Plum Creek, Battle of

The harsh anti-Indian policies of President Mirabeau B. Lamar and Mexican efforts to weaken the Republic of Texas stirred Indian hostilities. Hatred increased after the Council House Fight in San Antonio, March 19, 1840, where 12 Comanche chief were killed. After regrouping and making plans for revenge, 600 Comanches and Kiowas, including women and children, moved across central Texas in early August. They raided Victoria and Linnville (120 mi. SE), a prosperous seaport. About 200 Texans met at Good's Crossing on Plum Creek under Major-General Felix Huston (1800-1857) to stop the Indians. Adorned with their plunder from Linnville, the war party stretched for miles across the prairie. The Battle of Plum Creek, August 12, 1840, began on Comanche Flats (5.5 mi. SE) and proceeded to Kelley springs (2.5 mi. SW), with skirmishes as far as present San Marcos and Kyle. Mathew Caldwell (1798-1842), for whom Caldwell County was named, was injured in the Council House fight but took part in this battle. Volunteers under Edward Burleson (1793-1851) included 13 Tonkawa Indians, marked as Texan allies by white armbands. Texan casualties were light while the Indians lost over 80 chiefs and warriors. This battle ended the Comanche penetration of settled portions of Texas.

Plum Creek, Battle of is a historical marker in Lockhart, Caldwell County, dedicated in 1978. It is one of 51 historical markers documented in Caldwell County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 90 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 29.8816, -97.6693 near Lockhart. The nearest cataloged historic site is Andrew Lee Brock (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Cardwell Home, Caldwell County Jail, and Dr. Eugene Clark Library.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5055009783. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.