(Ed.'s Note: The only thing to show that there was a Ft. Brown built by Zachary Taylor on the banks of the Rio Grande is an old iron canon stuck upside down in the dirt. Other than that, no one would ever know that this was the site of the beginning of the Mexican-American War. The current buildings occupied by Texas Southmost college were built later.
Likewise, the only thing left of the national cemetery for the U.S.-Mexican War dead are photos taken by former Brownsville mayor and photographer Robert Runyon in 1910. Runyon's photographs are in a collection at the Dolph Briscoe Center for American History.
This city has a way of outsourcing its history and despite the rich historical sites and buildings here, precious little is done to celebrate it.
Besides being the site of the start of the U.S.-Mexican War, the site of the last battle of the Civil War, the beginning of the Chisholm Trail, and the place from where the U.S. Army airplanes came under hostile fire from Mexican revolutionaries, Brownsville is also the "Crossroads of the Hemisphere" where the United States meets Latin America.
The cemetery was located on the "island" of Ft. Brown and held the remains of the military soldiers stationed at the fort. The 183 graves of officers lay in a circle around the flagpole, while the graves of 3,600 enlisted men dotted the surrounding area. They were all moved to the national cemetery in Alexandria, La. in 1911.
This entire cemetery was moved and required the labor of 75 men for about three months, and is one of the interesting historical features of the army post here.The cemetery was moved by the late N. E. Rendall, contractor who at the same time installed Brownsville’s first sewer system and waterworks. The excavations in the city revealed many interesting objects, such as old boats buried here and there, several skeletons, and coins, and war relics.
The cemetery at Fort Brown was started shortly after the war of 1848, bodies of the American soldiers who were killed at the battle of Resaca de la Palma, Palo Alto and at Cadereyta, Mexico, first engagement on Mexican soil, having been brought to the cemetery here after the war.
Few of these bodies were identified. According to E. A. Rendall, son of contractor N. E. Rendall, his father was paid $18,700 to dig up and remove the bodies. Rendall started the work in June and completed it in September.
According to newspaper articles, the first obstacle Rendell encountered in executing the contract was in getting laborers. None would touch the work without first going to the priest, confessing, and getting permission. This process required about two weeks, and the work was then started. They found that there were about 1,100 gravestones on which there were no identities, just numbers.
Most of the men who were killed in these battles were volunteers, and the records of events during the war were kept badly so that it was practically impossible to identity the dead. The soldiers then wore no identification tags as did those who fought in the World War.
More bodies were placed in the cemetery during the U.S. Civil War, many soldiers having been killed along the border in brushes between the Confederates and the Federals. Soldiers at Fort Brown and Fort Ringgold, which sent its dead to the old cemetery here, died like flies during the yellow fever epidemic of 1885-86, and the cemetery received hundreds more bodies during that period.
Most of the men who were killed in these battles were volunteers, and the records of events during the war were kept badly so that it was practically impossible to identity the dead. The soldiers then wore no identification tags as did those who fought in the World War.
More bodies were placed in the cemetery during the U.S. Civil War, many soldiers having been killed along the border in brushes between the Confederates and the Federals. Soldiers at Fort Brown and Fort Ringgold, which sent its dead to the old cemetery here, died like flies during the yellow fever epidemic of 1885-86, and the cemetery received hundreds more bodies during that period.
Most of these were bodies that could not, under rigid quarantine regulations of that period, be shipped to any other place.
The headstones were not moved with the bodies. Rendall sold the headstones and some of these headstones are the foundations for some of the buildings in Brownsville. One of these buildings was the Nebraska Apartments that was located between 13th and 14th streets on Jefferson street (Now the Reypres Apts., which did not use the stones when it was rebuilt.).
Afterwards, the place of the cemetery, was occupied by the Fort Brown Motel. The cemetery grounds was surrounded by a (oxbow lake) lagoon on three sides, thus the name, "island." Today, it is owned by the community college which used it for student housing.
Afterwards, the place of the cemetery, was occupied by the Fort Brown Motel. The cemetery grounds was surrounded by a (oxbow lake) lagoon on three sides, thus the name, "island." Today, it is owned by the community college which used it for student housing.
According to a 1936 Brownsville Herald story, the remains were dug up, placed in cloth containers, then encased in 36 or 38-inch frame boxes, and treated with creosote.
Bodies of the officers were placed in full-length caskets.
When the laborers dug into the graves, they found that in a large number of them blacksnakes had made their homes in the ground cavity.)
Bodies of the officers were placed in full-length caskets.
When the laborers dug into the graves, they found that in a large number of them blacksnakes had made their homes in the ground cavity.)
4 comments:
Prior to the Ft. Brown Hotel being built, which was around 1964, there was a men's softball field on the peninsula. It was there most of the 50's up until the Hotel was built. The road into the softball field was covered with hard, smooth rocks that we loved to use in our sling shots when we were kids. Later the East Brownsville Little League moved from where the TSC gym is now located to the front entrance of the road to the softball field at the base of the levee and next to the USDA. It too is gone now as is that part of the levee as Elizabeth St. was extended into the college.
No, the city can not spend money to bother to at least mark the area as a historical site because Dr. Gowen needs the money for bicycle trails no one uses and Tony needs the money to buy land and property from his compadres whether we need it or not or to better his profits. Who cares about those that fought and died here?
Go by El Paso Rd the city crew was painting the lines for the city bikes trails!!! Don't we have other MORE important priorities? LIKE POT HOLES POTHOLEVILLE she need to go, we need to voter her OUT!!!!!
The new schedule for street improvements projects will be done ONLY during holidays no exceptions here the citizens can go shopping using the bike trails.
Post a Comment