Artifact Spotlight — Circular

November 30, 2022
Newspaper insert dated December 9, 1835

December of 1835

This is a circular (a leaflet or newspaper insert) that was printed in December of 1835 where Texas Governor Henry Smith is calling for volunteers to come and fight for Texas freedom.

It is noteworthy because it was published on December 9, 1835, the day the fighting stopped and a day before the capitulation of the Mexican army. This shows how news travelled slower than it does today.

This circular is also significant because men answered the call knowing they might be away from their families during Christmas. Some of the men reading this message from Governor Smith could have fought at the Battle of the Alamo in 1836.