High up in this tall live oak, which commands a wide view of the surrounding countryside, Erastus “Deaf” Smith is supposed to have spied on Mexican troops which were camped on Cibolo Creek.

A few days earlier, on October 2, 1835, a small force of Mexican troops attempted to retrieve a cannon from the Texans at Gonzales but were put to flight in the first battle of the Texas Revolution.

When volunteers from the settlements heard of the first blow for Texan liberty they hastened to Gonzales to join in driving the Mexicans out of Texas.  On October 10, Stephen F. Austin arrived at Gonzales and was elected commander-in-chief by the army.   By the 12th, when they set out for San Antonio, the Texas forces had grown to about 500 men.  They crossed the Guadalupe River and camped on the “flats” a few miles east of this live oak.

Deaf Smith was one of the first to enlist in Austin’s army of Texans.  Being thoroughly familiar with every part of the country between San Antonio and Gonzales, he was a logical choice to scout Ugartachea’s advance.

Apparently Ugartachea learned of Austin’s growing strength and chose to avoid contact, for when the Texans reached the Cibolo on the 16th, the Mexicans were gone.

Above text from:  Famous Trees of Texas, Texas Forest Service, a part of the Texas A&M University System, edited by John A. Haislet, 1970, page 155.

 Photo above:  The Deaf Smith Oak stands alone in a cultivated field about 300 yards west of Farm Road 775, about 3 miles north of La Vernia.

Erastus "Deaf" Smith 1787-1837