Archives for November 2014

James Sanders Holman was born 1804 in Kentucky. He fought in the siege of Béxar. Holman succumbed to yellow fever near Bryan, Texas, on December 8, 1867.

George Washington Davis was born 1817 in Tennessee. On October 2, 1835, Davis participated in the battle of Gonzales, when the Gonzales “Come and Take It” cannon was successfully defended, and on October 28, 1835, he was with the Texas force at the battle of Concepción. He fought at the Siege of Béxar in December 1835. In 1836 the Davises are said to have burned their homes and joined the Runaway Scrape, taking as many of their best-blooded horses as they could. A George Davis, possibly the subject of this article, joined Gen. Sam Houston’s volunteer army and fought with him in the battle of San Jacinto as a private in Company D of the First Regiment of Texas Volunteers. He died November 15, 1880.

Thomas Jefferson Golightly was born in Mississippi. He served as an orderly sergeant under Capt. Thomas J. Rusk in the Texas army from October 4, 1835, to January 4, 1836 and took part in the Siege of Béxar. Subsequently he returned to Mississippi, where he joined a volunteer cavalry company under John A. Quitman and returned to Texas. The corps reached San Jacinto on April 23, 1836, too late for the battle. Early the next month the company helped cover the westerly retreat of the Mexican forces. Some of the troops decided to stay in Texas and elected William Strickland captain and Golightly first lieutenant. In June Golightly aided in burying the victims of the Goliad Massacre. He was honorably discharged at Victoria on July 12, 1836. He died July 1840.