1. Reference the January 1973 edition of the publication "New Mexico Historical Review" pages 45 - 56, an article titled "The Texan-Santa Fe Expedition authored by Charles R. McClure. This article has an objective view of the "expedition".
2. Also the April 1987 edition of the publication "New Mexico Historical Review" 133 - 144, the article titled "The Trouble with Texans, Manuel Alverez and the 1841 Invasion" written by Thomas Esteban Chavez.
3. Reference the book titled "The Texan - Santa Fe Pioneers" written by Noel M. Loomis and published in 1958 by the University of Oklahoma Press. Damaso Salazar was a New Mexican soldier (captain) who was involved in the capture of the Texas force invading New Mexico in 1841 and is mentioned extensively in this book. Juan Damaso is vilified by the Texans in this book.
Juan Damaso Salazar or Damacio Salazar was a true New Mexican hero who has been vilified in Texas history. And I do not mean just vilified like other Mexicans are in any history that Texans have written that include Mexicans and/or New Mexicans. Juan Damaso Salazar is vilified by Texan historians over and above, beyond the pale. I don't care how you look at it, they hated the man to no end. And you want to know why? Because he was part of the "operation" that caught the Texans trying to annex New Mexico. Part of the operation that not only caught them but forced them to march all the way to Mexico to pay for their attempt. He was responsible for escorting the inept Texans, at least part of the way, as they were escorted as prisoners.
I have read all I can find out on their effort by the Texans to annex New Mexico, most, if not all, of the information originates from journals of Texans involved in the expedition. All trying to find a scapegoat for their failure, never bothering to look inward when there were New Mexicans to blame. Their journals show an inept group with worse leadership heading of on a mission that was bound to fail. But Texans in their quest for easy glory and hero status volunteered in mass.
When they failed their recourse was a ridiculous volume of narratives by several participants to blame Ne Mexicans and Mexicans in general. Reading it brings to mind a comedy of errors, a racist tirade on a couple of scapegoats when they failed and failing to look at themselves and their motives and actions for their monumental failure. But true to Texan historical writers the effort to turn defeat into diabolical efforts by their evil enemies and in their failures they turn themselves into victims of evil.
As you know, or will find out if you read Texan history written by Texans, they always see themselves as heroes. Always! The thought that a small contingent of New Mexicans could get the best of them just gets to them. They cannot, did not, stand for it. So they took it upon themselves to vilify anyone associated with their capture and delivery of the Texan prisoners to Mexico. In Captain Juan Damaso Salazar they found the scapegoat, him and Governor Manuel Armijo.
The incident has bothered Texans since the "Texas Expedition" was captured by New Mexicans and it bothers them to this day. And so the vilification of anything New Mexican, Mexican, anything having to do with Captain Juan Damaso Salazar and Governor Miguel Armijo continues.
Let the Texan historians fool the Texans, we New Mexicans know better. Captain Juan Damaso Salazar and Governor Manuel Armijo are true New Mexican Heros..... You just have to look at these incidents from a New Mexican perspective....
Some genealogical information on Captain Juan Damaso Salazar in the next web post.
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