The San Felipe Incident

The San Felipe Incident. . , An important cause of the Texas Revolution occurred right here on the beach at the mouth of the Brazos River., The San Felipe was a schooner of the Quintana trading firm McKinney, Williams and Company. Having foreknowledge of "Mexican cruisers" blockading the Texas coast in 1835, Captain William Hurd had armed it with two 6-pound waist guns, small arms for the crew, and armored its deck with bales of cotton, before it sailed from New Orleans for Velasco. On board was Stephen F. Austin, returning after two years (and twenty months in prison) from Mexico., As the San Felipe approached Velasco on the afternoon of September 1, 1835, it was met by the Mexican sloop-of-war Correo Mexicano, which had just captured the American brig Tremont., Due to favorable but calm winds, the San Felipe made port over the Brazos Bar, but Thomas McKinney (seeing his vessel would be the Correo's next target), unloaded Stephen F. Austin and loaded armed volunteers on the San Felipe and his steamboat Laura. Both ships went after the lightly armed Correo and, after a cannon duel and overnight sea chase, the Correo surrendered. Ship and officers were sent to New Orleans to be charged with piracy. This incident was the last step in convincing Stephen F. Austin, one of the most influential men in Texas, in favor of revolution. As Austin's nephew recollected "... he walked the beach until late at night, hoping to hear or see something of the vessels. Next day the Laura returned with the intelligence of the capture of the Correo. Austin saw in this the beginning of trouble.", Greg Cantrell wrote about this incident in his biography of Austin: "But in his own mind he had already reached the critical conclusion: Texas must be free from Mexico .... The question was no longer one of ends, but of means." Some years later, Charles W. Hayes wrote about Thomas McKinney: "This was the first naval triumph, and was one of the principal causes that led to the proclamation of war, and its success is justly due to the boldness and daring of Col. McKinney"