The Mexicans waited at a place called Palo Alto. Their lookouts could see the approaching U.S. troops from some distance crossing the flat salt prairie. Men from the two sides had skirmished the night before, and there was little doubt that a major clash was imminent.
Arista ordered his men into a wide line, about one mile long, across the road leading to Fort Texas. As the U.S. troops moved closer, they halted, filled their canteens, and took up battle formations. Then they advanced to within about 800 yards of the Mexican positions and stopped.
For about two hours the armies eyed each other warily across an open field of tall grasses. The ground was muddy, with small water pools. Commanders on both sides shouted orders. There were few other loud noises as horses and men shifted uneasily under a blistering sun.
Then, about two in the afternoon, loud explosions shattered the quiet as the Mexican cannons spit out artillery shells. The U.S. force retaliated with their own cannons. Taylor prepared to order his troops to charge, but changed his mind as he saw the damage done by his artillery. The Mexican soldiers, hampered by outdated equipment, were at a distinct disadvantage despite their greater number. They fought with old, unreliable guns and gun powder and depended primarily on single-shot cannon balls. These often fell short, and even when they covered the desired distance flew so slowly that the targeted soldiers simply side-stepped them.
U.S. troops had newer weapons firing case projectiles that exploded on impact and canister shells stuffed with multiple shots. The combined effect was devastating. Cannon fire ripped huge gaps in the Mexican lines. Hot shards of flying metal maimed or killed many. Yet, the Mexican forces did not panic and stood their ground. Arista ordered a cavalry charge. Led by General Anastacio Tarrejon, the highly trained cavalry galloped at the U.S. force’s right flank. The usual strategic advantages of cavalry, speed and momentum, however, were reduced by the muddy ground. The waiting U.S. infantry formed into a tight square, bristling with rifles and bayonets, further blunting the Mexican charge. The U.S. soldiers also deployed fast, horse-drawn cannons. Able to move these guns rapidly whenever conditions warranted, they could fire at close range into opposition forces. The Mexican cavalry retreated.
The Battle of Palo Alto
The Mexican army tried two more cavalry charges, with similar results. The “flying artillery” of the U.S. troops, commanded by Samuel Ringgold and James Duncan, proved brutally effective, although Ringgold, who had pioneered light artillery for the army, was fatally wounded.
Cannon sparks ignited grass fires, creating smoke that enveloped the battlefield. When the smoke cleared and the fighting finally ceased, the two armies were in similar positions to those before the battle. The Mexicans still outnumbered U.S. troops and still blocked the way to Fort Texas. The fight, however, had bolstered U.S. spirits and perhaps undercut Mexican confidence.
Forty-three U.S. soldiers were injured and nine died. Mexican casualties were more severe. Some 100 to 400 Mexican fighters suffered wounds, and at least 125 were killed. Official estimates are unreliable, however, and some historians think that perhaps as many as 200 to 300 Mexican soldiers died.
The Death of Major Ringgold at the Battle of Palo Alto.
The armies spent an uneasy night camped on the battlefield. The next day Arista calculated he could reduce his enemy’s artillery impact by pulling back to a place with natural defenses. He stationed men on both sides of a lagoon, the Resaca de la Palma, where the tall banks formed shields. The chaparral of bushes and small trees was dense, providing additional protection, near this former channel of the Rio Grande.
Arista placed his heavy artillery on the main road leading over the resaca. As U.S. troops approached, Taylor divided his infantry into small units and sent them into the chaparral. Skilled in frontier fighting, these soldiers soon engaged Mexican fighters in fierce hand-to-hand combat. Some of the U.S. troops were able to fight their way across the resaca, then turned and began advancing from the side toward the Mexican center.
At the same time, Taylor ordered a direct assault by mounted troops at the Mexican center. While the two armies’ artillery engaged in another duel, horsemen led by General Charles May rode hard down the main road. The cavalry, in the open, was extremely vulnerable and needed to get out of range quickly of the Mexican cannons.
Lithograph of the Battle of Palo Alto
With his long, black hair whipping in the breeze, May rode straight into intense rifle fire. The air filled with bullets, but the U.S. cavalry managed to push forward and capture the Mexican artillery. Now a flood of troops hammered the Mexican army from two directions. The Mexicans began retreating. Seeking to stem the tide, Arista displayed his own valor, riding at the head of a cavalry charge into the teeth of the oncoming soldiers. Despite his fearlessness, defeat was at hand. The Mexicans began streaming toward the Rio Grande, only to become targets for Fort Texas cannons.
Fort troops soon ceased fire, however, fearing they would hit their comrades pursuing Arista’s men. Mexican forces, now in chaos, tried to swim the Rio Grande to safety. The river, wider and more powerful than today, was swollen by spring rains and swept many soldiers under. The Mexican army reported that 159 troops were missing after the battle. Many likely drowned. The Mexican army also listed an additional 160 soldiers killed and 228 wounded in the battle at the Resaca de la Palma. Forty-five U.S. soldiers died and 97 were wounded.
Major Jacob Brown, who led the fort’s defense, died as a result of his battle wound a few hours before Taylor’s victory and return.
When Taylor arrived, he somberly renamed the bastion to honor the fallen commander. Fort Texas became Fort Brown.
Remnants of the earthen walls of the original Fort Brown are visible in this historic sketch. This first Fort Brown was abandoned at the close of the Mexican-American War and the dirt was later used to build levees along the banks of the Rio Grande River.
There was no further combat at the fort in the following two years of the Mexican-American War. Fort Brown, however, was an important post on Taylor’s supply route as his army trekked deep into Mexico, fighting at Monterey, La Angostura, and Buena Vista against elements of the same army they had battled along the Rio Grande. Other U.S. forces invaded Mexico, including what is now New Mexico, Arizona, and California. At war’s end, Mexico was forced to sell half its territory to the United States.
Lingering bitterness remained between the two nations for years. Those north of the new border recounted war-time excesses and atrocities committed by Santa Anna’s armies during the fight over Texas independence. For their part, residents south of the border fumed about stolen lands and atrocities they had suffered, especially at the hands of the Texas Rangers.
Additional Sources:
www.nps.gov
www.sandiego.edu
www.rice.edu
www.lib.utexas.edu
www.army.mil
www.forttours.com
scouts87_90.tripod.com/the4thusinfantryregiment
www.newgenevacenter.org
users.ev1.net/~gpmoran
