The Alamo: An Illustrated History

By George S. Nelson

Book Overview

This work is an in-depth review of the long and complex story of this intriguing site. Over 100 old maps and pictures, along with a review of 300 years of historical records from various archives... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0965915905
• ISBN13: 9780965915908
• Release Date: January 1998
• Publisher: Aldine Books
• Length: 114 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 11.3" x 0.3" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

If a picture is worth a thousand words...

If a picture is worth a thousand words then George Nelson's "The Alamo: An Illustrated History" is worth many times that. Through much research Mr. Nelson gives you a birds eye view of the Alamo grounds through the ages with his drawings. Actually I like his drawings better than the historical drawings and photographs used in the later part of the book. Its a great book just to carry around the Alamo grounds as you try to imagine what it was really like in past times.  I recently met Mr. Nelson at the Alamo gift shop. He was holding court, signing books and telling tales of Texas. Filling all the tourist with the "real" story of the Texas Revolution. He was sincere, knowledgeable, and seemed to really enjoy interacting with the crowd. 

A useful and beautiful piece of work.

This is both a useful and beautiful piece of work.It is now the most frequently recommended books on the Alamo by the San Antonio Public Library.

Nelson succeeds where many literary works fail.

"George Nelson has chosen to catalog in a chronological fashion events associated with the building of the Alamo and its geographical setting from prehistoric times to last year. . . the images speak to us and tell us of the changes endured by the most well-known building in Texas. . . (Nelson's) reconstructions add immeasurably to the reading of the public's understanding of 'What was a mission?' . . . He suceeds where many literary works fail. . . "

A book that will change your perspective of the Alamo.

This is a highly recommended book for anyone with an interest in the Alamo,for it is an archeaologically-oriented artist's view of Alamo history. This book is clearly a visually intense overview of different developmental stages of the famous chapel and mission across the entire span of its history. Nelson makes no pretense at summarizing its history in any detail...it is not a recapitulation of the many investigations of the site...it is a very talent artist's conceptualization of what the place probably looked like at a number of strategic points in history, seen through his bird's eye view paintings...backed with some explanatory text containing evidence of why such views were created. This is a powerful work, helping the reader gain a better understanding, a more comprehensive perspective of this important complex in and around which so much of Texas history was played...worthwhile for the historian as a visual systhesis of devlopement and the archeaologist as a guide to other bits of strutures and artifacts. For the anthropologist, in terms of the ebb and the flow of many ethnic and social groups of the vicinity. A number of historical and recent photographs, especially an outstanding aerial view by the artist/author, contrast history and modern urban growth. This is a must have book.

A comprehensive, pictoral history of the Shrine

The author takes an original perspective of the Shrine and dispels the myths that often accompany the story of Texas independence. Focus is not only on the battle but the changes through time. The copies of the original paintings, meticulously done, show the development of the Alamo, and are dotted with some interesting surprises; hours of discussion are inspired. From this reviewer's use of the book, it serves well as a teaching tool for all levels. Children find the paintings and antiquated photos interesting and spend hours examining the historical changes. College level students used the textual part for citations in research papers. The text is broken into small anecdotes, filled with surprising facts about everyday life in the town of San Antonio de Valero. The text is chronologically organized, allowing the reader to focus on time periods, from the prehistoric, with an archeological perspective, to the present day, seen in a photo by the author/illustrator. I highly recommend this book for hours of reading, discussion, and viewing of the changes of this most famous shrine.