Colonel John Henry Moore (August 13, 1800–December 2, 1880) was an early Texas settler, one of the
Old Three Hundred first land grantees to settle in
Mexican Texas.
Early life
Moore was born August 13, 1800, in
Rome,
Smith County,
Tennessee. It is said that John Henry Moore ran away from college to avoid studying
Latin. He went to
Spanish Texas in 1818. (His father took him back to Tennessee, and he returned to Texas in 1821.)
Military career
He built
Moore's Fort at present-day
La Grange, Texas, in 1828; but he is best known for commanding the
Battle of Gonzales
The Battle of Gonzales was the first military engagement of the Texas Revolution. It was fought near Gonzales, Texas, on October 2, 1835, between rebellious Texian settlers and a detachment of Mexican army soldiers.
In 1831, Mexican authoriti ...
on October 2, 1835. In 1839 he led a force of 60 Texans, from Austin, along with their Lipan Apache allies, under chief Castro, to the San Saba river and attacked an emcampment of Commanche, killing and wounding many and recovering a considerable number of horses and equipment from them. He was elected a colonel of the
Texan army and served as a member of the council of war. Commander
Stephen F. Austin ordered Moore to organize a
cavalry
Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...
company
A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...
, who brought their own pistols and double-barreled
shotgun
A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge (firearms), cartridge known as a shotshell, which usually discharges numerous small p ...
s.
During the
Civil War, Moore enlisted in
Terry's Texas Rangers. Being 61 years old, he was appointed to a committee to help secure bonds for financing the
Confederate cause.
Community life
John H. Moore established the first church in
Fayette County, Texas, in the fort building.
Photo of sign affixed to Moore's Fort building
retrieved 03 December 2015.
Death
Moore died December 2, 1880.
References
External links
John Henry Moore
in ''Handbook of Texas Online
The ''Handbook of Texas'' is a comprehensive encyclopedia
An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular ...
''
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Moore, John Henry
1800 births
1880 deaths
People of Mexican Texas
Old Three Hundred
People of the Texas Revolution
Army of the Republic of Texas officers