DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it — the story of Benjamin Rush Milam, straight from the inscription, with a little road-trip fire thrown in. Now, if you're rollin' through Milam County, you oughta know whose name you're travelin' under. Benjamin Rush Milam.
And friend, that name carries some weight. He was born in Kentucky, 1788, which means by the time Texas was a word on most people's lips, Ben Milam had already lived a life. He fought as a soldier in the War of 1812.
Then, while some men settled into comfortable routines, Ben was out trading with the Texas Comanche Indians in 1818. Two years after that, 1820, he rode as a Colonel in the Long Expedition. The man had a talent for showing up wherever history was fixin' to happen.
From 1826 to 1835, he served as an Empresario — one of those figures responsible for bringing settlers into Texas. Nearly a decade of that work, shaping the land, dealing in futures. And then came 1835, and everything accelerated.
October 9th of that year, Benjamin Rush Milam participated in the capture of Goliad. The revolution was on. The fight was real.
And San Antonio was waiting. December 7, 1835. Ben Milam was commanding the Texas forces — the very forces that would go on to capture San Antonio.
But Ben himself would not see that victory complete. He was killed on December 7th, right there in San Antonio, while he was leading the charge. Now here is the thing that'll stay with you.
Before that assault, Ben Milam is said to have called out — and the marker carries the words — Who will follow Old Ben Milam into San Antonio? They followed. They took the town.
He didn't make it out. This marker was erected by the State of Texas in 1936, with funds appropriated by the Federal government, to commemorate one hundred years of Texas Independence. A hundred years on, and they made sure nobody forgot the man who asked that question.
Some questions, once asked, just keep echoing.
What the marker says
Benjamin Rush Milam, born in Kentucky 1788. Soldier in the War of 1812. Trader with the Texas Comanche Indians, 1818. Colonel in the Long Expedition in 1820. Empresario from 1826 to 1835. Benjamin Rush Milam participated in the capture of Goliad, October 9, 1835; was killed in San Antonio December 7, 1835 while commanding the Texas forces which later captured the town. Who will follow Old Ben Milam into San Antonio? Erected by the State of Texas 1936 with funds appropriated by the Federal government to commemorate one hundred years of Texas Independence.