The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 104, July 2000 - April, 2001 Page: 472

Southwestern Historical Quarterly

Alamo Sourcebook 1836. By Tim J. & Terry S. Todish. (Austin: Eakin Press, 1998.
Pp. x+250. Preface, acknowledgments, bibliography, index. ISBN 1-57168-
152-3. $24.95, paper.)
Alamo Almanac and Book of Lists. By William R. Chemerka. (Austin: Eakin Press,
2000. Pp. xii+195. Preface, acknowledgments, introduction, bibliography.
ISBN 1-57168-150-7. $16.95, paper.)
Alamo Legacy: Alamo Descendants Remember the Alamo. By Ron Jackson. (Austin:
Eakin Press, 1997. Pp. xxii+181. Foreword, preface, acknowledgments,
introduction, notes, index. ISBN 1-57168-097-7. $16.95, paper.)
The heroic story of the Alamo will never be finally told to the satisfaction of
those most avidly interested in it. Researchers continue to pore through official
and unofficial records, memoirs, and legends of participants. They uncover or
reassess fascinating facts about this battle of ultimate sacrifice that helped
change the geography and history of two nations and a new republic. Each year,
more facts, insights, oddities, compilations, and collections are brought to read-
ers. These three books should be of special interest to all seeking new details
and meanings about "the Shrine of Texas Liberty."
In Alamo Legacy: Alamo Descendants Remember the Alamo, Ron Jackson, a reporter
for the Daily Oklahoman and member of the Alamo Battlefield Association, pre-
sents an amply researched and finely written compilation of stories about select-
ed participants involved in the historic conflict. The book's endnotes are copi-
ous and informative.
Jackson explains that "each participant connected to the famous siege and
battle whose oral history was found has his or her own place in this work." But
not all have yet been found. He includes stories passed on by Alamo widows,
children of defenders, couriers, scouts, wagon masters, neighbors, and Mexican
soldiers. These are family legends, says Jackson, but they are amazingly revealing
and instructive--and the superb illustrations by artist-historian Gary Zaboly help
bring the stories to life.
The foreword by historian Kevin R. Young, president of the Alamo Battlefield
Association (1994-1996), and the introduction by Mrs. Lee Spencer White, the
founding president of the Alamo Defenders Descendants Association in 1995,
add valuable perspective to this new effort to better understand the most
remembered event in Texas history.
If you're looking for a compilation of solid facts about the Alamo, includ-
ing illustrations of weapons, apparel and equipment of soldiers on both sides,
along with maps and drawings of buildings and fortifications, you can find
much of it in Alamo Sourcebook 1836. The artist, Ted Spring, is a specialist in
historic uniforms and military paraphernalia. Brothers Timothy and Terrence
Todish have included an account of the siege and battle of Bexar in 1835 San
Antonio, and a day-by-day report of the Alamo battle, together with a chronol-
ogy and weather log of the Texas Revolution. The 8-by- 11-inch book is very
well indexed and provides an extensive bibliography plus listings of other
sources.

January

472