Almaron Dickinson
Encyclopedia
Almaron Dickinson was a Texan
soldier and defender during the Battle of the Alamo
, fought during the Texas Revolution
. Dickinson is best known as having been the artillery
officer of the small garrison, and for being the husband of one of the only three non-Mexican survivors to live through the battle, Susannah Dickinson
, as well as the father to infant daughter Angelina Elizabeth Dickinson, whose life was also spared.
, learning the trade of blacksmith
ing. He later enlisted in the US Army as a field artilleryman. He and Susannah Dickinson married when she was just 15, on May 24, 1829, and two years later the couple moved to the Mexican province of Texas
, where they became settlers in the Dewitt Colony
. Dickinson received a league of land along the San Marcos River
, where he started a blacksmith shop, and partnered with George C. Kimble in a hat factory. On December 14, 1834, Angelina Elizabeth was born, which would be the couples only child together. Following a number of Indian
raids on settlements, he took part in hunting down hostile Indians shortly thereafter, with his band being led by fellow settler Bart McClure.
In the Fall of 1835, Dickinson served as one of the defenders during the Battle of Gonzales
, which marked the beginning of Texas' war for independence. Dickinson was elected as First Lieutenant of Artillery in December 1835. He then joined a band of volunteers going to defend San Antonio, Texas
, and became an aide to General
Edward Burleson
during the Siege of Bexar
, with a rank of Lieutenant
in the Texian Army
. A few weeks later, his home where Susannah and his daughter had remained was looted by members of a Texas Militia
, prompting her to join her husband in San Antonio. The family set up residence in the Musquiz house, on the southwest corner of Portero Street and the Main Plaza. However, when Antonio López de Santa Anna
and his troops arrived on February 23, 1836, Dickinson moved his family inside the Alamo.
. Some accounts list Dickinson with a rank of Lieutenant at the Alamo, but it is believed he was promoted around that time. Lieutenant Colonel
William Travis, commander of the garrison, commanded Dickinson and others considered to be regular troops, as well as several bands of volunteers, led by frontiersmen Jim Bowie
and Davey Crockett, with a total of between 180 and 250 defenders, historians knowing for certain only that it was not lower than or higher than those two figures, with most believing the number to have been 182. One of the dispatches sent out by Travis gave the figure of 150, and at least 32 others are known to have arrived after that. Antonio Ruiz, the Mayor
of San Antonio at the time, said that after the battle the Mexican soldiers burned 182 Alamo defender bodies, and that tends to be the accepted number of how many defenders the garrison had. Santa Anna had under his command between 5,000 and 6,000 Mexican
troops. From the time of his arrival, a siege
began.
A Mexican bombardment continued through the morning of February 25, 1836. At approximately 10 a.m., about 200–300 Mexican soldiers, primarily cazadores from the Matamoros Battalion, crossed the San Antonio river and took cover in abandoned shacks approximately 90 yards (82 m) to 100 yards (91 m) from the Alamo walls. The Mexican soldiers were intending to use the huts as cover to erect another artillery battery, although many Texians assumed that they were actually launching an assault on the fort. Travis called for volunteers to burn the huts, despite the fact that it was broad daylight and they would be within musket range of the Mexican soldiers. Charles Despallier, Robert Brown, James Rose and a few others volunteered for the mission.
To provide cover, Capt. Dickinson and his men fired their 8-lb cannons, filled with grapeshot and canister, at the Mexican soldiers in the huts. Crockett and his men fired rifles, while other Texians reloaded extra weapons for them. Within two hours, the battle was over. As soon as the Texians saw flames erupting from the huts they threw open the Alamo gate, and the Texians re-entered the Alamo, unscathed, although Rose was almost captured by a Mexican officer. The Mexican soldiers retreated, after two of their soldiers were killed and four wounded, while several Texians had been mildly scratched by flying rock.
After learning that James Fannin
was not going to the Alamo as reinforcements, and that there would likely be no other reinforcements, a group of 25 men set out from Gonzales at 2 pm on Saturday, February 27. The party would number 32 upon its arrival at the Alamo, and were led by Albert Martin and George Kimbell, the latter of which had been Almaron Dickinson's business partner. As they approached the Alamo in the early morning hours of March 1, a rider appeared in front of them and asked, in English, if they wished to go into the fort. When they said yes, he turned and told them to follow him. When one of the men became suspicious, the rider bolted away. The volunteers were afraid they had been discovered and galloped towards the Alamo. In the darkness, the Texians thought this was a party of Mexican soldiers and fired, wounding one of the volunteers. They finally managed to convince the defenders to open the gates.
At some point, either on March 3 or March 4, 1836, Col. Travis, seeing that their situation was hopeless and their fate set, called the troops of his garrison together. He informed them of the situation, and gave the soldiers the opportunity to either stay or to go at that point. Only one man, Moses Rose
, chose to flee, with the rest choosing to remain and fight to the death. Rose would forever, up until present day, be remembered as the "Coward of the Alamo", while Dickinson and the rest of the defenders would achieve immortality as heroes.
. By her own account afterward, near the end of the battle Capt. Dickinson rushed into the chapel where she was hiding, saying "Great God, Sue! The Mexicans are inside our walls! All is lost! If they spare you, love our child." Capt. Dickinson then returned to his post. By that time there was intense fighting inside the garrison, which eventually became hand to hand. By reliable Mexican accounts, Capt. Dickinson was one of the last defenders killed in action
.
According to the Mexican Army accounts, the last of the Texans to die were the eleven men manning the two 12-lb cannon in the chapel. The entrance to the church had been barricaded with sandbags, which the Texians were able to fire over. A shot from the 18-lb cannon destroyed the barricades, and Mexican soldiers entered the building after firing an initial musket volley. Dickinson's crew fired their cannon from the apse into the Mexican soldiers at the door. With no time to reload, the Texans, including Capt. Dickinson, Gregoria Esparza, and James Bonham
, grabbed rifles and fired before being bayoneted to death. Texian Robert Evans was master of ordnance and had been tasked with keeping the gunpowder from falling into Mexican hands. Wounded, he crawled towards the powder magazine but was killed by a musket ball with his torch only inches from the powder. If he had succeeded, the blast would have destroyed the church, killing the women and children hiding in the sacristy as well.
Capt. Dickinson's body was burned along with those of the other defenders killed during the battle. His young widow
Susannah, their daughter Angelina, and a freed former slave to Col. Travis named Joe were spared. It is generally accepted that over the course of the battle, the Mexican forces lost an estimated 400 to 500 soldiers killed, while the Texan defenders suffered a total loss of between 182 and 189. Capt. Dickinson has since, along with many of the other defenders, become a legend in Texas history for the heroic stand.
Republic of Texas
The Republic of Texas was an independent nation in North America, bordering the United States and Mexico, that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the state claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S...
soldier and defender during the Battle of the Alamo
Battle of the Alamo
The Battle of the Alamo was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna launched an assault on the Alamo Mission near San Antonio de Béxar . All but two of the Texian defenders were killed...
, fought during the Texas Revolution
Texas Revolution
The Texas Revolution or Texas War of Independence was an armed conflict between Mexico and settlers in the Texas portion of the Mexican state Coahuila y Tejas. The war lasted from October 2, 1835 to April 21, 1836...
. Dickinson is best known as having been the artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
officer of the small garrison, and for being the husband of one of the only three non-Mexican survivors to live through the battle, Susannah Dickinson
Susannah Dickinson
Susanna Wilkerson Dickinson was one of two American survivors of the 1836 Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution, where her husband, Captain Almaron Dickinson, and 182 other defenders were killed by the Mexican Army...
, as well as the father to infant daughter Angelina Elizabeth Dickinson, whose life was also spared.
Early life and becoming a soldier
Dickinson was born in the U.S. state of TennesseeTennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, learning the trade of blacksmith
Blacksmith
A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from wrought iron or steel by forging the metal; that is, by using tools to hammer, bend, and cut...
ing. He later enlisted in the US Army as a field artilleryman. He and Susannah Dickinson married when she was just 15, on May 24, 1829, and two years later the couple moved to the Mexican province of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, where they became settlers in the Dewitt Colony
Dewitt Colony
The Dewitt Colony was a settlement in Mexican Texas founded by Green DeWitt. From lands belonging to that colony, the present Texas counties of DeWitt, Guadalupe and Lavaca were created...
. Dickinson received a league of land along the San Marcos River
San Marcos River
The San Marcos River rises from the San Marcos Springs, the location of Aquarena Springs, in San Marcos, Texas. The springs are home to several threatened or endangered species, including the Texas Blind Salamander, Fountain Darter, and Texas Wild Rice...
, where he started a blacksmith shop, and partnered with George C. Kimble in a hat factory. On December 14, 1834, Angelina Elizabeth was born, which would be the couples only child together. Following a number of Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
raids on settlements, he took part in hunting down hostile Indians shortly thereafter, with his band being led by fellow settler Bart McClure.
In the Fall of 1835, Dickinson served as one of the defenders during the Battle of Gonzales
Battle of Gonzales
The Battle of Gonzales was the first military engagement of the Texas Revolution. It was fought near Gonzales, Texas, on October 2, 1835, between rebellious Texian settlers and a detachment of Mexican army troops....
, which marked the beginning of Texas' war for independence. Dickinson was elected as First Lieutenant of Artillery in December 1835. He then joined a band of volunteers going to defend San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
, and became an aide to General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Edward Burleson
Edward Burleson
Edward Burleson was a soldier, general, and statesman in the state of Missouri, the Republic of Texas, and later the U.S. state of Texas....
during the Siege of Bexar
Siege of Bexar
The Siege of Béxar was an early campaign of the Texas Revolution in which a volunteer Texan army successfully defeated Mexican forces at San Antonio de Béxar . Texians had become disillusioned with the Mexican government as President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna's tenure became increasingly...
, with a rank of Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
in the Texian Army
Texian Army
The Texian Army was a military organization consisting of volunteer and regular soldiers who fought against the Mexican army during the Texas Revolution. Approximately 3,700 men joined the army between October 2, 1835 during the Battle of Gonzales through the end of the war on April 21, 1836, at...
. A few weeks later, his home where Susannah and his daughter had remained was looted by members of a Texas Militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
, prompting her to join her husband in San Antonio. The family set up residence in the Musquiz house, on the southwest corner of Portero Street and the Main Plaza. However, when Antonio López de Santa Anna
Antonio López de Santa Anna
Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón , often known as Santa Anna or López de Santa Anna, known as "the Napoleon of the West," was a Mexican political leader, general, and president who greatly influenced early Mexican and Spanish politics and government...
and his troops arrived on February 23, 1836, Dickinson moved his family inside the Alamo.
Battle of the Alamo
Dickinson by this time had the rank of Captain, and was in command of the Alamo garrisons artillery of twenty one cannonCannon
A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...
. Some accounts list Dickinson with a rank of Lieutenant at the Alamo, but it is believed he was promoted around that time. Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
William Travis, commander of the garrison, commanded Dickinson and others considered to be regular troops, as well as several bands of volunteers, led by frontiersmen Jim Bowie
Jim Bowie
James "Jim" Bowie , a 19th-century American pioneer, slave trader, land speculator, and soldier, played a prominent role in the Texas Revolution, culminating in his death at the Battle of the Alamo...
and Davey Crockett, with a total of between 180 and 250 defenders, historians knowing for certain only that it was not lower than or higher than those two figures, with most believing the number to have been 182. One of the dispatches sent out by Travis gave the figure of 150, and at least 32 others are known to have arrived after that. Antonio Ruiz, the Mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of San Antonio at the time, said that after the battle the Mexican soldiers burned 182 Alamo defender bodies, and that tends to be the accepted number of how many defenders the garrison had. Santa Anna had under his command between 5,000 and 6,000 Mexican
Mexican people
Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
troops. From the time of his arrival, a siege
Siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...
began.
A Mexican bombardment continued through the morning of February 25, 1836. At approximately 10 a.m., about 200–300 Mexican soldiers, primarily cazadores from the Matamoros Battalion, crossed the San Antonio river and took cover in abandoned shacks approximately 90 yards (82 m) to 100 yards (91 m) from the Alamo walls. The Mexican soldiers were intending to use the huts as cover to erect another artillery battery, although many Texians assumed that they were actually launching an assault on the fort. Travis called for volunteers to burn the huts, despite the fact that it was broad daylight and they would be within musket range of the Mexican soldiers. Charles Despallier, Robert Brown, James Rose and a few others volunteered for the mission.
To provide cover, Capt. Dickinson and his men fired their 8-lb cannons, filled with grapeshot and canister, at the Mexican soldiers in the huts. Crockett and his men fired rifles, while other Texians reloaded extra weapons for them. Within two hours, the battle was over. As soon as the Texians saw flames erupting from the huts they threw open the Alamo gate, and the Texians re-entered the Alamo, unscathed, although Rose was almost captured by a Mexican officer. The Mexican soldiers retreated, after two of their soldiers were killed and four wounded, while several Texians had been mildly scratched by flying rock.
After learning that James Fannin
James Fannin
James Walker Fannin, Jr. was a 19th-century U.S. military figure on the Texas Army and leader during the Texas Revolution of 1835–36...
was not going to the Alamo as reinforcements, and that there would likely be no other reinforcements, a group of 25 men set out from Gonzales at 2 pm on Saturday, February 27. The party would number 32 upon its arrival at the Alamo, and were led by Albert Martin and George Kimbell, the latter of which had been Almaron Dickinson's business partner. As they approached the Alamo in the early morning hours of March 1, a rider appeared in front of them and asked, in English, if they wished to go into the fort. When they said yes, he turned and told them to follow him. When one of the men became suspicious, the rider bolted away. The volunteers were afraid they had been discovered and galloped towards the Alamo. In the darkness, the Texians thought this was a party of Mexican soldiers and fired, wounding one of the volunteers. They finally managed to convince the defenders to open the gates.
At some point, either on March 3 or March 4, 1836, Col. Travis, seeing that their situation was hopeless and their fate set, called the troops of his garrison together. He informed them of the situation, and gave the soldiers the opportunity to either stay or to go at that point. Only one man, Moses Rose
Moses Rose
Louis "Moses" Rose , also seen as Lewis Rose), known as the Coward of the Alamo, was according to Texas legend, the only man who chose to leave the besieged Alamo in 1836, rather than fight and die there. Some regard him as a coward for having left the Alamo prior to the final battle...
, chose to flee, with the rest choosing to remain and fight to the death. Rose would forever, up until present day, be remembered as the "Coward of the Alamo", while Dickinson and the rest of the defenders would achieve immortality as heroes.
Climax of the battle and death
Dickinson survived the battle until its last day. In the early morning hours of March 6, 1836, Santa Anna sent an assault force which breached the walls of the Alamo on their third charge. Capt. Dickinson had hidden his wife and daughter inside the chapelChapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
. By her own account afterward, near the end of the battle Capt. Dickinson rushed into the chapel where she was hiding, saying "Great God, Sue! The Mexicans are inside our walls! All is lost! If they spare you, love our child." Capt. Dickinson then returned to his post. By that time there was intense fighting inside the garrison, which eventually became hand to hand. By reliable Mexican accounts, Capt. Dickinson was one of the last defenders killed in action
Killed in action
Killed in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to...
.
According to the Mexican Army accounts, the last of the Texans to die were the eleven men manning the two 12-lb cannon in the chapel. The entrance to the church had been barricaded with sandbags, which the Texians were able to fire over. A shot from the 18-lb cannon destroyed the barricades, and Mexican soldiers entered the building after firing an initial musket volley. Dickinson's crew fired their cannon from the apse into the Mexican soldiers at the door. With no time to reload, the Texans, including Capt. Dickinson, Gregoria Esparza, and James Bonham
James Bonham
James Butler Bonham was a 19th-century American soldier who died at the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution...
, grabbed rifles and fired before being bayoneted to death. Texian Robert Evans was master of ordnance and had been tasked with keeping the gunpowder from falling into Mexican hands. Wounded, he crawled towards the powder magazine but was killed by a musket ball with his torch only inches from the powder. If he had succeeded, the blast would have destroyed the church, killing the women and children hiding in the sacristy as well.
Capt. Dickinson's body was burned along with those of the other defenders killed during the battle. His young widow
Widow
A widow is a woman whose spouse has died, while a widower is a man whose spouse has died. The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed widowhood or occasionally viduity. The adjective form is widowed...
Susannah, their daughter Angelina, and a freed former slave to Col. Travis named Joe were spared. It is generally accepted that over the course of the battle, the Mexican forces lost an estimated 400 to 500 soldiers killed, while the Texan defenders suffered a total loss of between 182 and 189. Capt. Dickinson has since, along with many of the other defenders, become a legend in Texas history for the heroic stand.