Sidney Sherman
Stratford, Sherman County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Born in Marlboro, Mass., to Micah and Susanna Dennison (Frost) Sherman, Sidney Sherman (1805-1873) lived in Boston, New York City, and Cincinnati before settling in Newport, KY. There he married Catherine Isabel Cox (1815-1865) in 1835; the couple had eight children. After a Cincinnati meeting in Nov. 1835 supporting the Texas Revolution, Sherman sold his business interests and recruited and equipped 52 men, known as the Kentucky Rifles (or Newport Rifles). They sailed on the steamship Augusta, carrying from Newport a flag depicting Lady Liberty with a sword and a ribbon reading “Liberty or Death.” The troops joined the Texian army at Gonzales on March 6, 1836, and fought in the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, where Col. Sherman commanded the Second Regiment, leading the left wing and opening the attack which led to victory over the Mexican army. He was often credited with the rallying cry “Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad!” Sherman returned to Kentucky to recruit more soldiers and to bring his family to Texas. They lived near San Jacinto Bay and later at Harrisburg, Richmond and Galveston. He was elected as Harris County’s Representative to the Seventh Congress of the Republic of Texas and served as major general of the militia in the 1840s. He was also an entrepreneur, operating a sawmill and a hotel and organizing the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos and Colorado Railway Co., first railroad in the state, in the 1850s. Sherman died in Galveston and is buried there at Lakeview Cemetery. The Texas Legislature designated the city of Sherman, seat of Grayson County (1846), and Sherman County in the panhandle (1876) to be named for this prominent Texan. The state of Texas also erected a statue in Galveston for the 1936 Texas Centennial. The “Liberty or Death” flag flown at San Jacinto is now in Austin, displayed at the Capitol building of the state which Sherman helped to create and develop.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Sidney Sherman was a Cincinnati businessman who threw himself into the Texas Revolution, selling off his interests to recruit and equip 52 Kentucky volunteers who sailed for Texas under a homemade "Liberty or Death" flag. He commanded the Second Regiment at the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, opening the attack that broke the Mexican army, and was long credited with the cry "Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad!" He went on to serve the Republic of Texas as a legislator and militia general and helped launch the state's first railroad.
Why it matters
Sherman embodies the volunteers from across the young United States who poured into Texas to win its independence, and his name endures on two Texas counties and a city.
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Related people
- · Sidney Sherman
- · Catherine Isabel Cox
Related events
- · Battle of San Jacinto
- · Texas Revolution
Themes & tags
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