Brazoria County Historical Museum this Thursday will host a 6 p.m. presentation by Shannon Smith, site director at Varner Hogg Plantation, Levi Jordan Plantation and Sabine Pass Battleground State Historic Site.
Smith will discuss the history of Sabine Pass and the battle that is still taught in military colleges today. In September of 1863, Confederate Lt. Richard “Dick” W. Dowling and 46 men known as the Davis Guards successfully defended the channel of Sabine Pass from Union advancement.
The Davis Guards fired their cannon 107 times in 35 minutes of action, beating the odds all while taking 300 Union soldiers prisoner and sinking two of the four gunboats. What is unique about this battle, Smith says, are tactics that were used, the use of the area’s geographic features and the patience of Dowling’s men.
This museum is located at 100 East Cedar in Angleton. Admission is free and open to the public. For more information, call 979-864-1208.
