Veteran Bio
The Kemp Sketch
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McKNEELY, SAMUEL W. -- Listed on page 11 of the San Jacinto rolls printed in a pamphlet in 1836 as McNEIL, given name or initials omitted. The records of the Texas Veterans Association show that Mr. McKneely was born in Louisiana in 1813 and came to Texas in 1835. In Service Record No. 7317 signed at Columbia, January 31, 1837, it is certified that Mr. McKneely enlisted in the army of Bexar, December 9, 1835; joined Captain John Chenoweth's Company January 25, 1836; served in the campaign with Francis W. Johnson and Dr. Grant; participated in the battle of San Jacinto as a member of Captain William S. Fisher's Company and was discharged from the army, December 29, 1836. He was a member of Captain Thomas Lewellyn's Company, Johnson and Grant Detachment. He was captured at San Patricio, February 27, 1836 and was taken to Matamoras as a prisoner. In compliance with all Act of the Legislature signed August 13, 1856 Mr. McKneely was on August 15,1856 issued Bounty Certificate No. 4/38 for 1280 acres of land He also received a Veterans Donation Certificate for 1280 acres of land.
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(Margin note. Have to pull H. R.) Mr. McKneely was a charter member of the Texas Veterans Association, having attended the meeting at Houston, May 13,14, and 15, 1873 when the Association was formed. He lived for a number of years in Point Coupe Parrish, Louisiana. He died, according to Miss Lucile McKneely, of Carlsbad, New Mexico, in Texarkana, Arkansas in 1888. John Henry Brown in his Indian Wars and Pioneer of Texas, page 31, states that Mr. McKneely died in Texarkana in 1889. The Dallas News, April 20, 1888 announced that "Col. Sam W. McKneely of Texarkana, well known in Texas as one of the few survivors of the "Alamo massacre" passed through Corsicana Thursday in route for Temple to attend the Texas Veterans Association reunion.
Mr. McKneely was married but had no children.
W.0.B. McKneely, who died in Point Coupe Parrish, Louisiana was a brother of Samuel M. McKneely. Samuel W. McKneely, who died in Point Coupe Parrish, was a son of W.0.B. McKneely. Mrs. W. Watson, Fordoche, Point Coupe, Louisiana, was a sister of Samuel W. McKneely. Mr. J. H. Huff, who lived in Indianola, Mississippi is a daughter of Mrs. Watson. The parents of Miss Lucile McKneely were S.W. McKneely and Sarah Elizabeth McKneely.
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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.
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Battle Statistics
- Died in Battle: No
- Rank: Private
- Company: Capt. William S. Fisher
Personal Statistics
- Alternate Names: McNeely, McNeil, McNelly
- Date of Birth: 1813
- Birthplace: Louisiana
- Came to Texas: 1835
- Date of Death: 1888/1889
- Bounty Certificate: 4/38
- Wife: Yes
- Family at San Jacinto: Future father-in-law Madison G. Whitaker fought at San Jacinto
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