WHY  WE  "REMEMBER  THE  ALAMO"
by Bro. Dwight Stevens, Chairman, Masonic Education and Service Committee
(printed in The Texas Mason, Spring 1998,)

During his year (1998), Grand Master Harry G, Cunningham had as his emblem the Alamo Mission overlaid with the Square and Compasses. This emblem should hold special meaning to all Texas Masons. The Alamo should be remembered as the place where the Mexican Army, under command of General Antonio Lopez De Santa Anna, stormed a former Mexican mission defended by a band of Texans fighting for their independence. Among the defenders were our Masonic Brothers James Bonham, Jim Bowie, David Crockett, Almaron Dickenson and Col. William Barrett Travis.

In rooms where priests had prayed, bayonets clashed with Bowie Knives and swords. Musket and cannon fire tore into the Texan defenders, By dawn, all the Texan combatants lay dead. Their sacrifice, on March 6, 1836, would immortalize them as legends, and turn the Alamo grounds into Sacred Ground.

Each year more than three million Americans visit the Alamo. For many of the visitors, who gaze with reverence at the paintings and exhibits, the Alamo is more shrine than historic monument. They have come to the Alamo to honor those  whose death gave birth to a Republic.

Brother William Barrett Travis, Commander of the Alamo garrison, is said to have drawn a line in the sand requesting all who would stay and fight to: "step across the line." He drew that line not only in the sand, but into the hearts and minds of every Texas Mason,

Many months after the battle, the charred remains of the Alamo defenders were laid to rest not far from the Alamo itself, Presiding at the ceremony was Brother Juan Sequin. The words he spoke at the interment speak to us even today,

"The spirit of liberty appears to be looking down from it's elevated throne saying:  Behold your Brothers: Crockett, Bowie, Travis. They preferred to die a thousand times rather than submit themselves to the tyrants yoke, Their sacrifices are worthy of inclusion in the pages of history. What a brilliant example for others to follow."

If you have not had the opportunity to visit the Alamo, please do so at your earliest possible convenience. The Daughter's of the Republic of Texas have lovingly turned the Alamo Mission into a shrine, It remains to this day a shrine to the heroes of Texas liberty. The veneration of the defenders reached a new height in 1939 with the dedication of The Alamo Cenotaph. Towering sixty feet above the Alamo, the monument's theme is: "The Spirit of Sacrifice". Statues of the principal defenders, and the names of all the Texans who died at the Alamo, are carved into the granite foundation,

During your visit, you will find that the Alamo is a powerful place. It's a place filled with legends and memories, It's a place we all should go think about our own potential, about what we need to sacrifice so that we can keep the fraternity on the road that those men fought to preserve.

to Texas History Directory / to Library / table of contents page