Remember the Alamo!: The Runaway Scrape Diary of Belle Wood, Austin's Colony, 1835-1836

Late in 1835, the Mexican army surrendered San Antonio and retreated across the Rio Grande. Texas colonists, including young Belle Wood, rejoiced. No one expected more trouble from Mexico. So when Belle’s brother, Mac, followed Colonel Travis to the Alamo in January as “a precautionary measure,” Belle didn’t worry.

Three weeks later, General Santa Anna reentered San Antonio with thousands of troops, taking the 150 doomed Alamo men by surprise. “The news came upon me like a clap of thunder,”...