Alamo

A Remarkable Alamo Artifact is up for Auction This Week

On Friday (March 24), an auction house in Dallas will sell-off an 1836 letter written by one of Texas' most notable historical figures shortly before the Battle of the Alamo.

The document is an IOU William B. Travis wrote from the Alamo to a wood merchant. In the letter, he asks the merchant for 682 feet of walnut to reinforce the cannons at the Alamo. That may sound like a mundane historical letter, except that Travis concluded it by saying he'd either pay for the wood or return it all in good-as-new condition. Travis was a lieutenant colonel in the Texas Army who later died in the battle.

That may sound like a mundane historical letter, except that Travis concluded it by saying he'd either pay for the wood or return it all in good-as-new condition.

That expressed overconfidence is one of the reasons why the document so interesting to history buffs. According to Mysanantonio.com, a local Texas history expert says the letter provides some insight into Travis' larger than life character. The historian added that it's the only outbound letter she's seen that Travis wrote from the Alamo.

Heritage Auctions

Heritage Auctions

You may be wondering what happened to the wood merchant. Apparently, the U.S. government got around to paying him back in 1941.

READ MORE: This is the Oldest Known Photo of the Alamo

Heritage Auctions in Dallas will auction the letter during the Texana and Western Americana Grand Format Auction on Friday. They expect it to sell for at least $75,000.

The collection also includes rare hand-drawn maps of Texas and other notable historical documents.

Now Watch: Commonly Mispronounced Texas Places