Adina de Zavala to Colquitt, August 25 ,1911
The Alamo stood practically in ruins after its legendary fall on March 6, 1836. The Republic of Texas government returned the Alamo chapel to the Catholic authorities, and after annexation, the United States Army used the fortress and grounds as a quartermaster facility. The Alamo continued to be used in this fashion by the Confederates and the United States until the end of Reconstruction in 1876.
In 1883, Texas purchased the church from the Catholic diocese (see Texas Treasures for more), and in 1905, with the help of heiress Clara Driscoll, purchased the dilapidated Alamo fortress and grounds from a wholesale grocery concern. The Alamo was to be run and restored by the Daughters of the Republic of Texas.
A controversy erupted over the custody of the Alamo, and for a time the fortress was in danger of being razed. The Daughters of the Republic of Texas split into two rival factions over disagreements about how to preserve the Alamo and what exactly constituted the historic structure in 1836. One faction was led by Adina De Zavala, granddaughter of Lorenzo de Zavala (see Texas Treasures for more), and the other led by Driscoll.
The courts awarded custody to Driscoll's group, which made plans to destroy the fortress in the mistaken belief that it was erected after the 1836 battle. At one point, Adina de Zavala barricaded herself in the fortress for three days to protest the plan and draw attention to her assertion that the fortress was historically more important than the chapel. Time has proven her to be correct. Eventually, Governor Colquitt intervened in the dispute on the side of the preservationists.
Today the Alamo continues to be owned by the state of Texas and operated by the Daughters of the Republic of Texas.
Adina de Zavala to Colquitt, August 25 ,1911, Records of Oscar B. Colquitt, Texas Office of the Governor, Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.