The Lone Cannon
Where does our symbol come from? From Texas history of course.
In 1831, the Mexican Army provided the town of Gonzalez with a single cannon to protect themselves from the local indians. In the coming years, Texans would grown uneasy and begin protest as the Mexican President Santa Anna began to claim more power as he formed a military dictatorship. Watching the unrest grow, the commander of Mexican forces in Texas thought it unwise to leave the cannon in Gonzalez and requested that it be returned. The town refused.
On September 29, 1835, 100 mounted calvary Mexican soliders arrived on the far bank of the Guadalupe River from Gonzalez with orders to retrieve the cannon. Biding their time, the residents told the Mexican Army unit to wait there until the town official arrived. Secretly, the town dispatched messengers to gather forces. Over the next two days, around 140 Texans gathered under the “Come and Take It” flag at Gonzalez, a direct response to the Mexican Army’s request for the cannon. Realizing the residents were stalling, the Mexicans began to try and find a place to cross the river. The Texans needed no further provocation.
On October 2, 1835, the first military engagement of the Texas Revolution took place at Gonzalez. The Texans attacked and the Mexican Army unit withdrew. In a dispatch to the commander of Mexican Forces in Texas, the Mexican commander of the unit in Gonzalez wrote, “since the orders from your Lordship were for me to withdraw without compromising the honor of Mexican arms, I did so”.
