John W. Thomson: Alamo Defender and Surgeon (1807–1836)
By: Bill Groneman
Revised by: Steven Douglas Lukefahr
Published: July 1, 1995
Updated: June 25, 2025
John W. Thomson, Alamo defender, son of Henry and Susannah (Whited) Thomson, was born about 1807 and raised in Orange County, North Carolina. Thomson was unmarried and a doctor by profession. Between 1833 and 1835 Thomson lived in Columbia, Tennessee. In late 1835 he joined the company of Capt. William Gilmer and possibly served as the unit’s physician. Gilmer’s company traveled by steamboat from Nashville to Natchitoches, Louisiana, then overland to Texas. Thomson and Gilmer joined the Volunteer Auxiliary Corps of Texas at Nacogdoches on January 14, 1836. Gilmer’s company traveled by foot from Nacogdoches to Washington-on-the-Brazos and then proceeded to San Felipe de Austin. However, in February the company disbanded, likely due to the members’ disappointment in the lack of clear orders and/or the weak provisional Texas government. Thomson informed Captain Gilmer that he wished to join Davy Crockett (who was already at the Alamo) and headed towards San Antonio de Béxar. At the Alamo, Thomson assisted head surgeon, Amos Pollard. He died in the battle of the Alamo on March 6, 1836. For his service, the Republic of Texas issued several land bounties, which were claimed by the heirs of Dr. John W. Thomson.
Bibliography:
Manley F. Cobia, Jr., Journey in the Land of Trials: The Story of Davy Crockett’s Expedition to the Alamo (Franklin, Tennessee: Hillsboro Press, 2003). Daughters of the American Revolution, The Alamo Heroes and Their Revolutionary Ancestors (San Antonio, 1976). Daughters of the Republic of Texas, Muster Rolls of the Texas Revolution (Austin, 1986). Bill Groneman, Alamo Defenders (Austin: Eakin, 1990). Pat Ireland Nixon, The Medical Story of Early Texas, 1528–1853 (Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Lupe Memorial Fund, 1946). Special Acts, File No. 476, Original Land Grant Collection, Archives and Records Division, Texas General Land Office, Austin.
Time Periods:
The following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this entry.
Bill Groneman Revised by Steven Douglas Lukefahr, “Thomson, John W.,” Handbook of Texas Online, accessed March 09, 2026, https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/thomson-john-w.
Published by the Texas State Historical Association.
TID:
FTH63
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- July 1, 1995
- June 25, 2025
