1840 — Aug 6, Council House Retaliation; Comanches take Victoria, Repub. of Texas-15- 23

All locations:

—  23  Roell, Craig. “Linville Raid of 1840.” Handbook of Texas Online, uploaded 6-15-2010.[1]

—  21  Hamersly, T.H.S. The United Service. 1885. In “Historic Accounts of Life in South Texas.”[2]

—  15  Linn. (Blanchard count of all those noted as killed by Comanche in the entire raid.)

Victoria:

—  15  Victoria. Robenalt. “The Great Comanche Raid and the Battle of Plum Creek.” 1-9-2011.

—  12  Wikipedia. “Great Raid of 1840.” 10-31-2017 edit.[3]

Victoria area:

–~12  Roell, Craig. “Linville Raid of 1840.” Handbook of Texas Online, uploaded 6-15-2010.[4]

 

Narrative Information

 

Hamersly: The Comanches “surrounded Victoria, on the evening of the 6th, before the citizens were aware that Indians were in the settlements. Hastily arming themselves, the inhabitants made a most heroic defense, causing the Indians to retreat without doing any serious damages, except burning a few houses on the outskirts, and carrying off a large number of horses and cattle in the immediate vicinity. On the following morning the Indians returned, making a second attack on the town; but the citizens were better prepared to give fight, and, after a short skirmish, the Indians again retired, after having set one or two houses on fire.” (Hamersly, T.H.S. The United Service. 1885. In “Historic Accounts of Life in South Texas.”)

 

Linn: List of people noted as killed in his Reminiscences of Fifty Years in Texas:

 

Mr. McNuner, a mile north of Victoria.

Dr. Gray, a mile north of Victoria.

Vartland Richardson, on Spring Creek near Victoria.

Two Negro men near Victoria.

Pinknay Caldwell, returning to Victoria from Jackson County, with three other men.

Mexican member of the group of four returning to Victoria from Jackson County.

Wagoner near Benavides Ranch on Placido Creek 12 miles from Linnville.[5]

Two Negro men cutting hay about three miles outside Linnville.

Major H. O. Watts, collector of customs, in Linnville.

Mr. O’Neill, in Linnville.

Militiaman named Mordeci, Mercado creek, 12 miles east of Victoria.

Mr. Bell, by a scouting party, near the Arenosa.

Mrs. Crosby, taken captive near Victoria, but killed by captors when the militia attacked.

Crosby infant killed near Linnville “and thrown on the roadside” not long after being taken.

 

Robenalt: “In early August of 1840, under the silvery light of a brilliant full moon, referred to by early Texas settlers for good reason as a Comanche moon, a war party of more than 600 Comanche and Kiowa warriors swept out of the Comancheria and rode for the heart of the Republic of Texas. The massive raid was launched in retaliation for what the Comanches perceived to be the unprovoked killing of twelve Penateka war chiefs and many innocent women and children at the Council House peace talks in San Antonio….

 

“Buffalo Hump, one of the few surviving Penateka war chiefs, led the massive war party on a trail that passed well to the east of San Antonio into an area of the Republic that was relatively uninhabited. This cunning strategy allowed the Comanches to achieve the element of surprise before spreading out and cutting a wide swath of destruction across the fertile lands that stretched to the southeast along the Guadalupe River. Killing and burning as they rode, the Comanches didn’t halt their movement southeast until they reached the old settlement of Victoria late in the afternoon of August 6.

 

“Instead of bypassing Victoria in the usual mode of roving Comanche war parties, Buffalo Hump convinced his warriors to surround the town. He then did something few other war chiefs had done before or since when he led an attack that overran the settlement. Most of the citizens saved themselves by banding together and forting up in the south part of town, but fifteen people, including seven slaves lost their scalps as the Comanches galloped through the streets howling their war cries and launching arrows at anything that moved….” (Robenalt. “The Great Comanche Raid and the Battle of Plum Creek.” 1-9-2011.)

 

Roell/Handbook of Texas Online: “….The raiders first appeared at Victoria without warning on the afternoon of August 6, and upon crossing Spring Creek were mistaken at first for Lipans, members of a friendly group that often traded with settlers around the town. “We of Victoria were startled by the apparitions presented by the sudden appearance of six hundred mounted Comanches in the immediate outskirts of the village,” wrote John J. Linn, who recorded the attack on Victoria and the burning of Linnville in his Reminiscences of Fifty Years in Texas (1883). The Comanches killed a number of slaves working in fields and also some whites who were unable to reach Victoria. They captured over 1,500 horses belonging to area residents and to some Mexican horse traders who had arrived with a large herd. The Indians surrounded the town, but the settlers’ defensive efforts apparently prevented their sacking the town itself. The attackers retired to Spring Creek at day’s end and killed a white settler and two black slaves before a group of Victoria men left for the Cuero Creek, Lavaca, and Gonzales settlements for help. The next day the Comanches killed a party of men returning to town, except for Jesse O. Wheeler and a companion, who reached safety.” (Roell. “Linville Raid of 1840.” Handbook of Texas Online, uploaded 6-15-2010; modified 4-15-2016. Texas State Historical Association.)

 

Wikipedia: “The Great Raid of 1840 was the largest raid ever mounted by Native Americans on white cities in what is now the United States. It followed the Council House Fight, in which Republic of Texas officials attempted to capture and take prisoner 33 Comanche chiefs who had come to negotiate a peace treaty, killing them together with two dozen of their family and followers….

 

“To avenge what the Comanche viewed as a bitter betrayal by the Texans, the Comanche war chief Buffalo Hump raised a huge war party of many of the bands of the Comanche,[6] and raided deep into white-settled areas of Southeast Texas….

 

“The huge war party crossed into central Texas and first attacked the town of Victoria, August 6….The citizens of Victoria hid in the buildings, and the Comanches, after killing a dozen or so townspeople and riding up and down, departed Victoria when rifle fire from the buildings began to make the riding dangerous….” (Wikipedia. “Great Raid of 1840.” 10-31-2017 edit.)

 

Sources

 

Hamersly, T.H.S. The United Service. 1885. In “Historic Accounts of Life in South Texas.” Accessed 11-20-2017 at: http://www.stxmaps.com/go/linnville-and-victoria-are-attacked-by-the-comanches.html

 

Robenalt, Jeffery. “The Great Comanche Raid and the Battle of Plum Creek.” TexasEscapes.com, 1-9-2011. Accessed 11-20-2017 at: http://www.texasescapes.com/JefferyRobenalt/Great-Comanche-Raid-and-Battle-of-Plum-Creek.htm

 

Roell, Craig H. “Linville Raid of 1840.” Handbook of Texas Online, uploaded 6-15-2010; modified 4-15-2016. Texas State Historical Association. Accessed 11-20-2017 at: https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/btl01

 

Roell, Craig H. “Linnville, TX (Calhoun County).” Handbook of Texas Online. Uploaded 6-15-2010. Texas State Historical Association. Accessed 11-21-2017 at: https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hvl58

 

Wikipedia. “Great Raid of 1840.” 10-31-2017 edit. Accessed 11-20-2017 at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Raid_of_1840

 

 

 

 

 

 

[1] Writes this number included eight blacks [probably slaves] and one Mexican.

[2] The impression from this paragraph is that there were no deaths in Victoria. In the last paragraph it is noted that “They killed at Gonzales and Linnville and along their trail between the two places twenty-one persons…”

[3] Notes: “after killing a dozen or so townspeople and riding up and down, departed Victoria…”

[4] Our number, based on an interpretation of the content, and in order to match Wikipedia. First it is stated that “a number of slaves” were killed. We convert “a number” to “3” in order to add to a tally. Next, it is noted that “some whites” were killed. Again, we convert “some” to “3.” Next it is noted that a white settler and two slaves were killed at nearby Spring Creek. Finally, it is noted that “the Comanches killed a party of men returning to town.” We convert “a party of men” to “3” in order to add to a tally. Thus, we add the four groups of 3 to derive 12.

[5] Linnville does not exist today, as all but one building was burned during the Comanche raid. The port town was on Lavaca Bay in today’s Calhoun County. (Roell. “Linnville, TX (Calhoun County).” Handbook of Texas Online.)

[6] Notes “at least 400 warriors…”