Account ledger of Charles Somerset Smith (1806-1836) with Franklin Lewis & Co. Brazoria County, Texas, 30 June 1835-23 February 1836. With additional entries of receipt on 22 November 1838. 1 page, ## x ## in. TO VERSO Court testimony signed by Franklin Lewis and Chief Justice of Brazoria County, George B. McKinstry. Brazoria County, Republic of Texas, 27 March 1838.

A remarkable relic of a defender of the Alamo and the Texas Republic.

A record of Charles Somerset Smith’s (1806-1836) account with a Texas merchant, detailing items Smith purchased on credit before he was killed at the Battle of the Alamo. The entries date from 30 June 1835 to 23 February 1836, just 14 days before he died. The items Smith purchased illustrate his daily life, they include: shaving soap, sugar, buttons, and blankets, and more. His account also notes small luxuries, like a fine hat, a lady’s pair of “Jane Pantaloons,” a fine ivory comb, and pints of whiskey. In September of 1835, Smith is recorded as purchasing a “gunlock,” which he may have used at the Battle of the Alamo.

The document includes notes detailing the merchant, Franklin Lewis’, testimony in front of the Brazoria County Court, attesting that the amount owed by Smith was "just and true." After Smith's heroic death, Lewis sought compensation for the courts to settle Smith's outstanding accounts. His petition was apparently successful; a final entry on 22 November 1838 notes that he had "recd. payment in full."

A native of Maryland, Charles Somerset Smith (1806-1836) moved to Louisiana before settling in Texas. He enlisted in the service of Texas on 10 October 1835 and served in Captain Thomas F.L. Parrott's Company of Artillery, taking part in the siege of Bexar. He volunteered again on 14 December 1835 for an additional four months, remaining in Bexar with Captain William R. Carey's Company of Artillery. After perishing at the Alamo, Smith was described by Colonel James C. Neill as having "served faithfully."

The judge who has undersigned the testimony included on the document is Chief Justice of the County of Brazoria, George B. McKinstry (1801-1837). Mckinstry was a prominent soldier, politician, and civil servant in the Republic of Texas. In 1832, when helping to release Patrick Jack and others during the Anahuac Disturbances, he and 103 others organized a militia unit of Austin colonists and seized arms and ammunition from the Mexican collector of customs at Brazoria. Absconding with 2 cannons, they made their way down the Brazos River, coming into conflict with the Mexican forces, which resulted in the Battle of Velasco. Victorious, McKinstry was promoted to lieutenant and commanded the captured fort, although these actions were seen by Stephen F. Austin as impetuous. McKinstry was a delegate at the Texas Convention of 1832, representing the Victoria District. Later he voted in favor of a declaration of independence and after the Battle of San Jacinto, formed part of a volunteer guard that escorted Santa Anna and other prisoners to Galveston. On 20 December 1836, he was appointed the first chief justice of Brazoria County by President Sam Houston, in which capacity he signs here.



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