Veteran Bio

Mr. Bostick's name appears on the San Jacinto rolls printed in 1836 as a member of Captain Moseley Baker's Company. After the battle he joined Captain William H. Patton's Company. Colonel Jesse Benton Jr. commanded this company from July 20, 1836 until it was disbanded and on June 21, 1856 Colonel Benton sent to Governor E. M. Pease the names of all of the men who had served from first to last in Captain Patton's Company. Those who participated in the battle of San Jacinto are separated from those who did not. The names of Levi T. and Sion Bostick are listed among those who were not at San Jacinto (Page 233 of the army rolls in the General Land Office). In the Comptroller's Military Service Record No. 410 it is certified that he served in the army from March 11 to May 29, 1836. He was entitled to receive 320 acres of land for the service but the Land Office records do not show that he applied for it. He assigned his rights to Donation Certificate No. 64 for 640 acres of land due him for having participated in the battle of San Jacinto to Philip Howard for $75.00, October 23, 1838. The Certificate was issued March 8, 1847 in Mr. Bostick's name.

On page 62 of the army rolls Mr. Bostick is shown as having enlisted in Captain Benjamin F. Reaville's Company July 1, 1836 and on August 30, 1838 Bounty Certificate No. 4236 was issued in his name for 320 acres of land for having served in the army from July 1 to October 1, 1836.

Mr. Sion R. Bostick was married to Susan Townsend, daughter of Acye Townsend, April 4, 1839 in Colorado County. Mrs. Bostick died in 1856 and Mr. Bostick later married Mary Indiana (Mollie) Rhodes. Mr. Bostick died October 15, 1902 of cancer at San Saba while a member of the Texas Veterans Association. He is buried in a marked grave in Odd Fellows Cemetery there. Mrs. Bostick died in March, 1918 at Goldthwaite, Texas.

Children of Mr. Bostick in order of birth were. (1) James, who died in infancy, (2) Susan La Manda, (3) Martha, (4) Lavene (5) Volney, (6) Hannah Elizabeth, (7) Joshua and (8) Hicks Bostick.

Mr. Bostick was a member of the Texas Veterans Association and in 1873 was living in Bostickville, Gonzales County. He moved to San Saba, Mills County in 1888 and was for a time engaged in the freighting business. Later he ran a hotel. He died October 15, 1902 and is buried in a marked grave in the cemetery at San Saba.

A written statement by Mr. Bostick on May 31, 1900 concerning some of the important incidents of his life was published in the Quarterly of the Texas Historical Association in October 1901. From this the following was extracted:

"I was at home at Columbus, but on the 21st day of March, after the Alamo had fallen and Fannin and his men had been massacred, I reenlisted at Columbus under Captain Moseley Baker, who had a company in Colonel Ed. Burleson's regiment of Houston's army, then retreating before the victorious Mexicans.

"Baker's company was sent to San Felipe to guard it, and Houston's army crossed the Brazos above San Felipe at Groce's (Ferry). My company crossed the Brazos at San Felipe and threw up some little fortifications. After the Mexicans crossed the Colorado river General Houston ordered us to cross over the river and burn San Felipe. The people had already abandoned the place, leaving everything they had in the houses and stores. We obeyed our orders, but remained in camp on the east side of the Brazes opposite San Felipe, and placed a picket guard on the west side to give notice of the approach of the Mexicans.

"In a few days, the Mexicans came up. One morning about sunrise they captured Simpson, one of our pickets. The other three pickets, Jack (James) Bell, I. L. Hill, and George W. Pettus got away and crossed the river in a dugout. We had some skirmish firing across the river at them. We would not let them cross, and they went down the Brazos and crossed at Richmond. We were ordered to join Houston at Donoho's below Groce's outside of the Brazos bottom in the edge of the prairie.

"The scouts reported that Santa Anna had gone down to Harrisburg on Buffalo bayou, where he never halted, but, after burning the place, moved on down the bayou to a point opposite the San Jacinto river, or rather below there. Houston's army followed, found Harrisburg burned up, moved on down the bayou, and went into camp just above the mouth of the San Jacinto river. The Mexicans came back up the river and some skirmishing took place on the 20th. They camped that night not far from Houston's army.

"The next day in the evening Houston ordered us to attack the Mexicans. Sherman on the left commenced the fight. We were all on foot except a small cavalry force under Lamar. We moved down a slope slowly, but when we started up a long sloping ridge (the Mexican breastworks were on the top of it), we all went in double quick. Everyone of us was yelling: 'Remember the Alamo! Remember Fannin!' In a little while the Mexicans broke and ran. Just back of their was low marshy land and a kind of lake. Many of them tried to cross, but they bogged down, and we shot them. A few got through, and we captured them next day.

"Captain Moseley Baker told me on the morning of the 22nd to scout around on the prairie and see if I could find any escaping Mexicans. I went and fell in with two other scouts, one of whom was named Joel Robinson, and the other Henry Sylvester. We had horses that we had captured from the Mexicans. When we were about eight miles from the battle field, about one o'clock, we saw the head and shoulders of a man above the tall sedge grass, walking through the prairie. As soon as we saw him we started towards him in a gallop. When he discovered us, he squatted in the grass; but we soon came to the place. As we rode up we aimed at him and told him to surrender. He held up his hands and spoke in Spanish, but I could not understand him. He was dressed a common soldier with dingy looking white uniform. Under the uniform he had on a fine shirt. As we went back to camp the prisoner rode behind Robinson awhile and then rode behind Sylvester. I was the youngest and smallest of the party, and I would not agree to let him ride behind me. I wanted to shoot him. We did not know who he was. He was tolerably dark skinned, weighed about one hundred and forty-five pounds, and wore side whiskers. When we got to camp, the Mexican soldiers, then prisoners, saluted him and said 'el presidente.' We knew then that we had made a big haul. All three of us who had captured him were angry at ourselves for not killing him out on the prairie to be consumed by the wolves and buzzards. We took him to General Houston, who was wounded and lying under a big oak tree.

"The remainder of the story of the battle others have told. It is history. I have told what I saw as a young private; I was not seventeen years old. The causes of the discontent and the troubles with Mexico I did not then know. History tells all that. As a boy all I knew was that we had a row on our hands, and they wanted to fight. I thought I could kill Mexicans as easily as I could deer and turkeys.

"In 1842 I helped General Burleson whip the Comanches at Plum Creek fight, and in 1848, during the Mexican War, I went out again under Claiborne Herbert. Still later, in 1861, I went again, this time to Virginia, and served in Hood's brigade in the Fifth Texas. During the war with Spain I was very much troubled because I was too old to go,"

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