DUANE
Duane's take
The marker tells it this way, and I'm just the one passin' it along. Henry William Munson. Born January 15, 1793.
And if you want to understand the man, you have to understand this: his life was a series of battles on opposite sides of the same shifting line — and he kept endin' up on whichever side he believed was right. His first fight was the Battle of the Medina, near San Antonio, in 1813. That battle is no small footnote.
And Munson was there, in the thick of it, young and soldierin' early. He survived — though the marker makes clear that survival was not something he managed entirely on his own. At the Medina, a Mexican officer stepped in and saved Henry William Munson's life.
We'll come back to that. After the Medina, Munson went back East. Could've stayed.
Could've left Texas to its own complicated fate. But in 1824, he came back — this time as a colonist. He'd put down roots in the place that had nearly taken everything from him.
Now here's where the story gets interesting. In 1827, Munson took up arms on behalf of Mexico to help quell the Fredonian Rebellion. Mexico's cause, Mexico's fight — and he answered the call.
But five years later, in 1832, at the Battle of Velasco, he was fighting against Santa Anna's agents. Same man. Different moment.
Different line in the sand. Henry married Ann Pearce, and together they built a family of eight children. Eight.
And one of those children — a son — they named Mordello. Not a family name, not a place name. The marker tells you exactly where that name came from: the Mexican officer who saved Henry William Munson's life at the Medina.
Decades later, that debt still had a name, and that name was walkin' around in the world. Henry William Munson died October 6, 1833. He didn't live long enough to see what Texas would become.
But he left behind eight children, and one of them carried the name of the man who made sure their father came home from his very first battle. Some debts you carry. Some you name.
What the marker says
(January 15, 1793 - October 6, 1833) Heroic early Texas soldier. Fought in Battle of the Medina, near San Antonio, 1813. Returned East afterward, but moved to Texas as a colonist in 1824. Fought on behalf of Mexico to quell Fredonian Rebellion, 1827; but against Santa Anna's agents in 1832 Battle of Velasco. Munson married Ann Pearce. In their family of 8 children was a son, Mordello, named for the Mexican officer who saved life of H. W. Munson at the Medina. Recorded - 1970