This particular Cunningham line is tied to the Simmons and Jennison families. Widow Lucinda Morris Cunningham married John Simmons, Jr. David, son of Lucinda Morris and Captain Robert Cunningham married Anna Jennison, sister to Dolly Jennison Simmons, daughter-in-law of John, Jr. Robert, son of David and Anna, made his way to Texas in 1835 and then to the Alamo. His story is related here as well.
First Generation
1. Captain
Robert Cunningham1 died circa 1791 in
at sea.1 He was born in Ulster, Ireland.1
Captain Robert Cunningham was of Scots-Irish descent and born in Northern
Ireland's Ulster Province. Robert married Lucy Morris about 1783 in
Philadelphia. They had three children: David, Elizabeth and Robert W. Captain
Cunningham was master of a sailing vessel. On a voyage prior to 1792, he left
the port of Philadelphia and was lost at sea. Lucy married John Simmons Jr. in
January of 1792.
Captain Robert Cunningham and
Lucinda Morris were married circa 1783 in Philadelphia, Philadelphia Co.,
Pennsylvania.1 Lucinda Morris1–3 was born on 24 Dec
1760 in Caernarvonshire, Wales.1–2
She died about 1822 at the age of 62 in possibly Dearborn or Franklin Co,
Indiana.1–2
Lucinda's story is a bit confusing. Three different birthdates and places have
been offered for her.
The first, 24 October 1760 in Caernarvonshire, Wales, was provided by James B. Simmons, a descendant of Adam Simmons - long thought to be a son of "Wall Street John." James obtained the information in 1880 from Caroline Garrison, daughter of John W. and Dolly Simmons. This was supposed to have been recorded in the Simmons family Bible. At the time, only a few entries were legible. Of concern with the information supposedly provided by the daughter of John W. Simmons: that Lucy was John Jr.'s first wife; that she was the mother of the children listed in the bible; and that there was a son John [actually James] F. born 1784, a senator from Rhode Island. (No apparent ties to the family.)
The second, about 1767 in Oxford, Talbott Co., Maryland was provided to researcher Roy Simmons by Price & Assoc. a genealogy research firm in Salt Lake City. The Oxford birth would place Lucy in the right location to have ties to the family of Robert Morris. Morris had a half-brother Thomas. Thomas was the product of a long time relationship between Robert Morris Sr. and Sarah Wise. There is no clear evidence that Thomas [1751 Oxford, MD - 1778 Nantes, France] fathered any children. Lucy's father was supposedly a Thomas Morris, thus providing the link to Robert Morris. In addition Lucy is found in Philadelphia at the same time as Robert and Thomas.
The third, about 1765 in New York City, appears on Lucy's pedigree chart on the Roy Simmons site.
Additionally, there are two estimated dates, c 1778 and c 1783, for Lucinda's first marriage to Robert Cunningham. The latter seems more likely based on the birth of their eldest child. Fortunately, her second marriage to John Simmons was documented.
Lucy's death is also somewhat shrouded in mystery. John Simmons married for the third time in Wheeling, Virginia in 1824. John Simmons was listed as the head of household in Hanover, Laughery Twp., Dearborn Co., Indiana* and was named in an 1820 deed as being of Dearborn County, Indiana. There was one male over 45 and one female over 45.That would place Lucy's death during the early 1820s, probably in Dearborn Co. It is also possible that she died on the return trip to Pennsylvania. Undocumented sources give Lucy's death as being in Brookville, Franklin Co., Indiana.
*There is no record of a town or township named Hanover in Ohio or Dearborn Counties. There was a town of Hartford south of Laughery Creek in what would become Ohio Co. If Hanover existed in 1820, it did not last long. There was a Laughery Twp., part of which became Clay Twp., Dearborn Co.
The first, 24 October 1760 in Caernarvonshire, Wales, was provided by James B. Simmons, a descendant of Adam Simmons - long thought to be a son of "Wall Street John." James obtained the information in 1880 from Caroline Garrison, daughter of John W. and Dolly Simmons. This was supposed to have been recorded in the Simmons family Bible. At the time, only a few entries were legible. Of concern with the information supposedly provided by the daughter of John W. Simmons: that Lucy was John Jr.'s first wife; that she was the mother of the children listed in the bible; and that there was a son John [actually James] F. born 1784, a senator from Rhode Island. (No apparent ties to the family.)
The second, about 1767 in Oxford, Talbott Co., Maryland was provided to researcher Roy Simmons by Price & Assoc. a genealogy research firm in Salt Lake City. The Oxford birth would place Lucy in the right location to have ties to the family of Robert Morris. Morris had a half-brother Thomas. Thomas was the product of a long time relationship between Robert Morris Sr. and Sarah Wise. There is no clear evidence that Thomas [1751 Oxford, MD - 1778 Nantes, France] fathered any children. Lucy's father was supposedly a Thomas Morris, thus providing the link to Robert Morris. In addition Lucy is found in Philadelphia at the same time as Robert and Thomas.
The third, about 1765 in New York City, appears on Lucy's pedigree chart on the Roy Simmons site.
Additionally, there are two estimated dates, c 1778 and c 1783, for Lucinda's first marriage to Robert Cunningham. The latter seems more likely based on the birth of their eldest child. Fortunately, her second marriage to John Simmons was documented.
Lucy's death is also somewhat shrouded in mystery. John Simmons married for the third time in Wheeling, Virginia in 1824. John Simmons was listed as the head of household in Hanover, Laughery Twp., Dearborn Co., Indiana* and was named in an 1820 deed as being of Dearborn County, Indiana. There was one male over 45 and one female over 45.That would place Lucy's death during the early 1820s, probably in Dearborn Co. It is also possible that she died on the return trip to Pennsylvania. Undocumented sources give Lucy's death as being in Brookville, Franklin Co., Indiana.
*There is no record of a town or township named Hanover in Ohio or Dearborn Counties. There was a town of Hartford south of Laughery Creek in what would become Ohio Co. If Hanover existed in 1820, it did not last long. There was a Laughery Twp., part of which became Clay Twp., Dearborn Co.
Robert Cunningham and Lucinda Morris had the following
children:
2 i. David Cunningham, born 14 May 1784,
Philadelphia, Philadelphia Co., Pennsylvania;
married Anna Jennison, 1 Jan 1804, New Berlin, Chenango Co., New York; died 25 Jul 1836,
Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana.
iii. Robert W. Cunningham1,4 was born circa 1788 in Philadelphia
Co., Pennsylvania.1 Robert W.
Cunningham was actively involved with Simmons relations. On 3 December 1814,
Samuel Simmons and Asa and Elizabeth [Simmons] Kimball sold their interest in
Lot 75 in New Berlin. Robert was given power of attorney for Samuel. On 13 May
1816, John and Lucy Simmons sold two tracts of land on Chartier's Creek, Peters
Twp., Washington Co., Pennsylvania to Robert. Along with Mary [Simmons] Lynch,
he swore an affidavit in John Simmons' pension application that testified to
John being 72 years of age in 1833 and having served in the Revolutionary War .
Second Generation
2. David
Cunningham5 (Robert-1) was
born on 14 May 1784 in Philadelphia, Philadelphia Co., Pennsylvania.1
He died on 25 Jul 1836 at the age of 52 in Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana.1 The Jennison Family gives the
year of death as 1835. [p. 92] David and his brother-in-law, Rufus Jennison
operated the first ferry across the Ohio River between Cincinnati and
Covington, Kentucky. David died from cholera in Jeffersoville, Indiana in 1835
or 1836.
David Cunningham and Anna
Jennison were married on 1 Jan 1804 in New Berlin, Chenango Co., New York.1 Anna
Jennison5, daughter of Peter Jennison and
Mehetible Singletary, was born on 30 Apr 1782 in Sutton, Worcester Co.,
Massachusetts.2,6–7 Simmons Family gives birthplace
as Ward, Mass. She
died on 9 Jun 1860 at the age of 78 in Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana.2,6 Anna and David
took a cross country honeymoon by sleigh. Granddaughter Fannie Belle Sparks
recalled Anna as a "sweet faced lovely old lady who always wore a white
cap and kept her bible and snuff box on the table beside her. She was not a
member of any church but read the bible daily." Anna died at the home of
her daughter Mary Pile in Jeffersonville.
David Cunningham and Anna Jennison had the following
children:
i. Robert W. Cunningham8 was born on 18 Oct 1804 in New Berlin,
Chenango Co., New York.1
He died killed defending the Alamo on 6 Mar 1836 at the age of 31 in The Alamo,
San Antonio de Bexar, Republic of Texas.1
Robert W. Cunningham was the eldest of the children of David Cunningham and
Anna Jennison, born in Chenango Co., New York in 1804. He made the move west
with his family as they settled in Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana during
the 1820s. Robert opted for a life on the river, common to his Cunningham,
Jennison and Simmons kin. Members of the family lived along the Ohio river
towns in Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio throughout the 1800s.
Cunningham spent time in Kentucky and Arkansas before working on the Mississippi River cargo flatboats that took him to New Orleans. In 1832 Robert wrote his family back in Jeffersonville that he was going to settle in New Orleans. That decision was soon to change. Texas beckoned.
By 4 March 1833 Robert had moved to Texas where he received title to a league of land on Skull Creek [present-day Colorado Co.] in Austin's burgeoning colony. [His name appeared on the tax index list of 1833 in "Austin County."]
Moses Austin laid the foundation for an American settlement in Mexico's northern-most state, Texas, in 1820-21. He was granted land on which to settle 300 families by Governor Martinez. Moses died in June of 1821 and his son, Stephen F. Austin, reluctantly took over the Texas Grant. The new "Empressario" met with the governor's representative in San Antonio and laid out an acceptable plan for settlement. He then returned to New Orleans to advertise for colonists. Austin led the first families into Texas in 1822 and soon had to go to Mexico City to confirm the grant. During his return to the colony, the Mexican government fell to revolution. The new Constitution of 1824 was loosely patterned after that of the US. There were serious differences - no trial by jury, Roman Catholicism was the state religion, Congress had the final say in interpreting the constitution, the president had the right to command the army in person and the rights of the states were not clearly defined. Slavery had been all but outlawed in Mexico, but there were some allowances. Coahuila and Texas, the northern-most states, were combined into a single state. Distribution of land favored native Mexicans over colonists. Colonists had to swear to follow the constitution, including following the Catholic faith.
Other colonies sprang up in Texas over the next few years. Austin's was by far the most successful and continued to grow. Changes were on the horizon with another revolution in 1829 and one of its leaders, a hero of the previous war, was Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. The U.S. was making noise about annexing Texas. Slavery was outlawed. Vice-president Bustamente declared himself president in 1830 and forbade further colonization of Texas. Juan Matin Verimendi was elected vice-governor of Coahuila y Texas and into the picture came Verimendi's son-in-law, James Bowie.
Among new government officials in Texas was Col. Juan Bradburn, in charge of Anahuac. He instituted martial law, conficated colonists' property, citizens were arrested, Mexican soldiers robbed and stole and went unpuished. In 1831, enraged citizens arrested one of Bradburn's soldiers. They were in turn arrested by Bradburn. One of them was a young attorney named William Barrett Travis.
The prisoners were eventually released and Bradburn sent to New Orleans, from where he promptly retuned to Mexico. As Santa Anna continued to lead the revolt, Sam Houston arrived in Texas in 1832. Santa Anna was elected president in 1833. It was shortly before Santa Anna took office that 29 year-old Robert Cunningham arrived in Texas.
Santa Anna was soon dictator of Mexico, the Constitution of 1824 was abolished and the rights of Mexicans and colonists alike were revoked. The Texans tried reason before rebellion and sent Austin to Mexico City with their grievances in 1834. He was promptly arrested and imprisoned. Austin was released later in the year.
1835: The state of Zacatecas was opposed to the new dictator and prepared to defend itself from the encroaching Mexican Army led by El Presidente himself. Of 5000 Zacatecas defenders, 2000 were killed and 2700 were taken prisoner. For two days, Santa Anna's army butchered citizens and plundered the state capital. Meanwhile, General Cos, the dictator's brother-in-law, was dispatched to Coahuila y Texas to shut down the legislature and establish martial law. The mood among Texas colonists was quickly shifting to one of independence.
Travis led a force to take Anahuac. Austin returned in September, now ready to support the rebels and a Committee of Safety was formed at San Felipe. The town of Gonzalez had been given a cannon for protection against Indian raids. Mexican forces were sent to reclaim the cannon. They were not successful. The Texans captured Goliad and Concepcion. Plans were underway at San Felipe to establish a provisional government. A declaration was written calling for a return to the Constitution of 1824. By the end of November, Henry Smith was appointed governor, James W. Robinson lieutenant governor, Austin commissioner to the U.S. and Sam Houston was commander-in-chief of the army. They would meet at Washington-on-the-Brazos on 1 March 1836 for further action. General Cos' army was now encamped in San Antonio de Bexar and in an old, run-down Spanish mission outside of the town - the Alamo.
What transpired in the life of Robert Cunningham between March of 1834 and late 1835 is not yet documented; he wrote his family in 1836 that he had joined the Texas army. He was undoubtedly with the army as it moved from Concepcion to San Antonio in November and December of 1835. Robert was serving as a sergeant and second gunner in Captain T.L.F. Parrott's artillery company.
Parrott's company was initially under Austin's command, but Austin was called away and Edward Burleson took command of the regiment. Burleson gave the order to attack the Mexican forces on the evening of December 4th. Ben Milam led the assault on the town, while James Neill attacked the Alamo. There was much house to house fighting over the next five days. Among the most notable casualties of the battle was that of Col. Ben Milam on the 7th. Milam had been an inspirational leader of the Texans. Cannon fire helped keep Mexican forces from leaving the Alamo to reinforce Bexar. By the 9th, Cos' troops had retreated to the old mission and ran up a white flag. In the early morning hours of 10 December 1835 Cos surrendered. Cos and his officers were never to return to Texas, nor were they to, in any way, oppose the reinstitution of the 1824 Constitution. Santa Anna, at the head of an army of 6000, was marching toward the rebellious colony.
Robert Cunningham chose to remain with the Bexar garrison. He was assigned to Captain William R. Carey's artillery company as a private. Cunningham was part of the force of fewer than 100 regulars left to man San Antonio de Bexar under the command of Col. James Neill.
Col. James Bowie arrived on the 19th of January with 30 men and orders [left to Bowie's discretion] to abandon Bexar, blow up its fortifications, and remove the artillery to Gonzalez. Neill disagreed. Bowie took stock of the situation and finally agreed with Neill that holding Bexar was crucial. Bowie wrote Houston stating that "we would rather die in these ditches than give it up to the enemy." The commanders began to fortify their defenses.
Governor Smith ordered Travis to Bexar. Travis made several pleas to have his orders revoked and even threatened to resign his commission. In the end, Col. Travis led his 30 men into Bexar on February 3rd. On the 6th arrived the Tennessee Mounted Volunteers under the command of former Congressman Col. David Crockett. Crockett proceeded to regale the soldiers and citizens with stories of his exploits. David informed them that he had told Congress that "you may all go to hell and I will go to Texas. Neill left on 20 days leave on the 11th and placed Travis in command of the regulars.
Bowie was drinking heavily and suffering from bouts of fever [probaby typhoid or pneumonia] and constantly at odds with Travis. Finally, on the 14th, they agreed to maintain their separate commands and make major decisions together.
23 February 1836: Sentries see guidons on the horizon. Orders are given to evacuate Bexar and move into the Alamo. Santa Anna had arrived.
Santa Anna, under a white flag, demanded the surrender of the Alamo. He was answered with a cannon shot. A blood red flag was raised in Bexar - no quarter, no prisoners - the Alamo garrison was to be put to the sword.
Travis drafted a letter on the 24th and sent it out through Mexican lines:
COMMANDANCY OF THE ALAMO, BEXAR, February 24, 1836. FELLOW-CITIZENS AND COMPATRIOTS : I am besieged by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa Anna. I have sustained a continued bombardment for twenty-four hours, and have not lost a man. The enemy have demanded a surrender at discretion ; otherwise the garrison is to be put to the sword, if the place is taken. I have answered the summons with a cannon-shot, and our flag still waves proudly from the walls. I shall never surrender or retreat. Then I call on you in the name of liberty, of patriotism, and of everything dear to the American character, to come to our aid with all despatch. The enemy are receiving reinforcements daily, and will no doubt increase to three or four thousand in four or five days. Though this call may be neglected, I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible, and die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor and that of his country. Victory or death!"W. BARRET TRAVIS, Lieutenant-Colonel commanding." P. S.—The Lord is on our side. When the enemy appeared in sight, we had not three bushels of corn. We have since found, in deserted houses, eighty or ninety bushels, and got into the walls twenty or thirty head of beeves. "T"
Other riders were sent out to deliver dispatches and pleas for help. Skirmishes took place between Mexican and Texan troops. The Alamo was constantly bombarded by Mexican artillery. Return fire was sporadic. Forage parties were sent out to find food and firewood. The Texans also managed to put to torch a few nearby huts that would provide cover for the enemy. Miracuosly, there were no deaths among the defenders. Bowie's illness had won out - he was now a bedridden non-combatant. Travis was in full command.
The artillery headquarters of Capt. Carey was in the southwest corner of the compound. It may have been there, at Alamo's 18 pounder, or the battery trained on the main gate on the south wall to which Pvt. Cunningham was assigned. From his post he witnessed the shenanigans of fellow artilleryman, Scotsman John McGregor and Crockett. McGregor on his bagpipes frequently duelled Crockett and his fiddle. When not at his post at the southeast barricade joining the south wall to the church, Crockett was found around the compound trying to keep spirits up. Periodically David would scale the southwest wall and take shots at enemy soldiers within range. On one occasion he took aim on a Mexican engineer 200 yards away - and shot him dead. Life was anything but boring for young Cunningham.
On March 1st, 32 men arrived from Gonzalez to reinforce the Alamo. Still believing that reinforcements were on the way from Goliad, Travis sent Crockett and two others to find the men and lead them back to the Alamo. About twenty miles out, Crockett's party located the party of about 50. Crockett got most of the men safely inside the Alamo; the others were driven off by the Mexicans. The last messengers were sent out on the 5th. The defenders of the Alamo had not received word that the provisional government had declared Texas an independent republic on March 2nd.
Santa Anna called for an all out attack on the morning of the 6th and ended the bombardment about 10:00 P.M. on the 5th. The exhausted defenders inside the Alamo slept.
At about 5:00 A.M. the Alamo sentinels outside the walls were killed in their sleep as the advance troops approached. Overly enthusiastic soldiers shouted "Via Santa Anna!" and brought the Alamo to life. Santa Anna ordered the 'Deguello' [cut throat song] to be played.
A three acre compound that required 1000 men to adequately defend it, had perhaps 200-220. Crockett's Tennesseeans repelled multiple assaults, forcing the enemy to the west. At the north wall, two assaults failed, but the third did not. Travis, at the north wall, was one of the first to fall. The Mexican troops swarmed over the north wall. Texans exposed to musket fire were cut down. Others abandoned their positions and fought a retreat toward the two barracks and church.
Robert Cunningham and the other artillerymen fired into the masses of Mexican soldiers filing into the compound from the north. As their shot ran out, they grabbed nails, scrap metal, door hinges and anything else they could load into their cannons. The "scrap shot" nearly wiped out one entire Mexican company. The south wall was left unguarded as guns were trained on the north. Battery by battery the artillerymen were overrun. At some point during the push over the south wall, the 32 year-old artilleryman from Jeffersonville fell next to his cannon riddled with musket fire or pierced by bayonets .
The north and south walls had been breached. Mexican troops scaled the east wall and entered the foray. The defenders there escaped into the prairie and, despite cover fire from Captain Almeron Dickinson's artillery on the church, were slaughtered by the enemy cavalry. Defenders jumped from the west wall and tried to fight in the ditches near the mission.. They were also cut down by the Mexican cavalry. Many defenders took refuge in the long barracks [west wall] and the low barracks [south wall].
Crockett and his men were still in the open, backed up against the southeast palisade and in front of the ruins of the church. They put forth a desperate last stand. Witnesses reported between 15-20 soldiers piled around Crockett and a couple of his men.
Captured cannons were turned on the doors and walls of the two barracks, tearing brick and defenders to pieces. Soldiers stormed the buildings firing point-blank into the Texans reduced to hand-to-hand combat. Bayonets finished the job. Soldiers stormed into Bowie's room and found him lying near death in his bed. Legend holds that he generated enough strength to discharge a set of pistols and bury his famous Bowie knife into one of the enemy. His body was raised on bayonets like a bale of hay.
The Alamo's 18 pounder was turned on the church by Mexican soldiers and blew apart the doors. Dickinson's artillerymen and the remaining Texans who had taken refuge in the church were quickly overrun. A handful of men were captured and taken before Santa Anna - they were executed on the spot. By 6:30 A.M. it was all over.
Survivors? At least 14. The wife and children of defender Enrique Esparza and a few other Mexican women and children. Travis' slave, Joe. Susanna Dickinson and her infant daughter were the only Anglo survivors. Mrs. Dickinson and Joe were sent north to tell of the fall of the Alamo.
Santa Anna ordered Christian burials for his dead [estimates between 600 and 1200]. Many bodies had to be tossed into the nearby creeks and rivers. As to the Alamo defenders they were stacked - a layer of wood, a layer of bodies..... and put to the torch. Only one, Enrique Esparza, whose brother fought for Santa Anna, was granted burial.
It is not known how long it took the news of the fall of the Alamo to reach the Cunninghams in Jeffersonville, Indiana. Reports would have begun making their way from New Orleans up the Mississippi by the end of March. News of Robert's death may not have reached the Cunningham family until late April.
By that time, Sam Houston and the Army of Texas had exacted a measure of revenge. On 21 April 1836 the Texans, with the battle cry, "Remember the Alamo!", overwhelmed Santa Anna's forces at San Jacinto, killing 650 and capturing 700 in an 18 minute battle. Houston's force of just under 800 suffered 9 dead and 34 wounded. Among the Mexican prisoners was a soldier in a corporal's uniform. Upon seeing him, other prisoners shouted, "El Presidente!" A disgraced Santa Anna was brought before Houston and signed Texas over to the general in exchange for his life.
Robert W. Cunningham, born in New York, resident of Jeffersonville, Indiana, with stops in Kentucky, Arkansas, New Orleans, and numerous towns along the Mississippi decided to settle in Texas in 1832. On the 6th of March 1836 at the Alamo, he joined David Crockett, Jim Bowie, Travis and the others in immortality.
The History of Texas: http://www.sonofthesouth.net/texas/history-texas.htm Battle of the Alamo [wikipedia]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Alamo
Cunningham spent time in Kentucky and Arkansas before working on the Mississippi River cargo flatboats that took him to New Orleans. In 1832 Robert wrote his family back in Jeffersonville that he was going to settle in New Orleans. That decision was soon to change. Texas beckoned.
By 4 March 1833 Robert had moved to Texas where he received title to a league of land on Skull Creek [present-day Colorado Co.] in Austin's burgeoning colony. [His name appeared on the tax index list of 1833 in "Austin County."]
Moses Austin laid the foundation for an American settlement in Mexico's northern-most state, Texas, in 1820-21. He was granted land on which to settle 300 families by Governor Martinez. Moses died in June of 1821 and his son, Stephen F. Austin, reluctantly took over the Texas Grant. The new "Empressario" met with the governor's representative in San Antonio and laid out an acceptable plan for settlement. He then returned to New Orleans to advertise for colonists. Austin led the first families into Texas in 1822 and soon had to go to Mexico City to confirm the grant. During his return to the colony, the Mexican government fell to revolution. The new Constitution of 1824 was loosely patterned after that of the US. There were serious differences - no trial by jury, Roman Catholicism was the state religion, Congress had the final say in interpreting the constitution, the president had the right to command the army in person and the rights of the states were not clearly defined. Slavery had been all but outlawed in Mexico, but there were some allowances. Coahuila and Texas, the northern-most states, were combined into a single state. Distribution of land favored native Mexicans over colonists. Colonists had to swear to follow the constitution, including following the Catholic faith.
Other colonies sprang up in Texas over the next few years. Austin's was by far the most successful and continued to grow. Changes were on the horizon with another revolution in 1829 and one of its leaders, a hero of the previous war, was Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. The U.S. was making noise about annexing Texas. Slavery was outlawed. Vice-president Bustamente declared himself president in 1830 and forbade further colonization of Texas. Juan Matin Verimendi was elected vice-governor of Coahuila y Texas and into the picture came Verimendi's son-in-law, James Bowie.
Among new government officials in Texas was Col. Juan Bradburn, in charge of Anahuac. He instituted martial law, conficated colonists' property, citizens were arrested, Mexican soldiers robbed and stole and went unpuished. In 1831, enraged citizens arrested one of Bradburn's soldiers. They were in turn arrested by Bradburn. One of them was a young attorney named William Barrett Travis.
The prisoners were eventually released and Bradburn sent to New Orleans, from where he promptly retuned to Mexico. As Santa Anna continued to lead the revolt, Sam Houston arrived in Texas in 1832. Santa Anna was elected president in 1833. It was shortly before Santa Anna took office that 29 year-old Robert Cunningham arrived in Texas.
Santa Anna was soon dictator of Mexico, the Constitution of 1824 was abolished and the rights of Mexicans and colonists alike were revoked. The Texans tried reason before rebellion and sent Austin to Mexico City with their grievances in 1834. He was promptly arrested and imprisoned. Austin was released later in the year.
1835: The state of Zacatecas was opposed to the new dictator and prepared to defend itself from the encroaching Mexican Army led by El Presidente himself. Of 5000 Zacatecas defenders, 2000 were killed and 2700 were taken prisoner. For two days, Santa Anna's army butchered citizens and plundered the state capital. Meanwhile, General Cos, the dictator's brother-in-law, was dispatched to Coahuila y Texas to shut down the legislature and establish martial law. The mood among Texas colonists was quickly shifting to one of independence.
Travis led a force to take Anahuac. Austin returned in September, now ready to support the rebels and a Committee of Safety was formed at San Felipe. The town of Gonzalez had been given a cannon for protection against Indian raids. Mexican forces were sent to reclaim the cannon. They were not successful. The Texans captured Goliad and Concepcion. Plans were underway at San Felipe to establish a provisional government. A declaration was written calling for a return to the Constitution of 1824. By the end of November, Henry Smith was appointed governor, James W. Robinson lieutenant governor, Austin commissioner to the U.S. and Sam Houston was commander-in-chief of the army. They would meet at Washington-on-the-Brazos on 1 March 1836 for further action. General Cos' army was now encamped in San Antonio de Bexar and in an old, run-down Spanish mission outside of the town - the Alamo.
What transpired in the life of Robert Cunningham between March of 1834 and late 1835 is not yet documented; he wrote his family in 1836 that he had joined the Texas army. He was undoubtedly with the army as it moved from Concepcion to San Antonio in November and December of 1835. Robert was serving as a sergeant and second gunner in Captain T.L.F. Parrott's artillery company.
Parrott's company was initially under Austin's command, but Austin was called away and Edward Burleson took command of the regiment. Burleson gave the order to attack the Mexican forces on the evening of December 4th. Ben Milam led the assault on the town, while James Neill attacked the Alamo. There was much house to house fighting over the next five days. Among the most notable casualties of the battle was that of Col. Ben Milam on the 7th. Milam had been an inspirational leader of the Texans. Cannon fire helped keep Mexican forces from leaving the Alamo to reinforce Bexar. By the 9th, Cos' troops had retreated to the old mission and ran up a white flag. In the early morning hours of 10 December 1835 Cos surrendered. Cos and his officers were never to return to Texas, nor were they to, in any way, oppose the reinstitution of the 1824 Constitution. Santa Anna, at the head of an army of 6000, was marching toward the rebellious colony.
Robert Cunningham chose to remain with the Bexar garrison. He was assigned to Captain William R. Carey's artillery company as a private. Cunningham was part of the force of fewer than 100 regulars left to man San Antonio de Bexar under the command of Col. James Neill.
Col. James Bowie arrived on the 19th of January with 30 men and orders [left to Bowie's discretion] to abandon Bexar, blow up its fortifications, and remove the artillery to Gonzalez. Neill disagreed. Bowie took stock of the situation and finally agreed with Neill that holding Bexar was crucial. Bowie wrote Houston stating that "we would rather die in these ditches than give it up to the enemy." The commanders began to fortify their defenses.
Governor Smith ordered Travis to Bexar. Travis made several pleas to have his orders revoked and even threatened to resign his commission. In the end, Col. Travis led his 30 men into Bexar on February 3rd. On the 6th arrived the Tennessee Mounted Volunteers under the command of former Congressman Col. David Crockett. Crockett proceeded to regale the soldiers and citizens with stories of his exploits. David informed them that he had told Congress that "you may all go to hell and I will go to Texas. Neill left on 20 days leave on the 11th and placed Travis in command of the regulars.
Bowie was drinking heavily and suffering from bouts of fever [probaby typhoid or pneumonia] and constantly at odds with Travis. Finally, on the 14th, they agreed to maintain their separate commands and make major decisions together.
23 February 1836: Sentries see guidons on the horizon. Orders are given to evacuate Bexar and move into the Alamo. Santa Anna had arrived.
Santa Anna, under a white flag, demanded the surrender of the Alamo. He was answered with a cannon shot. A blood red flag was raised in Bexar - no quarter, no prisoners - the Alamo garrison was to be put to the sword.
Travis drafted a letter on the 24th and sent it out through Mexican lines:
COMMANDANCY OF THE ALAMO, BEXAR, February 24, 1836. FELLOW-CITIZENS AND COMPATRIOTS : I am besieged by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa Anna. I have sustained a continued bombardment for twenty-four hours, and have not lost a man. The enemy have demanded a surrender at discretion ; otherwise the garrison is to be put to the sword, if the place is taken. I have answered the summons with a cannon-shot, and our flag still waves proudly from the walls. I shall never surrender or retreat. Then I call on you in the name of liberty, of patriotism, and of everything dear to the American character, to come to our aid with all despatch. The enemy are receiving reinforcements daily, and will no doubt increase to three or four thousand in four or five days. Though this call may be neglected, I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible, and die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor and that of his country. Victory or death!"W. BARRET TRAVIS, Lieutenant-Colonel commanding." P. S.—The Lord is on our side. When the enemy appeared in sight, we had not three bushels of corn. We have since found, in deserted houses, eighty or ninety bushels, and got into the walls twenty or thirty head of beeves. "T"
Other riders were sent out to deliver dispatches and pleas for help. Skirmishes took place between Mexican and Texan troops. The Alamo was constantly bombarded by Mexican artillery. Return fire was sporadic. Forage parties were sent out to find food and firewood. The Texans also managed to put to torch a few nearby huts that would provide cover for the enemy. Miracuosly, there were no deaths among the defenders. Bowie's illness had won out - he was now a bedridden non-combatant. Travis was in full command.
The artillery headquarters of Capt. Carey was in the southwest corner of the compound. It may have been there, at Alamo's 18 pounder, or the battery trained on the main gate on the south wall to which Pvt. Cunningham was assigned. From his post he witnessed the shenanigans of fellow artilleryman, Scotsman John McGregor and Crockett. McGregor on his bagpipes frequently duelled Crockett and his fiddle. When not at his post at the southeast barricade joining the south wall to the church, Crockett was found around the compound trying to keep spirits up. Periodically David would scale the southwest wall and take shots at enemy soldiers within range. On one occasion he took aim on a Mexican engineer 200 yards away - and shot him dead. Life was anything but boring for young Cunningham.
On March 1st, 32 men arrived from Gonzalez to reinforce the Alamo. Still believing that reinforcements were on the way from Goliad, Travis sent Crockett and two others to find the men and lead them back to the Alamo. About twenty miles out, Crockett's party located the party of about 50. Crockett got most of the men safely inside the Alamo; the others were driven off by the Mexicans. The last messengers were sent out on the 5th. The defenders of the Alamo had not received word that the provisional government had declared Texas an independent republic on March 2nd.
Santa Anna called for an all out attack on the morning of the 6th and ended the bombardment about 10:00 P.M. on the 5th. The exhausted defenders inside the Alamo slept.
At about 5:00 A.M. the Alamo sentinels outside the walls were killed in their sleep as the advance troops approached. Overly enthusiastic soldiers shouted "Via Santa Anna!" and brought the Alamo to life. Santa Anna ordered the 'Deguello' [cut throat song] to be played.
A three acre compound that required 1000 men to adequately defend it, had perhaps 200-220. Crockett's Tennesseeans repelled multiple assaults, forcing the enemy to the west. At the north wall, two assaults failed, but the third did not. Travis, at the north wall, was one of the first to fall. The Mexican troops swarmed over the north wall. Texans exposed to musket fire were cut down. Others abandoned their positions and fought a retreat toward the two barracks and church.
Robert Cunningham and the other artillerymen fired into the masses of Mexican soldiers filing into the compound from the north. As their shot ran out, they grabbed nails, scrap metal, door hinges and anything else they could load into their cannons. The "scrap shot" nearly wiped out one entire Mexican company. The south wall was left unguarded as guns were trained on the north. Battery by battery the artillerymen were overrun. At some point during the push over the south wall, the 32 year-old artilleryman from Jeffersonville fell next to his cannon riddled with musket fire or pierced by bayonets .
The north and south walls had been breached. Mexican troops scaled the east wall and entered the foray. The defenders there escaped into the prairie and, despite cover fire from Captain Almeron Dickinson's artillery on the church, were slaughtered by the enemy cavalry. Defenders jumped from the west wall and tried to fight in the ditches near the mission.. They were also cut down by the Mexican cavalry. Many defenders took refuge in the long barracks [west wall] and the low barracks [south wall].
Crockett and his men were still in the open, backed up against the southeast palisade and in front of the ruins of the church. They put forth a desperate last stand. Witnesses reported between 15-20 soldiers piled around Crockett and a couple of his men.
Captured cannons were turned on the doors and walls of the two barracks, tearing brick and defenders to pieces. Soldiers stormed the buildings firing point-blank into the Texans reduced to hand-to-hand combat. Bayonets finished the job. Soldiers stormed into Bowie's room and found him lying near death in his bed. Legend holds that he generated enough strength to discharge a set of pistols and bury his famous Bowie knife into one of the enemy. His body was raised on bayonets like a bale of hay.
The Alamo's 18 pounder was turned on the church by Mexican soldiers and blew apart the doors. Dickinson's artillerymen and the remaining Texans who had taken refuge in the church were quickly overrun. A handful of men were captured and taken before Santa Anna - they were executed on the spot. By 6:30 A.M. it was all over.
Survivors? At least 14. The wife and children of defender Enrique Esparza and a few other Mexican women and children. Travis' slave, Joe. Susanna Dickinson and her infant daughter were the only Anglo survivors. Mrs. Dickinson and Joe were sent north to tell of the fall of the Alamo.
Santa Anna ordered Christian burials for his dead [estimates between 600 and 1200]. Many bodies had to be tossed into the nearby creeks and rivers. As to the Alamo defenders they were stacked - a layer of wood, a layer of bodies..... and put to the torch. Only one, Enrique Esparza, whose brother fought for Santa Anna, was granted burial.
It is not known how long it took the news of the fall of the Alamo to reach the Cunninghams in Jeffersonville, Indiana. Reports would have begun making their way from New Orleans up the Mississippi by the end of March. News of Robert's death may not have reached the Cunningham family until late April.
By that time, Sam Houston and the Army of Texas had exacted a measure of revenge. On 21 April 1836 the Texans, with the battle cry, "Remember the Alamo!", overwhelmed Santa Anna's forces at San Jacinto, killing 650 and capturing 700 in an 18 minute battle. Houston's force of just under 800 suffered 9 dead and 34 wounded. Among the Mexican prisoners was a soldier in a corporal's uniform. Upon seeing him, other prisoners shouted, "El Presidente!" A disgraced Santa Anna was brought before Houston and signed Texas over to the general in exchange for his life.
Robert W. Cunningham, born in New York, resident of Jeffersonville, Indiana, with stops in Kentucky, Arkansas, New Orleans, and numerous towns along the Mississippi decided to settle in Texas in 1832. On the 6th of March 1836 at the Alamo, he joined David Crockett, Jim Bowie, Travis and the others in immortality.
The History of Texas: http://www.sonofthesouth.net/texas/history-texas.htm Battle of the Alamo [wikipedia]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Alamo
3 ii. William Cunningham, born 25 Aug 1806,
New Berlin, Chenango Co., New York; married Mrs. Keziah
Oliver, 29 Jan 1842, Jefferson Co., Kentucky; died 6 Jul 1875, Louisville, Jefferson Co., Kentucky.
iii. Charles Cunningham9 was born on 19 Jan 1808 in New Berlin,
Chenango Co., New York.1
He died on 13 Mar 1864 at the age of 56 in Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana.9 The Wall Street John site
gives Charles' death as 4 May 1847. Charles appears in the 1850 Census for
Jeffersonville with his mother and in 1860 residing with his sister Mary Pile's
family in Jeffersonville. Therefore the 1864 death date would be accurate.
4 iv. Mary Ann Cunningham, born 18 Mar 1812,
New Berlin, Chenango Co., New York; married Burdet Clifton
Pile, 29 Jan 1834, Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana; died
19 Oct 1900, Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana.
v. Rufus Cunningham
was born on 27 Dec 1815 in New Berlin, Chenango Co., New York.1
He died on 12 Jul 1848 at the age of 32 in Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana.1 Jennison Family History gives
the year of death as 1840. [p. 93]
5 vi. Lucinda Dally Cunningham, born 18 Nov
1818, New York;
married Silas A. Kingsbury, 12 Jul 1835, Clark Co., Indiana; died
2 Nov 1854, Belton, Bell Co., Texas.
6 vii. Eliza Singletary Cunningham, born 15
Dec 1822, Dearborn Co., Indiana;
married Davis Floyd Jackson, 18 Oct 1843, Clark Co., Indiana; died
3 Jun 1905, Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee.
Third Generation
3. William
Cunningham10–11
(David-2, Robert-1) was born on 25 Aug 1806 in New Berlin, Chenango Co., New
York.1
He died on 6 Jul 1875 at the age of 68 in Louisville, Jefferson Co., Kentucky.1,12 KY
D&B gives burial date as 1 July 1875 William married widow Keziah Oliver in
1842 after settling in Louisville. He was a carpenter by trade.
William Cunningham and Mrs.
Keziah Oliver were married on 29 Jan 1842 in Jefferson Co., Kentucky.11 Mrs. Keziah
Oliver10 was born circa 1807 in Kentucky
or Indiana.10 Keziah was born in either
Kentucky or Indiana about 1807. The 1870
census [Kessiah] gives her birth in Kentucky about 1807/8. Both the 1850
[Kezara] & 1860 [Kesia] census give her birthplace as Indiana, but vary on
her birth, the former 1806/7, the latter 1809/10.
There is a Cassie Cunningham, widow, aged 72 born in Kentucky [parents born KY & VA] residing in Louisville in 1880 [T9_422, p. 250B]. There is a Mrs. McFarland and her family residing in the household; no apparent relation. Cassie could be a possible variation of Keziah.
[1850: Louisville, Jefferson, KY - M432_206, p. 179A; 1860: Louisville, Jefferson, KY - M653_376, p. 2]
There is a Cassie Cunningham, widow, aged 72 born in Kentucky [parents born KY & VA] residing in Louisville in 1880 [T9_422, p. 250B]. There is a Mrs. McFarland and her family residing in the household; no apparent relation. Cassie could be a possible variation of Keziah.
[1850: Louisville, Jefferson, KY - M432_206, p. 179A; 1860: Louisville, Jefferson, KY - M653_376, p. 2]
4. Mary
Ann Cunningham (David-2, Robert-1) was born on 18 Mar 1812 in New Berlin,
Chenango Co., New York.1
She died on 19 Oct 1900 at the age of 88 in Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana.13
Mary Ann Cunningham and Burdet
Clifton Pile were married on 29 Jan 1834 in Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana.14 Burdet
Clifton Pile14 was born on 10
Mar 1805 in Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana.14
He died on 17 Mar 1885 at the age of 80 in Jeffersonville, Clark Co., Indiana.14 The Pile family originated in Virginia
with Dr. Richard Pile. His son, Richard, was a saddler's apprentice who ran off
to join the army. He served with the 8th Virginia Regiment under General
Jonathan Clark and saw action at Stony Point. Sergeant Pile also saw duty at
the Valley Forge encampment.
Pile settled in Kentucky after the war and married Rebecca Clifton near Bardstown. By 1798 the Piles had moved to Springville, near Charlestown. They then moved to Jeffersonville, Indiana. Rebecca became a well-known cook, preparing dinners for the surveyors who platted out the town.
Richard and Rebecca had four children: Marston Green Clark [the first white child born in Clark Co.], Burdet Clifton, Mary and Margaret. Pile died in 1816. His widow married Thomas Morgan, by who she had a daughter, Elizabeth.
Burdet was the second white child born in the county. He became a brick manufacturer and later conducted a pottery at Port Fulton. He became a partner in Maybury, Pile & Co., a hardware store, about 1855. Pile later bought out his partner and brought in son-in-law, J.J. Conway. He sold out in 1871. In 1873 Burdet became the mayor of Jeffersonville for two years after having served several terms on the city council. He was also a trustee of the Wall Street Methodist Church and served as director of the Ft. Wayne and Southern Railway Company.
Pile married Mary Ann Cunnigham, a native of Ontario Co., New York. They had Maria T., Mary Ann, Lucinda A., Rebecca Virginia, Sarah Eliza, Rufus Moody, William Clifton, Charles Burdet, and Fannie Belle.
Pile settled in Kentucky after the war and married Rebecca Clifton near Bardstown. By 1798 the Piles had moved to Springville, near Charlestown. They then moved to Jeffersonville, Indiana. Rebecca became a well-known cook, preparing dinners for the surveyors who platted out the town.
Richard and Rebecca had four children: Marston Green Clark [the first white child born in Clark Co.], Burdet Clifton, Mary and Margaret. Pile died in 1816. His widow married Thomas Morgan, by who she had a daughter, Elizabeth.
Burdet was the second white child born in the county. He became a brick manufacturer and later conducted a pottery at Port Fulton. He became a partner in Maybury, Pile & Co., a hardware store, about 1855. Pile later bought out his partner and brought in son-in-law, J.J. Conway. He sold out in 1871. In 1873 Burdet became the mayor of Jeffersonville for two years after having served several terms on the city council. He was also a trustee of the Wall Street Methodist Church and served as director of the Ft. Wayne and Southern Railway Company.
Pile married Mary Ann Cunnigham, a native of Ontario Co., New York. They had Maria T., Mary Ann, Lucinda A., Rebecca Virginia, Sarah Eliza, Rufus Moody, William Clifton, Charles Burdet, and Fannie Belle.
5. Lucinda
Dally Cunningham (David-2, Robert-1) was born on 18 Nov 1818 in New York.1,15 She died on 2 Nov
1854 at the age of 35 in Belton, Bell Co., Texas.1,16
Lucinda Dally Cunningham and
Silas A. Kingsbury were married on 12 Jul 1835 in Clark Co., Indiana.17 Silas
A. Kingsbury18–19
was born circa 1812 in Ohio.15 He died in 1863–64
in Belton, Bell Co., Texas.18
He was buried in South Belton Cemetery, Belton, Bell Co., Texas.19 The History of Bell County has
the following item: "...Silas A. Kingsbury, who conducted [the St. Charles
Hotel] until his death, which occurred soon after the War Between the
States."
Several undocumented online trees give Silas' death as 1863. His estate was listed as being probated in 1864. [Bell Co., Texas Probates, Texas GenWeb Archives]
Silas was buried in the South Belton Cemetery. The headstone is broken and unreadable, but is next to his two wives, Lucinda and Nancy in plot #192.
Several undocumented online trees give Silas' death as 1863. His estate was listed as being probated in 1864. [Bell Co., Texas Probates, Texas GenWeb Archives]
Silas was buried in the South Belton Cemetery. The headstone is broken and unreadable, but is next to his two wives, Lucinda and Nancy in plot #192.
6. Eliza Singletary Cunningham20
(David-2, Robert-1) was born on 15 Dec 1822 in Dearborn Co., Indiana.1,21 Death
Cert.: 16 Dec 1822 She
died on 3 Jun 1905 at the age of 82 in Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee.21–23
She was buried in Elmwood Cemetery, Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee.21 Eliza's husband, David Floyd Jackson,
served with the Confederacy during the Civil War. She was a "camp follower"
as Eliza and her children followed David throughout the war. Eliza was a
staunch Southern partisan. When General Grant's army captured Memphis, Eliza's
name was 2nd on the list of those to be ordered out of town.
Eliza and David Jackson celebrated their golden wedding annivesary in 1893, the year before he died.
Eliza and David Jackson celebrated their golden wedding annivesary in 1893, the year before he died.
Eliza Singletary Cunningham and
Davis Floyd Jackson were married on 18 Oct 1843 in Clark Co., Indiana.24 Davis
Floyd Jackson was born on 1 May 1820 in Kentucky.21,25
He died on 31 Oct 1894 at the age of 74 in Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee.21,25
He was buried in Elmwood Cemetery, Memphis, Shelby Co., Tennessee.21,25
Sources:
1. Wall Street
John, William F. Archerd online
[http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi~bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=wallstreetjohn&id=194&pr...],
accessed 6 November 2009.
2. Simmons Family, Roy W. Simmons online
[http://www.storycapsule.com/simmons/familytree/pedigree.php], accessed 29 Oct
2009.
3. Joyce Baer, Lawrenceburg Public Library, [e-mail for private use], to Terry Prall,
e-mail, 22 December 2010, "Re: Genealogy at LPLD," Simmons; privately
held by Prall, [e-mail & address
for private use], 2010. on file.
4. Revolutionary War Pension & Bounty-Land Warrant
Application Files, microfilm publication NARA M804 (Washington, D.C.:
National Archives and Records Administration, ), Robert W. Cunningham.
8. Bill Groneman, "Cunningham, Robert W.,"
biographic sketch, Texas State Historical Association, The Handbook of Texas
Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles : accessed 29
January 2010).
10. Wm. & Kessiah Cunningham, 1870 US Federal,
Jefferson, Kentucky, population schedule, Louisville Ward 5, p. 445A; National Archives micropublication
M593, 474.
11. State of Kentucky, "Kentucky Marriages
1785-1979," database, Record Search Pilot
(http://www.familysearch.org: accessed 27 August 2010), Cunningham-Oliver
marriage.
12. State of Kentucky, "Kentucky Deaths &
Burials 1843-1970," database, FHL, Record Search Pilot
(http://www.familysearch.org: accessed 29 August 2010), Wm. Cunningham death.
14. Lewis C. Baird, Baird's History of Clark County,
Indiana (Indianapolis, IN: B.F. Brown, 1909), Vol. 2, p. 601-603; digital
images, archive.org, archive.org (http://www.archive.org : accessed 24
August 2010; Burdet Clifton Pile bio.
15. Kingsbury family, 1850 US Federal, Clark Co.,
Indiana, population schedule, Jeffersonville, p. 173A, 8, 410; National
Archives micropublication M432, 138.
16. Find A Grave, burial records, "South Belton
Cemetery, Belton, Bell Co., Texas," database, Find a Grave
(http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 24 August 2010), Kingsbury graves.
18. George W. Tyler, History of Bell County (San
Antonio, TX: The Naylor Co., 1936), p. 140; digital images, World Vital
Records, (: accessed 27 August 2010.
21. Find A Grave, record burials, "Elmwood Cemetery,
Memphis, TN," database, Find A Grave (http://www.findagrave.com :
accessed 26 August 2010), Jackson burials.
22. "Davis Jackson - Eliza Cunningham,"
(undocumented), 1NH5-MH1, Ancestral File, version 4.19, Family History
Library, Salt Lake City, Utah.
24. State of Indiana, "Indiana Marriages
1802-1892," database, Ancestry.com, Ancestry.com
(http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 25 August 2010), Davis F. Jackson - Eliza
Cunningham marriage; citing Clark Co., IN Marriage Index.
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