THE VICTORY OF THE TEXIAN ARMY on the plain of San Jacinto in April 1836 was built on many factors, including the leadership of Sam Houston, the grim determination of his troops, and the vagaries of weather that brought the two armies together. But there was another factor that shaped the victory, one that wasn’t anywhere near San Jacinto that day: the officers and crews of the Texian Navy. This presentation will follow step-by-step how captures of Mexican ships by the Texian Navy helped simultaneously to provide for Houston’s army and deny Santa Anna the supplies his soldados desperately needed.
Andy Hill will present his talk at the History Under the Star lecture series on Saturday, September 21, 2024. The talk will run from 5:00 to 6:00 and will be followed by a time for questions and answers, and a reception.
Cost: $5 per person/$3 for Museum members; students are free. Purchase your ticket today.
Andy Hall holds a bachelor's degree in Historical Studies from the University of Houston - Clear Lake, and a master's degree in Museum Science from Texas Tech University. Since 1990 Hall has volunteered with the office of the State Marine Archaeologist at the Texas Historical Commission to help document historic shipwrecks in Texas waters. Hall was part of the inaugural group of volunteer marine archaeological stewards appointed by the Texas Historical Commission, the first group of its kind in the nation. From 1997 to 2002, Hall served as Co-Principal Investigator for the Denbigh Project, the most extensive archaeological investigation of a Civil War blockade runner to date in the Gulf of Mexico. In 2009 Hall helped identify the wreck of Will-o’-the-Wisp, one of the most famous blockade runners of the war. Hall has written two books on Texas maritime history, The Galveston-Houston Packet: Steamboats on Buffalo Bayou and Civil War Blockade Running on the Texas Coast, both published by the History Press of Charleston, South Carolina. Hall writes and speaks frequently on the subjects of Texas's maritime history and its military conflicts in the 19th century. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Texas Navy Association, a non-profit educational organization that promotes the history and legacy of the naval forces of the Republic of Texas.
The History Under the Stars lecture series is made possible by a generous grant from the George and Mary Josephine Hamman Foundation. Videography and Video Production made possible by Humanities Texas.
