Remember the Alamo

I remember the Alamo. I also remember Where’s the Beef and Does She or Doesn’t She. That didn’t mean that I knew much about it, except that it was a place where “Americans" made a stand against dem ebil Mexicanos.

In fact, although most of the Alamo heroes were from the then United States, many were Texans, then a Mexican possession, Native Americans (Texicans and Tejanos) and even a few Irishmen, Scots and Englishmen (what were they, nuts?).

Although it is said that everyone died at the Alamo, the women and children survived, as did a few men, identified as couriers, one really crafty guy who convinced the winners that he was a prisoner, and at least one slave, probably because the Mexicans, more enlightened than we ever gave them credit for, abhorred slavery.

I didn’t know, for instance, that Six Flags, the big amusement park, was so named because Texas has flown six flags in its recent lifetime. God knows what the aborigines flew – probably their underwear once a year. Before anything else, they were practical.

Here are the six flags:

Spain 1519-1821




France 1685-1690




Mexico 1821-1836




Republic of Texas 1836-1845





Confederate States 1861-1865




USA 1845-1861, 1870-Present




Forgive the history lesson. I just like flags. And now I know why the amusement park is so-named.

The Alamo, for all its sad history, is really beautiful. It sits in the center of town and has been carefully restored and beautifully landscaped with native plants and trees. We entered from the back gate into a large area that was once the holding place for livestock. Walking around to the front, we passed an original tree that bore a sign asking people not to sit on its branches. We had to step around the guy with the camera taking a picture of his kids in the tree.

Inside the old church-cum-fort, we saw lots of David Crockett (not Davy, please) memorabilia. He was the leader of one of the three contingents manning South, East and West approaches and lost his life there. We saw the knives of James Bowie, also an Alamo hero. It was an incredible education. And I couldn’t help reflecting on the fact that if Mexico had eventually won the war for Texas independence, we would be a different country today. And Mexico, with all that Texas oil as a resource, would be far richer.

Betty