Gonzales Cannon Burial Site
Gonzales, Gonzales County, Texas
Marker Inscription
On this site September 29, 1835 the Gonzales cannon was buried from the 150 Mexican Dragoons sent to Demand it. Two days later it was mounted on ox-cart wheels, loaded with chains and scrap iron, and fired at the Mexican Army, the first shot of the Revolution. This location was known as George W. Davis Peach Orchard.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
At this spot in a peach orchard, the colonists of Gonzales buried their contested cannon to hide it from 150 Mexican dragoons sent to seize it in September 1835. Two days later they dug it up, mounted it on ox-cart wheels, loaded it with chains and scrap iron, and fired what is remembered as the first shot of the Texas Revolution.
Why it matters
This orchard marks the literal opening shot of Texas's war for independence, the moment a local quarrel over a small gun turned into revolution.
The story behind this marker
AI contextThe era
In the early 1830s, Texas was part of Mexico, and thousands of American settlers had moved there under colonization agreements. Gonzales was the capital of Green DeWitt's colony on the Guadalupe River. It sat on an exposed frontier where settlers worried about raids, and the Mexican government had provided the town with a small cannon for defense.
By 1835, relations between the colonists and the central government had grown tense. Mexico's politics were shifting toward a stronger central government, and many Texians feared losing the local rights they had enjoyed. Authorities in turn worried that the colonists were becoming rebellious. Each side watched the other with growing suspicion.
In that atmosphere, a demand to return one small cannon became much more than a quarrel over property. It became a test of who really held authority in Texas.
People & events
In late September 1835, Mexican military authorities sent a force of dragoons, about 150 of them according to the marker, to bring back the Gonzales cannon. The townspeople had no intention of giving it up. While they stalled and sent out calls for help, they buried the cannon on September 29 in what was then George W. Davis's peach orchard, right here.
Word spread fast, and volunteers rode in from the surrounding settlements. Two days after it was buried, the colonists dug the cannon up and mounted it on a pair of ox-cart wheels. With no proper ammunition, they loaded it with chains and scrap iron. The defiant banner tied to these events, showing a cannon and the words "Come and Take It," became one of the most famous flags in Texas history.
The cannon was then fired at the Mexican troops, the first shot of the Texas Revolution. The fighting itself was small and brief, but its meaning was enormous. What happened to the cannon afterward is genuinely uncertain, and historians and collectors still debate whether any surviving gun is the original.
Its place in the American story
The confrontation at Gonzales is often called the "Lexington of Texas," a comparison to the opening shots of the American Revolution. In both cases, a government's attempt to seize local arms set off armed resistance, and a small skirmish became the start of a war.
Within months the Texas Revolution would lead to the Alamo, the declaration of independence, and the Battle of San Jacinto. Texas became an independent republic and later joined the United States. That chain of events reshaped the map of North America and fed directly into the Mexican-American War.
The "Come and Take It" spirit also lives on as a lasting symbol of defiance in American culture. Its story started with a cannon hidden in a peach orchard, which is what makes this quiet spot so remarkable.
If you visit
It takes some imagination here: no orchard rows remain to tell you this was once a farmer's peach orchard. Picture townspeople hurriedly digging in the soft ground to hide a small cannon while soldiers waited for an answer.
Gonzales takes great pride in this history, and you'll find several related markers and sites around town. Look for the "Come and Take It" design, which turns up all over Gonzales, from monuments to storefronts.
This marker is a natural stop on a Texas Revolution road trip. From Gonzales, you can follow the story of 1835–36 across South Central Texas toward San Antonio and beyond, starting where the first shot was fired.
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 events
- · Texas Revolution
- · Battle of Gonzales
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Plaza
Gonzales, TX
When Gonzales was laid out as a four-league town tract, its inner city held 49 squares, seven of them reserved for public use. This particular square was meant for a municipal building but instead became a public plaza. Today it bears the name Texas Heroes Square, honoring the men of Gonzales who took up arms in the Texas Revolution.
Andrew Ponton
Gonzales, TX
Andrew Ponton came to Texas in 1829, settled in Green DeWitt's colony, and by 1834 served as alcalde—mayor—of Gonzales. When Mexican forces demanded the town's cannon in 1835, his delay in surrendering it helped spark the "Come and Take It" fight now remembered as the opening battle of the Texas Revolution. He also helped rally the Gonzales men, the "Immortal 32," who answered Travis's call and died at the Alamo, and he later served the Republic of Texas as a legislator and judge.
James W. Robinson
Gonzales, TX
Indiana-born James W. Robinson came to Texas in 1833 and was elected the Republic's first lieutenant governor in 1835, briefly serving as governor before shouldering a musket as a private at the Battle of San Jacinto in April 1836. He later settled in Gonzales, sat as a district judge, and served on the state Supreme Court. The office he first held became the second-highest in Texas, wielding broad power over the Senate and legislation.
Jail Square
Gonzales, TX
First mapped in 1825 as Market Square, this Gonzales public square had become known as Jail Square by 1836. That year, as Santa Anna's army advanced, Gonzales was burned by order of General Sam Houston to keep its buildings and supplies from falling into enemy hands—part of the desperate retreat known as the Runaway Scrape. Gonzales, already famed as the site of the war's opening 'Come and Take It' clash, thus sacrificed itself in the campaign for independence.