After the Resistance: The Alamo Today

S Antonio de Valero is a former Roman Catholic mission and fortress where the Battle of the Alamo occurred from February 23 until March 6, 1836. Now known simply as the Alamo, this compound has been damaged, ransacked, and renovated many times before work on its present configuration as a museum in downtown San Antonio, Texas, USA, was completed in 1968. Texas artist Eileen Pestorius used watercolors to capture the setting on a still, spring day. In her painting, trees and grass frame the mission; a flagstone pathway leads to the entrance, and thin clouds swirl overhead in a hazy blue sky. A Texas flag hangs limply on this calm day. The stonework looks weathered, even warm in the bright sunlight; a large wooden door flanked by pairs of columns invites exploration, as does an archway that juts from the right and seems to lead to a garden. Although located in a bustling urban setting, the modern day Alamo seems a tranquil, restive place suited for relaxation or contemplation. It takes some effort to associate the Alamo that Pestorius has rendered with the garrison known as an iconic symbol of heroic fighting and resistance. The story is well known. During the 1836 battle, a Mexican force numbering in the thousands and led by General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna besieged the Alamo. The vastly outnumbered defenders—200 men, including the frontiersman Davy Crockett, commanded by Colonel James Bowie and Lieutenant Colonel William Travis—valiantly held the compound for 13 days before the Mexicans