‘Old Whip’ and Santa Anna’s capture

“Old Whip” was the name of a “big-boned half-thoroughbred fancy black stallion” owned by William Vince, owner of a “prosperous spread” on the west side the bayou near Vince’s Bridge across from the San Jacinto Battlefield. Match that with Santa Anna’s incapacitating fear of rushing flood water.

Author Frank X. Tolbert of the book, “The Day of San Jacinto,” conjectures that these two factors connect with the possibility of why Santa Anna ended up being captured in grass that was belly high to a horse the day following the Texians successful San Jacinto battle over the Mexican Army on April 21, 1836.

Three days earlier as Santa Anna’s Army moved southward toward New Washington they passed through Vince’s property. Vince’s family had joined the Runaway Scrape but a British widow housekeeper, Mrs. James Brown, refused to join the family and remained at the ranch house with her 13-year old son, Jimmy.

Author Tolbert states that she had exclaimed, “I’m a British subject. And I’ll tell either of these dirty armies a thing or two if they try to bother Jimmy and I.”

As Santa Anna’s Army passed by, son Jimmy couldn’t contain himself. He mounted Old Whip to race off toward the passing soldiers. An aide to Santa Anna, Mexican Colonel Juan Bringas mistook the boy as a grown-up Texan and knocked Jimmy off the stallion with the flat of his saber. His mother rushed out creating a commotion. Santa Anna rode up to quiet the incident yet let Colonel Bringas keep the stallion.

Over the next two days, Santa Anna’s army moved southward. He ordered both the towns of New Washington and Harrisburg burned, then proceeded the afternoon of April 20, to near Peggy’s Lake within striking distance of General Houston and his ragtag Texian Army. Light skirmishes occurred with Santa Anna being joined the next morning by General Cos and about 500 additional troops. Cos detachment had marched all night to arrive about 8 a.m. that morning and the entire Santa Anna army rested. That afternoon at 4 p.m. General Houston’s Texians opened the Battle of San Jacinto while Santa Anna’s army slept. As we know, it became basically a massacre.

Santa Anna and a handful of officers panicked and with Colonel Bringas’ servant having offered the Mexican General the use of Old Whip, he rode off on the stallion. Frantic, Santa Anna gave Old Whip “his head.”

Vince’s Bridge had been burned by Deaf Smith to eliminate even the Texians escape from the battlefield area across the bayous to the Brazos River.

Old Whip, sensing his home just across the incessant rain flooded bayou, raced through the muddy high grass flood plain toward his corral. Finding the bridge burned, Santa Anna and those accompanying him dismounted, scattering in the boggy terrain. Old Whip, himself swimming across the flooded bayou, had led Santa Anna into a trap.

That evening, General Houston ordered a search, stating, “You will find The Hero of Tampico (Santa Anna) retreating on all fours in high grass…he will be dressed as badly, at least, as a common soldier. Examine every man you find very closely.”

True to Houston’s word, Santa Anna was found on all fours in the high grass dressed badly in clothing taken from an abandoned slave’s cabin. Yet, he still wore his diamond studded white shirt. Private Joel Robison rode back to the Texians with the captive astride behind him clutching to his waist. When the General’s captured Mexicans saw him, they called out “El Presidente” to identify Santa Anna.

Santa Anna was led to General Houston laying on a mattress with a painful left ankle wound.

Thus, Author Tolbert conjectures that Old Whip led to Santa Anna’s capture and his inability to possibly organize a subsequent attack on the Texians.

(Written by Betty Dunn, Two Rivers Heritage Foundation. See www.tworiversheritagefoundation.org for more info and membership).