Tuesday, March 1, 1836: The Immortal 32
Around three o’clock in the morning of March 1, a sentry atop the Alamo’s north wall heard galloping horses coming out of the pre-dawn darkness. Although he couldn’t see who was coming at such a fast pace, he was pretty sure it was the Mexicans attacking. Sounding the alarm, he woke the garrison, who raced to the wall to fight off this attack.
Not able to see who they were shooting at, the defenders just fired toward the sound. Out of the black void came a curse, which only could have come from a Texian. Entering the Alamo through the small gate at the north end of the Long Barracks, next to the cattle pen, rode thirty-two men of the Gonzales Mounted Ranger Company. We know them as “the Immortal 32.”
The small community of Gonzales, with only a population of around 500, was pivotal in the early days of the Texas Revolution. It was at Gonzales where the first armed encounter between the Mexican government and the citizens of Texas occurred on October 2, 1835. This gave Gonzales the title of “the Lexington of Texas.” Also, the men from Gonzales were among the first to ride to San Antonio to participate in the Siege of Béxar on October 12, 1835. In fact, many of those who rode into the Alamo that morning were veterans of those two battles.
The story of the Immortal 32 began on February 24, when Andrew Ponton, the Mayor of Gonzales, received Travis’s first plea for help delivered by Dr. James Sutherland and John Smith. In this letter, Travis wrote, “The enemy in large force is in sight. We want men and provisions. Send them to us. We have 150 men and are determined to defend the Alamo to the last. Give us assistance.” The next day fellow Gonzales resident Albert Martin brought Travis’s letter, “To the People of Texas & All Americans in the World.” These letters stirred the men of Gonzales into action. They began assembling a relief force to go to the aid of their friends at the Alamo.
Most of those immortal 32 were single, with an average age in the late twenties. The oldest was forty-four, Andrew Kent, and the youngest was William Philp King, at only fifteen. King had volunteered to take his father’s place.
Those thirty-two men from Gonzales knew what awaited them at the Alamo, an almost certain death. And yet they chose to make the sacrifice. But why? Accounts say they went because it was their neighbors and friends at the Alamo, and they didn’t want them to think they’d been forgotten. And this is why we’ll always remember those Immortal 32.
Still Current 