William Davis Redd: A Texas Revolutionary and His Legacy (ca. 1810–1840)
By: William E. Bard
Published: 1952
Updated: June 1, 1995
William Davis Redd, son of Charles Anderson Redd, was born in Georgia about 1810. The family removed to Columbus, Georgia, where Redd met Mirabeau B. Lamar, whom he accompanied to Texas as an agent for a company eager to invest in Mexican lands. He arrived in Texas in the spring of 1836 in time to participate in the battle of San Jacinto as a member of William H. Smith's company in the cavalry corps commanded by Lamar. Redd again served in the Army of the Republic of Texas from later that same year until late 1837, when he resigned his commission as colonel and returned to Georgia, where he read law and was admitted to the bar. In January 1839 he was back in Texas and was given a captaincy of the Frontier Regiment in Galveston. He returned to Georgia later that year and eventually went on recruiting duty for the Texas army in New Orleans. In February 1840 he was appointed captain in command of Company A, First Regiment, stationed at San Antonio. He participated in the Council House Fight on March 19, 1840. Bad feeling between him and Lysander Wells flared into open hostility when Wells accused him of cowardice for his failure to resist an Indian demonstration because of the alleged restraint of a "petticoat government," referring to his relationship with a young woman from Georgia who was sharing his quarters. Redd challenged Wells to combat. When they met on the morning of May 7, 1840, Redd was instantly killed and Wells was mortally wounded. In the pocket of Redd's jacket was found a marriage license, duly recorded.
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The following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this entry.
William E. Bard, “Redd, William Davis,” Handbook of Texas Online, accessed March 09, 2026, https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/redd-william-davis.
Published by the Texas State Historical Association.
TID:
FRE11
- 1952
- June 1, 1995
