The Battle of San Jacinto and the San Jacinto CampaignKemp, Louis Wiltz
History
The Battle of San Jacinto and the San Jacinto Campaign
Kemp, Louis Wiltz
San Jacinto, Battle of, Tex., 1836; Texas -- History -- Revolution, 1835-1836
The reinforced concrete structure is faced with rough sawn fossilized
limestone quarried near Leander, Williamson County, Texas. The interior
walls are highly polished. The base of the building is 124 feet square
and 36 feet high. The shaft is 47 feet square at the base and 30 feet at
the top.
On the exterior walls of the shaft, about 90 feet above the ground, a
frieze 178 feet around and 15½ feet high shows in relief the history of
Texas from the coming of the Anglo-Americans to the present day. This
was executed by William McVey, Houston sculptor.
On the outer sides of the base of the monument are carved inscriptions,
summarizing the salient events of the Texas revolution. Each of these
eight spaces measures 25 feet by 13 feet, and the letters in the
inscriptions are 8 inches in height. Written by L. W. Kemp with
collaboration of Dr. E. C. Barker, Mrs. Herbert Gambrell and other
historical authorities, they epitomize the whole evolution of Texas
independence in approximately 600 words.
[Illustration: San Jacinto Memorial Monument and Museum]
There are five rooms on the first floor of the monument. The entrance is
through the Hall of Honor, which is flanked by two spacious rooms. The
south room houses the exhibits relating to the Spanish and Mexican
period of Texas history, many of them donated by Colonel and Mrs. George
A. Hill, Jr. Exhibits in the north room relate to the Anglo-American
period until the beginning of the War between the States. An entrance
lobby from the Hall of Honor leads to the elevator which runs to the
observation deck in the tower. The elevator lobby serves as a gallery
for paintings. Behind the elevator is a small room connecting the north
and south rooms. It is devoted to relics of domestic life.
Two great bronze plaques adorn the interior walls of the monument. One,
in the south room, records the names of the 910 heroes who fought in the
battle; the other, in the north room, lists the 248 men of Houston’s
army, mostly sick and non-effectives, who were detailed to remain at the
camp established opposite Harrisburg. The lists were compiled by L. W.
Kemp. In this booklet they were revised to January 1, 1947.
The monument was designed by Alfred C. Finn and was constructed by the
W. S. Bellows Construction Company of Houston.
Operation and maintenance of the monument and museum is financed,
without cost to the State, by receipts from a small fee charged for
riding the elevator to the observation tower, and by the sale of
souvenirs. The San Jacinto Museum of History Association, which operates
the monument, is a non-profit organization incorporated under the laws
of Texas, November 7, 1938. Members of the Association’s board of
trustees are nominated by the San Jacinto State Park Board and approved
by the State Board of Control.
THE FIELD OF ST. HYACINTH
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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