissioners for Harrisburg County it is simply stated that he came to Texas prior to March 2, 1836. Had he arrived prior to May 2, 1836, this would have been stated in the certificate.

Mr. Williams was a member of Captain Moseley Baker's San Felipe Company at San Jacinto and on January 31, 1839 he was issued Donation Certificate No. 801 for 640 acres of land for having participated in the battle.

In Comptroller's Military Service Record No. 5178, signed at Houston, November 22, 1837, by Moseley Baker, late captain, and countersigned by Edward Burleson, Colonel of the 1st Regiment, it is certified that Mr. Williams served in Captain Baker's Company for three months, time not stated, and had participated in the Battle of San Jacinto. Captain Baker stated that by oversight Mr. Williams was not given a certificate of discharge. He was issued Bounty Certificate No. 8037 for 320 acres of land February 6, 1839, for having served in the army for a period of three months. The certificate was assigned to Samuel M. Frost at Harrisburg.

Since Donation Certificates could not, at that time, be sold, Mr. Williams on March 14, 1840 leased his certificate for a period of ninety-nine years. He was living in Fort Bend County April 2, 1844 when he signed an affidavit in which he acknowledged that he had leased the certificate on March 14, 1840.

Received title to 44,280 acres of land in Colony _____ situated in the present counties of Fannin and Hunt.

Written by Louis W. Kemp, between 1930 and 1952. Please note that typographical and factual errors have not been corrected from the original sketches. The biographies have been scanned from the original typescripts, a process that sometimes allows for mistakes in the new text. Researchers should verify the accuracy of the texts' contents through other sources before quoting in publications. Additional information on the veteran may be available in the Herzstein Library.


Battle Statistics

  • Died in Battle: No
  • Rank: Private
  • Company: Capt. Moseley Baker

Personal Statistics

  • Alternate Names: W.R.
  • Date of Birth: 1805
  • Birthplace: Rhode Island, Providence?
  • Came to Texas: Between May 2, 1835 and Mar 2, 1836? 1830?
  • Date of Death: 1852 Oct 10
  • Burial Place: Oakland Plantation, Clute, Brazoria County
  • Comments: Brother of Samuel May Williams, worked for S.F. Austin
  • Bounty Certificate: 8037
  • Donation Certificate: 801
  • Wife: Mary Ann E. Dunlavy
  • Children: Nathaniel F. Williams; Mary Jane Williams; Eliza Anne Williams; Samuel May Williams; Mathew R. Williams Jr.