Jack Shackelford (March 20, 1790 – January 22, 1857) was an American doctor, politician and soldier. He raised and led a unit in

Courtland, Alabama Courtland is a town in Lawrence County, Alabama, United States, and is included in the Decatur Metropolitan Area, as well as the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area. The population was 609 at the 2010 census, down from 769 in 2000. Hi ...

called the Red Rovers or the Alabama Red Rovers to fight in the Texas Revolution. He was one of the few survivors of the Goliad massacre.

Early life

Jack Shackelford was born in

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

, to Richard Shackelford. After obtaining his M.D., he moved to

Winnsboro, South Carolina Winnsboro is a town in Fairfield County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 3,550 at the 2010 census. The population was 3,215 at the 2020 census. A population decrease of approximately 9.5% for the same 10 year period. It is the c ...

, where he opened his medical practice. He married local Maria Young or Youngue. In the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

, he joined the Army and served on

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

's staff, being wounded at Charleston. In 1818, he moved to

Shelby County, Alabama Shelby County is located in the Central Alabama, central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the population was 223,024. The county seat is Columbiana, Alabama, Columbiana. The largest city is A ...

, and purchased a

cotton plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...

. He was elected to the

Alabama State Senate The Alabama State Senate is the upper house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alabama. The body is composed of 35 members representing an equal number of districts across the state, with each district conta ...

three times, in 1822, 1823 and 1824. However, he was forced to sell his plantation after standing

surety In finance, a surety , surety bond or guaranty involves a promise by one party to assume responsibility for the debt obligation of a borrower if that borrower defaults. Usually, a surety bond or surety is a promise by a surety or guarantor to pay ...

for a cousin whose business failed. He was employed as the head of the

United States Land Office The General Land Office (GLO) was an independent agency of the United States government responsible for public domain lands in the United States. It was created in 1812 to take over functions previously conducted by the United States Department o ...

in Courtland, Alabama, and also as treasurer of the Tuscumbia, Courtland and Decatur Railroad.

Red Rovers and Texas Revolution

In 1835, Dr. Jack Shackelford raised a company to fight against the Mexicans in the Texas Revolution. Nearly 70 strong, it included his oldest son, Fortunatus; two nephews; and almost half the men of Courtland. They came to be called the Red Rovers because of the color of their jeans or uniforms. Under the command of Colonel

James Fannin James Walker Fannin Jr. (1804 or 1805 – March 27, 1836) was an American military figure and slave trader in the Texas Army and leader during the Texas Revolution (1835-1836) against Mexico. After being outnumbered and surrendering to Mexi ...

, they fought in the

Battle of Coleto The Battle of Coleto, also known as the Battle of Coleto Creek, the Battle of the Prairie, and the Batalla del Encinal del Perdido, was fought on March 19–20, 1836, during the Goliad campaign of the Texas Revolution. In February, General Jos ...

on March 19–20, 1836. The Texians were defeated and forced to surrender. Most of the prisoners, including Fannin and Fortunatus Shackelford, were executed in the infamous Goliad massacre, but Jack Shackelford and several other doctors were spared to care for the Mexican wounded. During the Mexicans' retreat after their defeat at the

Battle of San Jacinto The Battle of San Jacinto ( es, Batalla de San Jacinto), fought on April 21, 1836, in present-day La Porte and Pasadena, Texas, was the final and decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. Led by General Samuel Houston, the Texan Army engaged ...

, Shackelford and Dr. Joseph Henry Barnard managed to escape. Shackelford was honorably discharged and returned home to Alabama. He wrote of his war experiences in a

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobi ...

entitled "Some Few Notes upon a Part of the Texas War".

Post-Texas Revolution years

After his wife died in 1842, Jack Shackelford married Martha Chardevoyne. Dr. Jack Shackelford died in Courtland on January 22, 1857. The following year,

Shackelford County, Texas Shackelford County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, its population was 3,105. Its county seat is Albany, Texas, Albany. The county was created in 1858 and ...

, was named in his honor.

References

External links

Massacre at Goliad--Captain Jack Shackelford's Account / Commander Alabama Red Rovers

Letters from Dr. Jack Shackelford in Goliad, Texas, to his wife, Maria, and his son, Edward, in Courtland, Alabama.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shackelford, Jack 1790 births 1857 deaths People of the Texas Revolution Army of the Republic of Texas officers United States Army personnel of the War of 1812 Physicians from South Carolina Alabama state senators Politicians from Richmond, Virginia 19th-century American politicians