James Fannin

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James Fannin
James Fannin

James Walker Fannin, Jr. (January 1, 1804 – March 27, 1836) was a 19th century U.S. military figure and Texas leader during the Texas Revolution of 1835–36.

Fannin County, Texas and Fannin County, Georgia are named in his honor. Ironically, the county seat of Fannin County, Texas is Bonham, named after the individual who sought Fannin's aid at the Alamo.

Camp Fannin, a large military training and POW Camp used during World War II and located near Tyler, TX, was also named in his honor.

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[edit] Early life

Fannin's birth was unplanned and considered a scandal, for Fannin's mother was not his father's wife. Fannin's grandfather, James W. Fanning, dropped the 'g' from his last name to disassociate himself from his "Tory" brother during the US Revolutionary War. His grandfather died in 1803. Fannin's father, Isham, died on April 26, 1817. He had two children, Jamie and Eliza. Both girls. Fannin was born in Twiggs County, Georgia.

[edit] Military career

Fannin joined the United States Military Academy at West Point on July 1, 1819. He resigned from West Point due to poor grades, absences and tardiness.

[edit] Private Citizen

In 1828 he moved to Columbus, Georgia to become a merchant. He married Minerva Fort on 17 July 1829 and they had two daughters, Jamie Fannin (b. 1830) and Eliza (b. 1832). In 1832, to the state convention in 1833 from Troup County, Georgia.

[edit] Texas: 1834-35

In 1834, Fannin settled at Velasco in the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas (now Texas), where he apparently was a plantation owner. By 1835, Fannin was becoming part of the growing resistance to the Mexican government in Texas. He wrote letters seeking financial assistance and volunteers to help the Texas cause. In April 1835, Fannin traveled to New Orleans where he was arrested for an outstanding debt he owed to Theopholus Hyde. Fannin posted bail and went back to Texas. By September, Fannin was an active volunteer in the Texas Army. He participated in the Battle of Gonzales on October 2 and urged Stephen F. Austin to send aid to Gonzales. Fannin later worked with James Bowie, First Battalion, First Division, under Austin's orders to secure supplies and determine the conditions in and around Gonzales and San Antonio de Bexar. Fannin, together with Bowie also participated in the Battle of Concepción on 28 October 1835.

[edit] Texas: 1835-36

In November 1835, Austin ordered Fannin and William B. Travis and about (150) men to cut off any Mexican supply party. On 13 November Houston offered Fannin the post of Inspector General to the regular army. Fannin wrote back requesting a field appointment of Brigadier General and a "post of danger". On November 22 1835, Fannin was honorably discharged from the volunteer army by Austin and began campaigning for a larger regular army for Texas. He also went home to spend time with his family.

Sam Houston, supported by Governor Smith, commissioned Fannin as a Colonel in the regular army on 7 December 1835. By 7 January 1836, the provisional government had appointed Fannin 'military agent' that answered only to the council and not Houston. He began recruiting forces and supplies for the forthcoming and confusing campaign against Matamoros, Tamaulipas. However, Fannin had difficulty leading the volunteers in his charge. He tried to institute regular army discipline, but his irregular volunteers would not accept it. Many of his men felt he was aloof and several historians believe that he was an ineffective commander because of it. The majority of the men serving under Fannin had only been in Texas a short time and this frustrated Fannin who wrote acting Lt. Governor James W. Robinson "..among the rise of 400 men at, and near this post, I doubt if 25 citizens of Texas can be mustered in the ranks...".

In early February, Fannin sailed from Velasco and landed at Copano with four companies of the Georgia Battalion, moving to join a small band of Texans at Refugio. When Mexican reinforcements, under General Jose Urrea, arrived at Matamoros, thus complicating the Texan's plans to attack that city, Fannin withdrew twenty-five miles north to Goliad. He quartered his troops at Presidio La Bahia. Now Lt. Colonel of the First Artillery, Fannin began strengthening defenses at Goliad, and sent out his captains to find recruits for the army. "Enlist all you can.." ..." fill up your companies, and be ready for the field soon".

Appeals from Travis at the Alamo (via James Bonham) prompted Fannin to launch a relief march of over 300 men and four pieces of artillery on 25 February. Finally, after some delay, Fannin and his men moved out on the 28th for the ninety-odd miles to San Antonio. The entire relief mission was a failure. The troops barely had crossed the San Antonio River when wagons broke down, forcing the men to camp still within sight of Goliad. There was little or no food to take, some men were barefooted and over night, the oxen to pull the wagons wandered off.

On 12 March, Fannin sent Captain Amon Butler King and about twenty-eight men to take wagons to Refugio and help evacuate the remaining families there. King and his men confronted an advance party of Gen. Urrea's cavalry in Refugio failed and he withdrew to the old mission. A local boy managed to sneak out of town and alerted Fannin of the skirmish. Fannin sent Lt. Col. William Ward and about 120 men to King's aid. Ward managed to drive the small Mexican forces away and decided to stay the night to rest his men. On 14 March 1836, Ward and King were attacked by Urrea and over 200 Mexican soldiers as they were about to depart back to Fannin. The same day, Gen. Houston ordered Fannin to retreat to Victoria.

[edit] Battle of Coleto Creek

On 19 March, about 9:30am, Fannin began his slow retreat from Fort Defiance[1] and destroyed everything he did not take with him. Fannin took nine cannon and over 500 spare muskets and was heavily ladened with supplies and baggage. The column traveled about six miles when Fannin ordered a halt to rest his animals. At about 3:00pm Mexican cavalry appeared near Fannin's troops. The Texans immediately formed a hollow square with their wagons and cannons placed in each corner for defense as Gen. Urrea's forces attacked. After a fierce battle that cost the Mexicans about 100-200 killed and wounded; Texan losses were seven to nine killed and sixty wounded, Fannin and his troops, facing overwhelming odds, surrendered at the Battle of Coleto. They were marched back to Fort Defiance and were imprisoned.

Mexican Gen. Urrea appointed Col. Jose Nicolas de la Portilla in command of the La Bahia garrison while he was away at Victoria. On 26 March 1836 a courier arrived with orders from Gen. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna to Portilla: " I therefore order, that you should give immediate effect to the said ordinance in respect to all those foreigners who have yielded to the force of arms." Portilla answered with the reply that the prisoners would be shot the next day. On 27 March 1836 Fannin's men were marched out in three columns and shot point blank and massacred. Many of the soldiers shot over the heads of Fannin's men, because they felt so bad.Before execution, Fannin had requested that he not be shot in the head, his watch be given to his wife, and to have a christian burial.[2] Ignoring his final requests, the firing squad was ordered to shoot Fannin through the head, and did so. Fannin was summarily shot before a firing squad while seated and blindfolded. General Urrea was not in favor of Santa Anna's orders, and wished he had stood up for Fannin's men.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] Further reading

  • Brown, Gary; James Walker Fannin-Hesitant Martyr in the Texas Revolution;Republic of Texas Press;ISBN 1-55622-778-7
  • Davis, William C.; Lone Star Rising-The Revolutionary Birth of the Texas Republic;Free Press; ISBN 0-684-86510-6
  • Hopewell, Clifford; Remember Goliad-Their Silent Tents; Eakin Press; ISBN 1-57168-195-7
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