Battle of San Jacinto
Houston, Harris County, Texas
Marker Inscription
At mid-afternoon April 21, 1836, two miles to the north, General Sam Houston with about 1,000 Texans in 18 minutes annihilated the 1,400-man army of Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, President of Mexico. Screened by trees and rising ground, Houston's men formed with Edward Burleson's regiment at center, Sidney Sherman's on the left wing, artillery under George W. Hockley on Burleson's right, the infantry under Henry Millard on the right of the artillery. Under M. B. Lamar, a future president of Texas, the cavalry took the extreme right, to cut off possible flight of Mexican troops. Their 4-piece band playing a popular love song, "Will You Come to the Bower," the Texans attacked at a run, crying, "Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad! "Such was their fury that 630 of the enemy were killed, 730 captured. enemy lead shattered Gen. Houston's ankle, but he lost only 9 men killed or mortally wounded and 30 wounded less seriously. San Jacinto stands as one of the world's greatest victories It gave Texas independence, and with her annexation 9 years later brought into the Union all or parts of Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Utah and Wyoming.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
On the afternoon of April 21, 1836, Sam Houston's roughly one thousand Texans stormed Santa Anna's larger Mexican army in a charge that lasted only eighteen minutes yet decided a continent's future. Crying "Remember the Alamo!" and "Remember Goliad!" as their band played a love song, the Texans routed the enemy, capturing Santa Anna himself the next day. The stunning victory secured Texas independence and, with annexation nine years later, set in motion the U.S. acquisition of vast western lands.
Why it matters
San Jacinto won Texas its independence in eighteen minutes and reshaped the map of North America, ultimately drawing all or part of nine future states into the Union.
The story behind this marker
AI contextThe era
In 1835 and 1836, Texas was in revolt. Americans and Tejanos living in the Mexican province of Coahuila y Tejas had grown increasingly at odds with the government in Mexico City, especially as Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, Mexico's president, moved to centralize power. Fighting broke out in the fall of 1835, and in March 1836 delegates declared Texas independent.
The spring of 1836 brought disaster after disaster for the Texan cause. The Alamo in San Antonio fell to Santa Anna's army in early March, and its defenders were killed. Later that month, hundreds of Texan prisoners were executed at Goliad. Families fled eastward in a desperate flight that became known as the Runaway Scrape.
Sam Houston, commanding the Texan army, spent weeks retreating east, drilling his small force and waiting for the right moment. Many of his men were frustrated and eager to fight. That moment came in April, near the confluence of Buffalo Bayou and the San Jacinto River.
People & events
In the middle of the afternoon on April 21, 1836, Houston's army of about 1,000 men prepared to attack Santa Anna's force of about 1,400. Hidden by trees and a rise in the ground, the Texans formed their battle line: Edward Burleson's regiment in the center, Sidney Sherman's on the left, the artillery under George W. Hockley to Burleson's right, and Henry Millard's infantry to the right of the guns. On the far right rode the cavalry under Mirabeau B. Lamar, who would later become president of Texas, positioned to cut off any Mexican retreat.
Then they charged. A small band played a popular love song, "Will You Come to the Bower," as the Texans ran forward shouting "Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad!" The fight lasted about eighteen minutes. The marker records 630 of the enemy killed and 730 captured, against 9 Texans killed or mortally wounded and 30 wounded. Houston himself was among the wounded, his ankle shattered by a ball. Casualty figures for the battle differ somewhat from source to source, as they often do for battles of this era.
Santa Anna escaped the field but was captured the following day. As a prisoner, he agreed to terms that brought the fighting to an end, though Mexico did not accept the loss of Texas for years afterward.
Its place in the American story
San Jacinto won Texas its independence. For nearly a decade, Texas existed as an independent republic, with Sam Houston and Mirabeau B. Lamar among its presidents. In 1845, Texas was annexed by the United States.
Annexation helped lead to war between the United States and Mexico, and the peace that followed in 1848 transferred vast territory to the United States. That is the chain of events the marker points to when it lists all or parts of Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Utah and Wyoming. Few battles so brief have had consequences so large for the map of North America.
Those consequences were complicated. The expansion that followed reshaped the lives of Mexicans, Tejanos and Native peoples across the Southwest, and it deepened national arguments over whether slavery would spread into new territory. San Jacinto is a triumph in Texas memory, and it is also the opening of a larger and more contested American story.
If you visit
The battle was fought on open ground not far from here, now preserved as a state historic site. The most striking feature on the landscape is the San Jacinto Monument, a towering shaft that rises high above the flat coastal plain and can be seen from far away.
As you walk the grounds, try to picture the scene: the tree line that screened Houston's army, the gentle rise in the ground, and the open field the Texans crossed at a run. It is a quiet place now, which makes it easier to imagine the noise and fury of those eighteen minutes.
San Jacinto is an easy side trip from Houston and a natural stop for anyone following the story of the Texas Revolution. Pair it with a visit to the Alamo in San Antonio and the sites at Goliad to trace the path from defeat to victory in the spring of 1836.
Written by AI to add context, grounded in the marker’s inscription and the historical record. The inscription above is the original, unaltered text.
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Related people
- · Sam Houston
- · Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna
- · Edward Burleson
- · Sidney Sherman
- · Mirabeau B. Lamar
Related events
- · Battle of San Jacinto
- · Texas Revolution
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Texas Army Attacked in Four Divisions
Houston, TX
On April 21, 1836, the small Texan army under Sam Houston formed for its decisive assault on Santa Anna's camp near the San Jacinto River. This marker records the order of battle: cavalry on the right under Mirabeau B. Lamar, infantry and the famed "Twin Sisters" cannon in support, Edward Burleson's regiment in the center, and Sidney Sherman's on the left. The surprise attack that followed lasted only minutes yet secured Texas independence.
Site of Battle of San Jacinto, 1836
Houston, TX
On the afternoon of April 21, 1836, near this spot, Gen. Sam Houston's small Texian army formed up to fall upon the much larger Mexican force of Gen. Antonio López de Santa Anna. The surprise attack that followed lasted only about eighteen minutes but shattered Santa Anna's army and led to his capture the next day. The victory secured the independence of the Republic of Texas.
Home of Mrs. Margaret McCormick
Houston, TX
This site marks where the home of Margaret McCormick stood on April 21, 1836 — the day the decisive Battle of San Jacinto was fought nearby, winning Texas its independence from Mexico. Her husband Arthur had died here in 1825, and Margaret herself lost her life in 1854 when the home burned. The marker ties an ordinary settler family's homestead to one of the turning points of the Texas Revolution.
Within A Few Minutes, Battle of San Jacinto Site
Houston, TX
This marker captures the stunning arithmetic of the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836. By General Sam Houston's own report, the fighting left 630 of Santa Anna's soldiers dead, 208 wounded, and 730 captured, along with money, arms, and equipment—while the Texans lost just 9 killed and 30 wounded. Rarely has so brief an engagement proven so lopsided or so consequential.