San Jacinto Battlefield Partly in Jeopardy

[Rich Curilla]

Gregg Dimmick (historian-author of SEA OF MUD)asked me to post this for all to see and hopefully help......



Dear Texas history enthusiasts, and supporters of the San Jacinto Battleground,

We need to make you aware of a project---San Jacinto Marsh, Phase 2---that we fear could have a lasting impact on the ability of our generation and those following to fully understand and interpret the San Jacinto battleground. While on the surface it is a marsh restoration project, is has the added effect of dumping dredge spoil in one of the most important and sensitive portions of the battlefield. This project, which has been approved by Texas Parks and Wildlife and seems to be moving forward, does not contain a thorough archeological investigation. In addition, it did not include public input or scrutiny and seemed to have happen with lightning speed. In our view, it needs to be halted until questions are answered and a determination made on its impact on the battlefield.

As many of you know, one of the San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy’s primary initiatives has been to promote systematic archeological surveys on the battlefield. We applaud the efforts that Texas Parks & Wildlife (TPWD), as the state’s appointed steward of the battlefield, has made to include archeological surveys and thorough cultural resource studies before undertaking a project. We know this is especially difficult for them because of changing state budgets and political will. We have provided funds when we can and have always been willing to do so.

The chairman of the SJBC Archeological Committee, Dr. Gregg Dimmick, is circulating the following letter which sums up the current situation pretty well.



To whom it may concern:

I hate to be so impersonal in this letter but I hope to send it to multiple people that I think will be interested enough in this matter to take action.

As many of you know I am a Texas History/ Alamo period Mexican army nut. Since I stumbled across the Mexican army in the “Sea of Mud” in 1996 I have been immersed in projects that have to do with the archeology and history of that period. One my greatest thrills was to be allowed to work alongside of professional archeologists at the San Jacinto Battleground. The number of artifacts we have found and the information we have gathered at the battleground is truly amazing. Just to give you an idea of the amazing material that has been unearthed I am going to attach a few pictures of the hundreds of battle related artifacts that have been professionally excavated from the battleground and the surrounding areas.

About ten years ago, due to my expertise of the Mexican army and my love of archeology, I was asked to be a member of the board of directors of the San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy. During that time I have served as chairman of their archeology committee. This is a wonderful organization that is truly dedicated to the battlefield itself. To my knowledge we are the only group that is in existence solely for the purpose of saving the battleground. We are all volunteers and do not profit in any way when it comes to our efforts. We have purchased property around the battleground, we have helped fund several of the archeological excavations, we have helped TPWD with equipment, we have donated property near the battleground to the state, and much much more.

In 2014 an effort was made by a private company to put dredge material in the most archeologically sensitive area of the battleground. They wanted to put dredge material in what is now called Boggy Bayou. At the time of the battle there was a ravine behind the Mexican camp. When the Texans attacked on the afternoon of April 21 the Mexicans had to cross Boggy Bayou in their flight. It is well documented both archeologically and in archival sources that the most carnage took place in Boggy Bayou. Since the time of the battle there has been about 8-9 feet of subsidence in the area and Boggy Bayou is now at the bottom of a fairly large body of water. That is actually good news because it has kept out looters and preserved whatever artifacts are still in place. The bad news is, if they had put several feet of new dredge material on top of the site it would make it much more difficult and expensive to do the archeological excavations that need to be done to properly interpret the site. Luckily we were able to stop the planned burial of Boggy Bayou in 2014 and we thought we had put that issue to rest.

Just this week we discovered that the issue is not dead and that a new company, Enterprise Products Operating, LLC, has plans to do the exact same project as was proposed in 2014. This time the SJBC was not consulted and the project is to commence in the very near future unless something is done right away to force Enterprise and TPWD to do the archeology prior to putting the dredge material above it.

In my opinion (and I have stated this many times before when I have given tours of the battleground), Boggy Bayou is the most important historical archeological site in the state that remains intact. I feel that there is no reason whatsoever that this archeology should not be undertaken prior to allowing any dumping of dredge material at the site. TPWD is saying that the dumping of the dredge material is marsh restoration and will “encapsulate” the site for future generations. I would totally disagree; in my opinion this will make the site essentially inaccessible and will “entomb” the site until the artifacts eventually are destroyed by time and nature. To me it is also obvious that the site is already encapsulated by being under several feet of water and several feet of silt under that.

This would be the perfect time for the archeology, which should have been done years ago, to be properly done and then the marsh restoration (which by the way, our group is in favor of) could proceed as planned. We are perfectly willing to try to help fund this project (it will be expensive: I have thrown out the number of two million dollars—remember that the state recently spent 25 million to stabilize the Battleship Texas) if they are willing to hold off on the dredge material. There is no doubt in my mind that if this very import historical site was on private land there is no way Enterprise would be allowed to follow through with the project until the archeology was completed.

I am hoping that there are enough of you that feel the same about destroying such an important part of Texas History. Remember that the San Jacinto Battleground is where the Texans won their independence. As much as I love the Alamo, San Jacinto is equally important to the Texas Revolution.

If you all do feel strongly about this matter, please voice your opinion to anyone you can get to listen. We are talking to TPWD, the Texas Historical Commission, the Texas Historical Society, The Texas Archeological Society and as many politicians as we can to put this project on hold and get the archeology done.

I am hoping that this project will be the stimulus that pushes the state to finally professionally excavate Boggy Bayou and I want to thank you all in advance for anything that you can do to help make this happen.

REMEMBER SAN JACINTO!!!!!!
Gregg Dimmick



What can you do to help?

PUBLIC MEETING NEEDED
The public needs to weigh-in on this project. This is an incredibly sensitive area of the battlefield because it is the place where more than 600 people lost their lives. Portions of it are their final resting place.

This meeting should include all interested groups and individuals. In this setting, TPW officials, their cultural resource consultants, and Enterprise Products Operating, LLC can explain this project and tell us why a more comprehensive study of this portion of the battlefield is not being undertaken.

We believe this project should be halted until such time as this question and other questions are answered. SJBC is willing to host this meeting.

NOTIFY OTHERS OF YOUR CONCERNS
There are officials that need to be notified of this project. Specifically, please feel free to forward this email, and your concerns to the following people and anyone else:

Mark Wolf (Executive Director, Texas Historical Commission): [e-mail]
Bill Martin (Reviewer, Texas Historical Commission): [e-mail]
Brent Leisure (Director of Parks, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department): [e-mail]
Michael Strutt (Cultural Resources, Texas Parks & Wildlife): [e-mail]
Jeff Pinsky, (Army Corp of Engineers, Galveston Division): [e-mail]

YOUR state representative and senator. If you don’t know your legislator and their address, this information can be found: www.capitol.state.tx.us


Thank you for your concern,

Joe Edd Nelson
President
San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy
Phone
email

[loucapitano]

Seems like the right thing to do. I don't know what effect a letter from a New Yorker would do, but I'll fire one off right to the governor this afternoon. Up here, we often find it best to go right to the top.
Lou from Long Island

[5thgentexan]

I had no idea this area had not had a thorough archaeological investigation. It seems the full examination of such an important place in Texas history would have easily been funded by universities, various Texas history enthusiasts groups, and philanthropists. I will gladly write some letters.

[~Tejaas~]

If Gregg asks, it shall be done.

Does Dimmick no longer maintain a presence here on the forum...?

[Hiram]

The following was sent to San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy members.

A message from Gregg Dimmick of the San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy:

Many people have e-mailed me about how the meeting went on Thursday, February 11, 2016.
I feel like we did get a few pieces of information that are encouraging:
• We need to verify, but we were told that TPWD is only planning to place about 1 ½ feet of dredge on the site. If true, it certainly would be less of an impediment to future archeology, assuming TPWD intends to permit future archeology. (At this time, to our knowledge, TPWD does not intend to permit any archeology in Boggy Bayou in the future).
• Assistant Harris County Attorney Glen Van Slyke was at the meeting and asked pointed questions. He seemed to truly care about what was going on. He addressed the issue of the soil testing and TPWD could not give him any specific information on what testing had been done on the dredge material and who did it. Even if testing will been done I would think we would want to make sure it is tested by an independent lab, not a lab hired by Enterprise Partners Products, LLP.
• Brent Leisure, TPWD State Parks Division Director, spoke passionately about the fact that they may have not been as communicative as necessary and pledged to be much more so in the future. He says that everyone in the room was passionate about the park and battleground. I am so anxious to believe him but will await future behavior from TPWD and THC to see if true.
I am sad to say the disappointments far outweighed the positives. The meeting seemed intended to only to give us TPWD's perspective on the history of Boggy Bayou, archeology at the park, and the overall project. TPWD made it clear that the project would not be delayed in order to consider archeology or any issues, and that TPWD was opposed to any archology in the area, even if privately funded. The phrases, "we have done due diligence", "we have done our homework" and "we are doing what is best for the park" were thrown out frequently, but there was no promise to divulge the reports and analyses that went into their decision making.
I was glad that TPWD took questions and comments. But, I was very disappointed in their responses. They just dodged our specific questions and gave us the answers that I mentioned above. To give a specific example: I asked why they are putting dredge on Boggy Bayou and making that area a marsh when all the old maps, even the ones they showed us at the meeting, clearly showed that there was no marsh around Boggy Bayou in 1836. Their response was something like-we have looked at this carefully and are comfortable with our plan. My interpretation of that response is that they were telling us: we know you are right but we are not going to change this.
Another example: Jeff Dunn asked about the Section 106 public hearings that should have been done. TPWD said that THC did not make them do it. THC said that the COE did not make THC do it. The COE was not present to explain its decision. From information we received, the COE was looking at the wrong question when it granted it's permits in light of federal regulations. Instead of analyzing whether the project had any adverse effects on the battleground, the COE was focused on whether San Jacinto Battleground was eligible for the National Register and concluded it was NOT!! Based on that decision, permits were granted. (Not only is San Jacinto already on the National Historic Register, but it is also a National Historic Landmark, the nation's highest recognition for a historic site. The COE did not even know this!!).
Our lawyer, Leslie Baras, who is an expert on Section 106, made several legal arguments as to why TPWD and THC were wrong and of course, they could not respond and just hemmed and hawed.
One of the bombshells of the evening was TPWD said that they were going to build two homes and another building near or on the site of the April 20th skirmish between the Mexicans and Texans. Archeology was done near this locale previously by an archeology group from Georgia to see if it was a potential site for a new visitor's center. Many artifacts were found and it was deemed too sensitive so the site was ruled out as a visitor's center. TPWD did say they are going to take down one building in the Texans camp but the price we pay is three new buildings on another very sensitive site of the battleground. The excuse for the two residences is that they need better security at the site. Construction of those two homes is counter to the 2005 Cultural Landscape Report's recommendations.
Overall, TPWD does not seem to understand the concept that the San Jacinto Battleground is a battleground where human beings fought and died. They seem to think that this is a state park like all other state parks and that security, infrastructure and parking are higher priority than the preservation. I think PRESERVATION needs to be the number one, two, three, etc. priorities and nothing should be done to the battleground without serious thought and consultation with people that know and understand the history of the site.
One of the TPWD administrative types at the meeting told one of our members that the folks at the meeting did not represent a large enough crowd to trigger any real concerns from TPWD. He also said it was not worth the time or money to look for "trinkets."
Since I have had the pleasure of working with professional archeologists at the battleground, TPWD has tried to put a visitor's center smack in the middle of the battleground. They have built several unsightly pumping stations spread around the park with no attempt to avoid visual intrusion on the battleground.

Now, they want to put dredge on top of Boggy Bayou in spite of the fact that we know it had no marsh around it in 1836. TPWD is also going to build a 2,000 foot long levee/walking trail in the marsh. How can they possible argue that the marsh restoration is to aid interpretation of the battleground and then put a visual disturbance that was not there in 1836 on top of the marsh?

Now, we find out without any consultation, they are planning on constructing three buildings on or near the middle of the April 20 skirmish site. They are claiming these homes are needed for security.

I would argue that the most damage being done to the battleground is currently from TPWD.
My concluding opinion: We need an immediate moratorium on any and all projects at San Jacinto until someone can be assigned to supervise the battleground that actually cares about the battleground.
I'll let you decide for yourself. Thanks to the generosity of Houston Media Source, the entire evening was taped (3.5 hours!) and here are the you.tube links. The first hour (Tape 1) is a tour of the battlefield and touches on some of the past and ongoing threats.
Tape 1: www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwxV0WLUVnY

Tape 2: www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMys60irvlM
Tape 3: www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Cpob9lEP5k


The San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy is a Section 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to preserve, reclaim, and restore the San Jacinto Battleground and build greater public awareness of the battle of San Jacinto, the culminating military event of the Texas Revolution. No other nonprofit organization is devoted entirely to these goals. In 2010, the San Jacinto Battleground was included on Preservation Texas' Most Endangered Places list. Preservation Texas is the statewide partner of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. To find out what you can do to help, visit www.sanjacintoconservancy.org

[Hiram]

This was also forwarded to SJBC members:

San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy


A message from Dr. Frank de la Teja concerning
TPWD's Phase 2 Marsh Restoration Plan

Dr. Frank de la Teja has allowed us to share with you a letter that is now circulating to
public officials across the state. Thank you, Dr. de la Teja for sharing your thoughts and
feelings.




TEXAS
*STATE®
UNIVERSITY
The rising STAR of Texas

February 17, 2016

Dear Public Official:

The battle of San Jacinto was a seminal event in the histories of three nations. For Texas it marked the effective consolidation of independence; for Mexico it marked the effective loss of a large portion of its northeastern territory; and, for the United States it marked the beginning of the process of annexation of Texas into the union, a war with Mexico, and the consolidation of its contiguous continental territory. That is a lot of weight to put on the shoulders of an event that was over in less than a half-hour and in which the contending armies together numbered well under 3,000 combatants.

In the days that followed the fight, the very few Texan casualties were well tended to-either buried or ministered to-but not so the Mexican dead. Left on the field to be picked at by scavengers and, later, to be picked over by souvenir hunters and plowed under, the bones of the defeated did not receive the respect that might be expected
of a magnanimous victor.
The story remains incomplete precisely because the Mexican side of the battle remains largely underfoot. In recent years, particularly through the work of Gregg Dimmick and other members of the Texas archeological community, the Mexican side of the San Jacinto campaign and the last weeks of the Mexican army in Texas have come to receive the attention and respect that they have long merited.

It would be a great shame if that story was buried even deeper because of expedient considerations of development that, while important to the Houston area and the state, do not have to take place within a critical timeframe. No one suggests that the fill project be canceled, and there is much to be said for an attempt to restore the area to the pristine natural landscape that existed at the time of the battle. But why the rush? The landscape in that area has been subject to human-generated change since shortly after the battle. Other parts of the battleground that will also be returned to approximately 1836 conditions will take years of managed work to get there.

So, as a former State Historian,as a scholar of the Texas experience under Spain and Mexico, and as a citizen concerned for the historical heritage of all of my fellow Texans, I would ask that you consider helping to stop the fill project at Boggy Bayou long enough to do a proper archeological analysis and make arrangements for the proper-respectful-treatment of the remains of any of the Mexican fallen that might
be present.
Thank you for your attention, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,
Jesus F. de la Teja,PhD
Regents' Professor of History
Jerome and Catherine Supple Professor of Southwestern Studies Director

CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF THE SOUTHWEST
601 University Drive I Brazos Hall 212 I San Marcus, Texas78666
phone: [phone] I Fax: [phone] I WWW.TXST.EDU/
CSSW

MEMBER THE TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM


The San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy is a Section 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to preserve, reclaim, and restore the San Jacinto Battleground and build greater public awareness of the battle of San Jacinto, the culminating military event of the Texas Revolution. No other nonprofit organization is devoted entirely to these goals. In 2010, the San Jacinto Battleground was included on Preservation Texas' Most Endangered Places list. Preservation Texas is the statewide partner of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. To find out what you can do to help, visit www.sanjacintoconservancy.org

[~Tejaas~]

Feb 18, 2016 18:08:39 GMT -5 Hiram said:

One of the TPWD administrative types at the meeting told one of our members that the folks at the meeting did not represent a large enough crowd to trigger any real concerns from TPWD. He also said it was not worth the time or money to look for "trinkets."

Absolutely infuriating.

Sounds like the guy didn't even try to hide his snide attitude.

I (dread?) look forward to sitting down and watching the 3 segments.