Gonzales, Texas

Everything Gonzales is known for

4 songs mention this city 2 artists from here

Music in Gonzales

Songs About Gonzales

Their Cell
Girl in a Coma
40%
El Corrido de Gregorio Cortez
Ramón Ayala y Sus Bravos Del Norte
23%
"Tiró con rumbo a González"
Up In Texas
Midland
8%
"Underneath the 'come and take it' flag"
Texas Like That
Zane Williams
8%
"It's a tattered old flag that says "Come and take it""

Artists From Gonzales

L
Logan Ryan Band
country Pop: 52
M
Mike Ethan Messick
country Pop: 5

Rivers & Roads in Song near Gonzales

Songs written about the waterways and highways that run near Gonzales.

Guadalupe River 17 songs Interstate 10 32 songs US Route 90 8 songs Texas Colorado River 6 songs Interstate 35 42 songs

Musical Heritage

1976 Gonzales Fourth of July Picnic RoadyGoat

Gonzales, Texas, nineteen seventy-six. Willie Nelson's Fourth of July Picnic damn near didn't happen — the permits fell through right up to the wire — and then eighty thousand people showed up anyway. Forty-four straight hours of music. Willie and Waylon Jennings were sitting on top of the charts that summer with "Wanted: The Outlaws" and "Good Hearted Woman," and the whole outlaw movement came crashing down on one Texas field. The tab came due fast. A hundred and forty-seven arrests. The health department wrote it up for fourteen violations — including, for eighty thousand people, exactly twenty-five port-a-potties. Willie caught a flight to Hawaii for a week while they tallied the damage and the lawsuits stacked up, and he swore Gonzales would be the last Picnic he ever threw. It wasn't. But you can see why he meant it.

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History of Gonzales

Gonzales, TX RoadyGoat

Gonzales, Texas, holds a special place in the state's story, being the first Anglo-American settlement planted west of the Colorado. Imagine those early days along the Guadalupe River, a small outpost carved out of land previously home to the Tonkawa, Karankawa, and Coahuiltecan people. Named for Rafael Gonzales, governor of Coahuila y Tejas, the town represented a bold step, a reach westward that would forever change the landscape. But Gonzales is more than just an early settlement; it's where the spark of revolution ignited. The famed "Come and Take It" cannon, buried by citizens to keep it from Mexican forces and later recovered, became a symbol of defiance. And it was near Gonzales, on October 2, 1835, that the first shot of the Texas Revolution rang out, a shot that echoed across the plains and set the course for a new nation. Even now, you can still feel that sense of community, that spirit of independence, woven into the very fabric of Gonzales.

Gonzales, TX RoadyGoat

Gonzales feels different from other small Texas towns, and it’s not just the pecan trees lining the Guadalupe. Being the first Anglo settlement west of the Colorado River gave it a unique position, almost a frontier outpost. That early foothold meant Gonzales became a gathering place, a spot where folks heading further west could resupply or decide on their next move. It also meant they were first in line for the troubles that came with that westward expansion, which is why the "Come and Take It" cannon became such a powerful symbol. That cannon wasn't just about a piece of artillery; it represented a defiant spirit rooted in the land itself. Today, people visit for the history, of course. You can feel it in the courthouse square, see it in the Romanesque Revival architecture, and hear it in the stories whispered around the old buildings. They come to walk the same ground where the first shot of the Texas Revolution rang out. But if you ask the locals why folks truly end up settling here, they'll tell you it’s the community. There's a deep sense of belonging, a shared understanding forged in that early history. Maybe it's the river winding through the county, or the shade of those pecan trees, but Gonzales has a way of drawing people in and making them feel like they've found their place. Even someone like Jerry Hall, who went on to conquer the world, started right here, and that says something about the kind of foundation Gonzales provides.

Gonzales, TX RoadyGoat

Gonzales, Texas—it's a name that rolls off the tongue, Spanish in origin, a nod to the past. But more than just a name, it's a story etched into the very soil of the place. It's named for Rafael Gonzales, governor of Coahuila y Tejas back when this land was part of Mexico. He authorized the establishment of this settlement, the first Anglo-American foothold west of the Colorado River. To name it after himself seems like a simple act, but it acknowledged the importance of this fledgling community on the frontier. Of course, the name Gonzales would come to mean something else entirely, something more defiant, more Texan. When Mexican soldiers came to reclaim a small cannon loaned to the town for defense against Native American raids, the citizens of Gonzales famously refused. They buried the cannon, then dug it up, mounted it on a makeshift carriage, and raised a flag emblazoned with the words "Come and Take It." That first shot fired in defense of the cannon wasn’t just a shot heard 'round Texas; it echoed the spirit of the name Gonzales—a spirit of independence and self-reliance that still resonates in the town today.

Gonzales - Come and Take It

1835

First military engagement of the Texas Revolution, October 2, 1835, when Texian settlers refused to return a cannon to Mexican authorities.

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Gonzales Cannon burial site

1835

On this site September 29, 1835 the Gonzales cannon was buried from the 150 Mexican Dragoons sent to Demand it. Two days later it was mounted on ox-cart wheels, loaded with chains and scrap iron, and fired at the Mexican Army, the first shot of the Revolution. This location was known as George W. Davis Peach Orchard.

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The Immortal 32

1836

In Memory of the Immortal 32 Gonzales men and boys who, on March 1, 1836 fought their way into the beleaguered Alamo to die with Colonel William B. Travis for the Liberty of Texas. They were the last and only reinforcements to arrive in answer to the final call of Colonel William B. Travis. Names and ages of the Immortal Thirty-Two: Captain Albert Martin, 30; Isaac G. Baker, 32; John Cane, 34; George W. Cottle, 38; David P. Cummings, 27; Squire Damon, 28; Jacob C. Darst, 48; John Davis, 25; William Dearduff; Charles Despallier, 24; William Fishbaugh; John Flanders, 36; Dolphin Ward Floyd, 29; Galba Fuqua, 16; John E. Garvin, 27; John E. Gaston. 17; James George, 34; Thomas Jackson; Johnny Kellogg, 10; Andrew Kent, 38; George C. Kimball, 26; John E. King, 26; William P. King, 24; Jonathan L. Lindley, 31; Thomas R. Miller, 41; Jessie McCoy; Isaac Millsaps; George Neggan, 28; Wm. E. Summers, 24; George W. Tumlinson, 27; Robert White, 30; Claiborne Wright, 26. Other Gonzales men who fell at the Alamo. Daniel Bourne, 26; George Brown, 35; Jerry C. Day, 20; Almaron Dickerson, 26; Andrew Duvalt, 32; John Harris, 23; Wm. J. Lightfoot, 25; Marcus L. Sewell, 31; Amos Pollard, 33. Survivors of the Alamo Massacre, Mrs. Almaron Dickerson and baby daughter, of Gonzales.

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Castañeda Fernández, Francisco Narciso

1835

Francisco Castañeda, Mexican military officer, the son of Juan de Castañeda Quevedo and Josefa Fernández, was born in October 1799 and baptized in the parish church of San Juan Bautista de la Punta de Lampazos (now Lampazos de Naranjo), Nuevo León, on November 1, 1799. His father was an officer in the local compañía volante , and he entered the presidio service as a cadet in the same company in June 1813, following Spanish military practice of allowing the teenage sons of officers to enter the service. In July 1818 he was promoted to alférez (second lieutenant) and transferred to the Second Compañía Volante of Tamaulipas, a detachment of which was stationed in Texas. Breveted to lieutenant in 1821, he joined the Álamo de Parras company , stationed in San Antonio, in November 1823 and was promoted to lieutenant in 1827. Aside from participating in American Indian campaigns, Castañeda played a role in some of the most iconic events of the Texas Revolution . Assigned to retrieve the "Come and Take It" cannon that had been lent to the Anglo-American settlement of Gonzales for Indian defense, Castañeda was the Mexican officer involved in the battle of Gonzales . Under orders not to precipitate a major conflict, Castañeda withdrew to San Antonio after he lost two men during the brief skirmish that has come to be considered the opening clash of the revolution. Castañeda engaged the Texans at least twice during the siege of Bexar and marched to Coahuila with Gen. Martín Perfecto de Cos following the Mexican surrender in December. Returning to Texas in February 1836 as part of Antonio López de Santa Anna 's forces, Castañeda, commanding a squad of sharpshooters in the Aldama Battalion, participated in the assault on the Alamo on the morning of March 6 and according to his service record was among the first officers to enter the compound. His was the last Mexican army unit in San Antonio, when he surrendered the town to a Texan force under Juan Seguín in June 1836-thus making Castañeda the Mexican officer involved in both the opening and closing episodes of the Texas Revolution. He returned to Texas at least one more time and served in the Woll invasion of September 1842 ( see MEXICAN INVASIONS OF 1842 ), during which he was seriously wounded at the battle of Salado Creek . Francisco Castañeda continued his military career in Coahuila. Promoted to captain in 1837, he was given command of the presidio company of La Babia (northwest of present-day Melchor Múzquiz, Coahuila). Breveted to lieutenant colonel in June 1842, he was breveted to colonel later that year in recognition of his wounding at Salado. In 1847 he saw action in the battle of Buena Vista (Angostura) during the Mexican War . He became captain of the military colony of San Vicente in 1849, when the Mexican government abandoned the presidio system in favor of colonias militares , or military settlements. Although assigned to the San Vicente crossing in the Big Bend of the Rio Grande southwest of Boquillas, the remote location kept Castañeda's company at La Babia until the government abandoned the experiment in 1853, by which time Castañeda had obtained a promotion to assistant inspector of troops in Coahuila, a position he held until retirement. Francisco Castañeda married María de la Luz Guajardo at Punta de Lampazos in June 1816, having already had a daughter by her, Juana Petra de Jesús, the previous year. No record has been found of other children by Luz, who died in 1839. Ten years later Castañeda married María de Jesús Múzquiz, also widowed, at Melchor Múzquiz, Coahuila. Castañeda died at Hacienda de Fundición del Cedral (Hacienda de San Rafael de El Cedral), southeast of Melchor Múzquiz, on February 7, 1878.

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Darst, Jacob Calloway

1836

Jacob Calloway Darst, Alamo defender, son of David and Rosetta (Holman) Darst, was born in Woodford County, Kentucky, on December 22, 1793. David Darst was a veteran of the Revolutionary War and served under Lt. Col. George Rogers Clark during the Illinois Campaign. Four years before Jacob's birth, his maternal grandfather, Henry Holman, who also served under Clark, was killed while on a surveying expedition, possibly by an Indian war party. When Jacob was a young boy, David moved his family to Femme Osage township in what is now St. Charles County, Missouri. The legendary pioneer Daniel Boone was their close neighbor. Jacob was a farmer, and an Indian scout. During the War of 1812 he served as a member of James Callaway's Missouri Mounted Rangers and fought in the Battle of New Orleans. In 1810 Jacob's older brother Abraham "Abram" married Tabita Callaway, the granddaughter of Daniel and Rebecca (Bryan) Boone. In 1813 Jacob married Elizabeth Bryan. She was a second cousin of Rebecca Boone. After Elizabeth's death in 1820, Jacob married Margaret C. Hughes. In 1827 Jacob's brother Abram, with his wife and children, left Missouri for Texas and settled near Columbia in Austin's Colony. Jacob, his wife, and two of his children left by wagon for Texas in 1830. Later that year, between the Brazos and Trinity rivers, Jacob's oxen succumbed to "murrain" (Texas tick fever was suspected). Despite this setback, Jacob captured and trained wild Texas cattle to pull the wagon for the rest of the journey to Gonzales. He arrived in DeWitt's colony on January 10, 1831. Darst registered for twenty-four labores of land on the Guadalupe River above Gonzales and also for one labor on a small creek that empties into the Lavaca. Darst later moved his family to Gonzales. There he purchased several town lots and possibly opened a blacksmith shop. In September 1835 Darst was one of the original " Old Eighteen ," defenders of the Gonzales cannon. Darst also participated in the siege of Béxar and was discharged by Gen. Edward Burleson . After this battle, Darst with his son David delivered loads of ammunition and other supplies to Col. James W. Fannin at Goliad. On February 23, 1836, Darst was mustered into service in the Gonzales Ranging Company of Mounted Volunteers in response to the urgent plea of Lt. Col. William B. Travis at the Alamo. He entered the Alamo with this unit on March 1, 1836, and died in the battle of the Alamo five days later. Following the fall of the Alamo, Darst's family fled Gonzales in the Runaway Scrape . He had five nephews (Abram's sons) in Capt. William H. Patton 's Fourth (Columbia) Company in the Second Regiment of Texas of Volunteers commanded by Col. Sidney Sherman . One of these nephews, Pvt. Edmund Calloway Darst, fought at the battle of San Jacinto .

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Dickinson, Susanna Wilkerson

1835

Susanna Wilkerson Dickinson (also spelled Dickerson), survivor of the Alamo, was born about 1814 in Tennessee, perhaps in Williamson County. Her first name has also been recorded as Susan, Susana, and Suzanna; her maiden name is sometimes given as Wilkinson. On May 24, 1829, she married Almeron Dickinson before a justice of the peace in Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tennessee. The couple remained in the vicinity through the end of 1830. The Dickinsons arrived at Gonzales, Texas, on February 20, 1831, in company with fifty-four other settlers, after a trip by schooner from New Orleans. On May 5 Dickinson received a league of land from Green DeWitt , on the San Marcos River in what became Caldwell County. He received ten more lots in and around Gonzales in 1833 and 1834. The Dickinsons lived on a lot just above the town on the San Marcos River, where Susanna took in at least one boarder. A map of Gonzales in 1836 shows a Dickinson and Kimble hat factory in Gonzales. Susanna's only child, Angelina Elizabeth Dickinson , was born on December 14, 1834. Susanna and her daughter may have joined other families hiding in the timber along the Guadalupe River in early October 1835, when Mexican troops from San Antonio demanded the return of an old cannon lent to Gonzales four years earlier. The resulting skirmish, the battle of Gonzales , was the first fight of the Texas Revolution . Susanna said goodbye to her husband on October 13 as the volunteers left for San Antonio under command of Stephen F. Austin . She remained in Gonzales through November, when newly arriving troops looted her home. She joined Dickinson in San Antonio, probably in December 1835, and lodged in Francisca Castañeda and Ramón Músquiz 's home, where she opened her table to boarders (among them David Crockett ) and did laundry. On February 23, 1836, the family moved into the Alamo. After the battle of the Alamo on March 6, Mexican soldiers found her-some accounts say in the powder magazine, others in the church-and took her and Angelina, along with the other women and children, to Músquiz's home. The women were later interviewed by Santa Anna, who gave each a blanket and two dollars in silver before releasing them. Legend says Susanna displayed her husband's Masonic apron to a Mexican general in a plea for help and that Santa Anna offered to take Angelina to Mexico. Santa Anna sent Susanna and her daughter, accompanied by Juan N. Almonte 's servant Ben, to Sam Houston with a letter of warning dated March 7. On the way, the pair met Joe , William B. Travis 's slave, who had been freed by Santa Anna. The party was discovered by Erastus (Deaf) Smith and Henry Wax Karnes . Smith guided them to Houston in Gonzales, where they arrived after dark about March 12. Susanna Dickinson probably followed the army eastward in company with the other Gonzales women. Illiterate, without family, and only twenty-two years old, she petitioned the government meeting at Columbia in October 1836 for a donation, but the proposed $500 was not awarded. She needed a male protector, and by June 1837 she was cohabiting with John Williams, whom she married about November 27, 1837. He beat her and Angelina, and she petitioned in Harrisburg (later Harris) County for a divorce, which was granted on March 24, 1838-one of the first divorces in the county. By 1839 Almeron Dickinson's heirs had received rights to 2,560 acres for his military service; they sold the land when Angelina reached twenty-one. Subsequent requests to the state legislature in November 1849 were turned down. Susanna tried matrimony three more times before settling into a stable relationship. She wed Francis P. Herring on December 20, 1838, in Houston. Herring, formerly from Georgia, had come to Texas after October 20, 1837. He died on September 15, 1843. On December 15, 1847, Susanna married Pennsylvania drayman Peter Bellows (also known as Bellis or Belles) before an Episcopalian minister. In 1850 the couple had sixteen-year-old Angeli

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Things to Do in Gonzales

historical 0.1 mi away
The Immortal 32: Gonzales Rides to the Alamo

William Travis sent out desperate letters from the besieged Alamo begging any Texan who would listen to come help. Every town looked away except one. On March…
historical 0.1 mi away
Come and Take It: The Shot That Started a Revolution

In 1831 Mexico loaned the colonists of Gonzales a small brass cannon to fend off Comanche raids. Four years later they wanted it back. On October 2 1835 a…
food 17.0 mi away
City Market Luling

In Luling they dont fuss with menus. You walk through the dining room back to a little smoke-filled pit room where the butcher hands you brisket sausage and…
historical 0.1 mi away
All Dead — Susanna Dickinson Brings the News

Susanna Dickinson survived the fall of the Alamo because Santa Anna wanted a messenger. He put her on a horse with her infant daughter and a warning letter for…
historical 0.1 mi away
The Flag Sewn from a Wedding Dress

When the men of Gonzales decided to defy Mexico they needed a flag and they needed it fast. Sarah DeWitt and her daughter Evaline pulled out a wedding dress…
historical 0.1 mi away
Sam Houston Burns Gonzales to Ashes

When word reached Sam Houston that the Alamo had fallen he made a decision that still haunts the history books. At midnight on March 13 1836 he ordered…
historical 0.1 mi away
Gregorio Cortez and the Gonzales Jail

In June 1901 a translation error during a routine sheriffs visit sparked a shooting that left two men dead and set off the largest manhunt in American history…
food 16.9 mi away
Buc-ee's (Original)

The world's cleanest restrooms and beaver nuggets. Texas road trip essential.

Everything Near Gonzales

362 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.

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