Moses Lapham
Encyclopedia
Moses Lapham was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution
, noted for a daring action during the Battle of San Jacinto
that helped seal the decisive Texian
victory.
and was the son of Amos and Marcy Aldrich Lapham. He arrived in Texas
in July 1831 and taught school at San Felipe, Texas
. In 1836 he enlisted in the Texas army, was a member of Captain Moseley Baker's "San Felipe Company", and fought at the Battle of San Jacinto
, where he was one of the men who destroyed Vince's Bridge
. The others who were with him on that mission were Deaf Smith
, John Coker
, Denmore W. Reaves
, Young Perry Alsbury
, John T. Garner
and Edwin R. Rainwater
. After the war, Moses Lapham worked as a surveyor and helped to lay out the new town of Houston, Texas
. He was later employed as a deputy surveyor by Samuel Maverick
of San Antonio to survey land for him. The party of five, (Mr. Maverick, the sixth member had returned home was on October 20, 1838) was attacked by Comanche
Indians on Leon Creek about four miles from San Antonio, Texas
and Moses Lapham, Cornelius Skinner, a Mr. Jones, and one other of the party were killed. The surviving members returned to town and spread the news. Thirteen prominent men headed by Benjamin Franklin Cage, a San Jacinto veteran, hurriedly left San Antonio and went to the place where the massacre had occurred. The Indians, estimated at a hundred or more, surrounded the Texans and killed Captain Cage, Dr. Henry G. McClung, R. M. Lee, a Mr. O'Blye, Peter Conrad, John Pickering and a Mr. Green, and badly wounded General Richard Dunlap and Major William H. Patton. The next day a search party brought in the remains of the dead. On the following day, their remains were interred in a single grave just outside of the Catholic Cemetery. Judge Robinson delivered the funeral oration.
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...
, noted for a daring action during the Battle of San Jacinto
Battle of San Jacinto
The Battle of San Jacinto, fought on April 21, 1836, in present-day Harris County, Texas, was the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. Led by General Sam Houston, the Texian Army engaged and defeated General Antonio López de Santa Anna's Mexican forces in a fight that lasted just eighteen...
that helped seal the decisive Texian
Texian
Texian is an archaic, mostly defunct 19th century demonym which defined a settler of current-day Texas, one of the southern states of the United States of America which borders the country of Mexico...
victory.
Biography
Lapham was born near the town of Smithfield, Rhode IslandSmithfield, Rhode Island
Smithfield is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. It includes the historic villages of Esmond, Georgiaville, Mountaindale, Hanton City, Stillwater and Greenville...
and was the son of Amos and Marcy Aldrich Lapham. He arrived in 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...
in July 1831 and taught school at San Felipe, Texas
San Felipe, Texas
San Felipe, also known as San Felipe de Austin, is a town in Austin County, Texas, United States. The town was the social, economic, and political center of the early Stephen F. Austin colony. The population was 868 at the 2000 census.-History:...
. In 1836 he enlisted in the Texas army, was a member of Captain Moseley Baker's "San Felipe Company", and fought at the Battle of San Jacinto
Battle of San Jacinto
The Battle of San Jacinto, fought on April 21, 1836, in present-day Harris County, Texas, was the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. Led by General Sam Houston, the Texian Army engaged and defeated General Antonio López de Santa Anna's Mexican forces in a fight that lasted just eighteen...
, where he was one of the men who destroyed Vince's Bridge
Vince's Bridge
Vince's Bridge was a wooden bridge constructed by Allen Vince over Sims Bayou near Harrisburg, Texas. Its destruction by Texas armed forces played a critical role during the April 1836 Battle of San Jacinto in the decisive defeat of the Mexican army, which effectively ended the Texas Revolution...
. The others who were with him on that mission were Deaf Smith
Deaf Smith
Erastus "Deaf" Smith was an American frontiersman noted for his part in the Texas Revolution and the army of the Republic of Texas. He fought at the Grass Fight and the Battle of San Jacinto. After the war, Deaf Smith led a company of Texas Rangers.-Biography:Smith was born in Dutchess County, New...
, John Coker
John Coker
John Coker was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution, noted for a daring action during the Battle of San Jacinto that helped seal the decisive Texian victory.-Biography:...
, Denmore W. Reaves
Denmore W. Reaves
Denmore W. Reaves was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution, noted for a daring action during the Battle of San Jacinto that helped seal the decisive Texian victory.-Biography:Denmore W. Reaves arrived in Texas in June 1835...
, Young Perry Alsbury
Young Perry Alsbury
Young Perry Alsbury was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution. He was among the group of volunteers for the mission that was successful in burning the strategically important Vince's Bridge during the Battle of San Jacinto...
, John T. Garner
John T. Garner
John T. Garner was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution, noted for a daring action during the Battle of San Jacinto that helped seal the decisive Texian victory.-Biography:John T...
and Edwin R. Rainwater
Edwin R. Rainwater
Edwin R. Rainwater was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution, noted for a daring action during the Battle of San Jacinto that helped seal the decisive Texian victory.-Biography:...
. After the war, Moses Lapham worked as a surveyor and helped to lay out the new town of Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
. He was later employed as a deputy surveyor by Samuel Maverick
Samuel Maverick
Samuel Augustus Maverick was a Texas lawyer, politician, land baron and signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence...
of San Antonio to survey land for him. The party of five, (Mr. Maverick, the sixth member had returned home was on October 20, 1838) was attacked by Comanche
Comanche
The Comanche are a Native American ethnic group whose historic range consisted of present-day eastern New Mexico, southern Colorado, northeastern Arizona, southern Kansas, all of Oklahoma, and most of northwest Texas. Historically, the Comanches were hunter-gatherers, with a typical Plains Indian...
Indians on Leon Creek about four miles from 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 Moses Lapham, Cornelius Skinner, a Mr. Jones, and one other of the party were killed. The surviving members returned to town and spread the news. Thirteen prominent men headed by Benjamin Franklin Cage, a San Jacinto veteran, hurriedly left San Antonio and went to the place where the massacre had occurred. The Indians, estimated at a hundred or more, surrounded the Texans and killed Captain Cage, Dr. Henry G. McClung, R. M. Lee, a Mr. O'Blye, Peter Conrad, John Pickering and a Mr. Green, and badly wounded General Richard Dunlap and Major William H. Patton. The next day a search party brought in the remains of the dead. On the following day, their remains were interred in a single grave just outside of the Catholic Cemetery. Judge Robinson delivered the funeral oration.
Sources
- ” Daughters of the Republic of Texas, Muster Rolls of the Texas Revolution (Austin, 1986).
- ” Joseph Milton Nance, Attack and Counterattack: The Texas-Mexican Frontier, 1842 (University of Texas Press, 1964).
- ” The Writings of Sam Houston, 1813-1863 (University of Texas Press, 1938)
- ” Moses Lapham’s Letters to Relatives 1831-1838
See also
- John CokerJohn CokerJohn Coker was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution, noted for a daring action during the Battle of San Jacinto that helped seal the decisive Texian victory.-Biography:...
- Young Perry AlsburyYoung Perry AlsburyYoung Perry Alsbury was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution. He was among the group of volunteers for the mission that was successful in burning the strategically important Vince's Bridge during the Battle of San Jacinto...
- John T. GarnerJohn T. GarnerJohn T. Garner was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution, noted for a daring action during the Battle of San Jacinto that helped seal the decisive Texian victory.-Biography:John T...
- Edwin R. RainwaterEdwin R. RainwaterEdwin R. Rainwater was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution, noted for a daring action during the Battle of San Jacinto that helped seal the decisive Texian victory.-Biography:...
- Denmore W. ReavesDenmore W. ReavesDenmore W. Reaves was a soldier in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution, noted for a daring action during the Battle of San Jacinto that helped seal the decisive Texian victory.-Biography:Denmore W. Reaves arrived in Texas in June 1835...
- Vince's BridgeVince's BridgeVince's Bridge was a wooden bridge constructed by Allen Vince over Sims Bayou near Harrisburg, Texas. Its destruction by Texas armed forces played a critical role during the April 1836 Battle of San Jacinto in the decisive defeat of the Mexican army, which effectively ended the Texas Revolution...
- Battle of San JacintoBattle of San JacintoThe Battle of San Jacinto, fought on April 21, 1836, in present-day Harris County, Texas, was the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. Led by General Sam Houston, the Texian Army engaged and defeated General Antonio López de Santa Anna's Mexican forces in a fight that lasted just eighteen...
- Deaf SmithDeaf SmithErastus "Deaf" Smith was an American frontiersman noted for his part in the Texas Revolution and the army of the Republic of Texas. He fought at the Grass Fight and the Battle of San Jacinto. After the war, Deaf Smith led a company of Texas Rangers.-Biography:Smith was born in Dutchess County, New...
- Henry Wax KarnesHenry Wax KarnesHenry Wax Karnes was notable as a soldier and figure of the Texas Revolution, as well as the commander of General Sam Houston's "Spy Squad" at the Battle of San Jacinto....
- Sam HoustonSam HoustonSamuel Houston, known as Sam Houston , was a 19th-century American statesman, politician, and soldier. He was born in Timber Ridge in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, of Scots-Irish descent. Houston became a key figure in the history of Texas and was elected as the first and third President of...
- Antonio López de Santa AnnaAntonio López de Santa AnnaAntonio 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...
- Vicente FilisolaVicente FilisolaVicente Filisola was a Spanish military figure, Mexican military and political figure in the 19th century.-Life and career:...
- José de UrreaJosé de UrreaJosé de Urrea was a noted general for Mexico. He fought under General Antonio López de Santa Anna during the Texas Revolution. Urrea's forces were never defeated in battle during the Texas Revolution...
- Martín Perfecto de CosMartín Perfecto de CosMartín Perfecto de Cos was a 19th-century Mexican general. He was married to Lucinda López de Santa Anna, sister of Antonio López de Santa Anna.-Background:Cós was born in Vera Cruz in the year 1800, the son of an attorney...
- Juan AlmonteJuan AlmonteJuan Nepomuceno Almonte was a 19th century Mexican official, soldier and diplomat. He was a veteran of the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution...
- Timeline of the Texas RevolutionTimeline of the Texas RevolutionThis is a timeline of the Texas Revolution, spanning the time from the earliest independence movements of the area of Texas, over the declaration of independence from Spain, up to the secession of the Republic of Texas from Mexico....
- Runaway ScrapeRunaway ScrapeThe Runaway Scrape was the name given to the flight and subsequent hostilities that occurred, as Texan, Tejano, and American settlers and militia encountered the pursuing Mexican army in early 1836....