During August and September 1846, volunteer and regular troops under the command of General John E. Wool gathered at San Antonio de Bexar, Texas. Some of the regulars were camped near Mission Concepción while others were quartered in the city. Most of the volunteers set up their tents at a site located a few miles north of what is now downtown San Antonio. It was named "Camp Crockett" in honor of Alamo hero David Crockett. Its location is uncertain. A Texas State Historical Commission marker in San Pedro Park states that Camp Crockett was located there, near the springs which supply San Pedro Creek, but there is evidence that Camp Crockett was actually located in what is now Brackenridge Park - near the headwaters of the San Antonio River.

Spanish army barracks that stood in Military Plaza in San Antonio were probably used to house regular U.S. army troops under the command of General John E. Wool during the late summer of 1846. Wool himself may have had his headquarters here. The Old Spanish Governors' Palace, seen here, is the only building still standing in Military Plaza that existed at the time of the Mexican War.

San Fernando Cathedral, an old Roman Catholic church, dominates Main Plaza, where U.S. soldiers entertained themselves in the plaza's saloons and fandango halls during the summer of 1846. One of the most infamous was the Bexar Exchange, the location of which is uncertain. It was immortalized by Sam Chamberlain in his postwar memoirs, "My Confession." Some soldiers also visited the cathedral, where they were captivated by the beauty of the Mexican señoritas praying there.

Although it is better known for the 1836 siege which resulted in the deaths of David Crockett, Jim Bowie, William Barret Travis and 184 other defenders, the Alamo also played a role in the U.S.-Mexican War. During the spring of 1847, soldiers attached to the U.S. Army Quartermaster Dept. moved into the old Spanish mission and began repairing the damage done to it eleven years earlier.

Photo courtesy Steven Butler.
Used with permission.

The 2d Dragoons, commanded by the impetuous Col. William S. Harney, were camped near Mission Concepcion during 1845 and 1846, before marching south into Chihuahua with Wool's army. Among Harney's troops was a young Sam Chamberlain who recalled the day he and his fellow dragoons were detailed to remove bat guano from the old mission so it could be used to stable their horses. In the process, Chamberlain and his comrades disturbed the bats which filled the church.

Mission San José, along with the Alamo and Mission Concepción, was sketched by Illinois volunteer Sgt. Edward Everett during the summer of 1846. Although no troops were stationed here, the mission was described by a number of individuals who passed by it on their way in and out of San Antonio during the Mexican War. Graffiti, carved into the soft stone of the church's entrance, bears silent witness to the visitors from this period and later. In his book, "My Confession," Sam Chamberlain recalled attending a fandango at one of the outbuildings at San José in 1846. There, he and his companions danced with a number of beautiful señoritas and had a little too much to drink.

The young dragoon reported that he and his friends were afterward confined to camp by Col. William S. Harney.

San José, known as the "Queen of the Missions," is today administered by the U.S. National Park Service. It is open to the public and admission is free. The mission lies about five miles south of downtown San Antonio, near the intersection of Roosevelt Road and S.W. Military Drive.

Photo courtesy Steven Butler.
Used with permission.

Captain Samuel Walker of the Texas Mounted Volunteers was one of the foremost American soldiers of the Mexican War. During the siege of Fort Texas in May 1846, it was Walker who rode through the Mexican lines to carry messages into and out of the fort. Later, Walker assisted gun manufacturer Samuel Colt in designing what became known as the Walker-Colt pistol, an early six-shooter much favored by the Texas Volunteers. In 1847, Walker was serving in Central Mexico when he was killed in a skirmish with Mexican guerillas at Huamantla. His body was returned to San Antonio, which he considered his home. His grave, shown here, is located in the Oddfellows Cemetery a few blocks east of downtown San Antonio. He lies beside Capt. William Gillespie, a Texan who was killed at the Battle of Monterey in September 1846.