HistoricSiteMarkers
Early Republic

Major Reuben R. Brown

Jones Creek, Brazoria County, Texas

Marker Inscription

(February 3, 1808 - March 2, 1894) In Texas War for Independence, joined Matamoros Expedition of January 1836. In detachment that captured horses of Gen. Urrea of Mexican army. Brown was made captive in a counterattack, and spent 11 months in prison in Mexico, but finally escaped. In his old age, he lived at "Sur Mer", home of his daughter Mrs. James Perry Bryan, a great-granddaughter by marriage of Moses Austin, whose courage had led to colonization of Texas. Recorded - 1970

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

Reuben R. Brown joined the Matamoros Expedition in January 1836 during the Texas War for Independence and rode in the detachment that captured horses from the Mexican general Urrea's forces. Taken prisoner in a counterattack, he endured eleven months of captivity in Mexico before escaping, and in old age lived with his daughter โ€” who had married into the family of Moses Austin, whose vision first opened Texas to colonization.

Why it matters

His capture, imprisonment, and escape put a human face on the perilous struggle for Texas independence, and his family ties reach back to the very origins of Anglo colonization.

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Related people

  • ยท Reuben R. Brown
  • ยท Moses Austin

Related events

  • ยท Matamoros Expedition

Themes & tags

Military & WartimeWestward ExpansionFrontier HistoryMemorial

Nearby & related markers

Henry William Munson

Jones Creek, TX

Henry William Munson's life spanned the violent birth of Anglo Texas. He fought at the 1813 Battle of Medina near San Antonio, returned east, then came back as one of Austin's colonists in 1824. He took up arms for Mexico to put down the 1827 Fredonian Rebellion, but turned against Santa Anna's agents at the 1832 Battle of Velasco. He and his wife Ann named one son Mordello, after the Mexican officer who had saved Munson's life at Medina.

Dr. Branch Tanner Archer

Clute, TX

Branch Tanner Archer was among the Virginia-born physicians and firebrands who threw their lot in with Texas during its break from Mexico. In 1835 he presided over the Consultation, the provisional assembly that set the colonists on the road to revolution, then sailed east as one of three commissioners sent to win money, arms, and sympathy from the United States. A frontier county still carries his name, a common way early Texas honored the men who argued its independence into being.