April 21 · This Day in America
On the afternoon of April 21, 1836, Sam Houston's army of about 900 has been retreating for weeks, dragging the memory of the Alamo and the massacre at Goliad behind them. Then they stop running. At San Jacinto, during the Mexican army's afternoon rest, the Texans charge across the open ground shouting "Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad!" The fighting is over in roughly eighteen minutes. Santa Anna's army is shattered; nine Texans die. The next day Santa Anna himself is found hiding in the grass and brought before the wounded Houston. The treaty that follows ends the Texas Revolution and creates the Republic of Texas — a nation that will exist for nearly a decade before its star is added to the American flag. A continent's map turns on a fight shorter than a lunch break.
Source: www.tshaonline.org
Also on this day · 1862
On April 21, 1862, with the Civil War raging, Congress moves to formally establish a United States Mint at Denver, in the gold country of the Colorado Territory. The young government, hungry for hard money, reaches a thousand miles past the front lines to put a federal stamp on the West's raw metal. It is a quiet act of confidence: a nation fighting for its life still planning, in detail, on having a future out past the mountains.
Source: www.usmint.gov
“Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad!”Texan battle cry at San Jacinto, April 21, 1836