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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MARTIN, PHILIP -- Name not shown on the San Jacinto rolls printed in 1836.

The records of the Texas Veterans Association, of which he was a member, show that Mr. Martin was born in North Carolina in 1804. In the Headright Certificate issued to him November 1, 1838 for one labor of land by the Board of Land Commissioners for Montgomery County it is stated that he came to Texas in 1828. On May 26, 1831 he received title to one league of land in Burnet's Colony situated in the present county of Anderson.

On page 125 of the army rolls in the General Land Office Mr. Martin is shown as having enlisted in Captain Hayden's Nacogdoches Company, March 6, 1836. Senator Sam Houston in a speech in the United States Senate, February 28, 1859 read a letter written by Mr. Martin to him, November 2, 1857

In it Mr. Martin stated that he had joined the army on the Colorado, and in its march was assigned to Captain Hayden Arnold's Company, in which he fought at San Jacinto. General Houston accepted the statement as being true.

On December 6, 1838, Mr. Martin was issued Donation Certificate No. 661 for 640 acres of land for having participated in the Battle of San Jacinto, he did not receive a Bounty Certificate for land for his other services in the army.

Mr. Martin resided near Willis, Montgomery County. The Galveston News of October 20, 1877 in reporting a convention of the Texas Veterans Association, announced that Mr. Martin had died in 1876.



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. Hayden S. Arnold

Personal Statistics

  • Date of Birth: 1804
  • Birthplace: North Carolina
  • Came to Texas: 1828
  • Date of Death: 1876
  • Donation Certificate: 661
  • Wife: 1. unknown; 2. Mary Shaye
  • Children: Sam Houston Martin