Collin County Commissioners Approve Alamo Letter Plaque Gifted by State Senator Paxton

Collin County Commissioners Court voted to accept an Alamo Letter Plaque gifted by State Senator Angela Paxton during a special session held Feb. 24, 2026, an action formalized in Court Order 2026-240-02-24. The donation appears on the court eagenda as AI-59602 and was presented on the consent agenda as item 1.a: "Accept the donation of an Alamo Letter Plaque gifted by Senator Angela Paxton, Commissioners Court."

The eagenda packet lists the item as submitted by Nicole Gillespie of Administrative Services and shows the consent item as "AI-59602 Approved." The packet also includes standard public comment language: "If a member of the public would like to address the Court, a properly completed Public Comment Form must be submitted prior to the start of the meeting. Each speaker shall be limited to a maximum of three (3) minutes for public comments." Purchasing, Budget, and Auditor action fields appear in the captured packet but contain no procurement or budget notes for the plaque.

Collin County Government posted a photo gallery and event text to its Facebook page describing a courthouse dedication led by Senator Paxton. The post stated, "Today we proudly gathered at the Collin County Courthouse for the 'Victory or Death' Alamo Letter Monument Dedication, led by Senator Angela Paxton," and added, "Remember the Alamo is more than a phrase, it’s a reminder of the bravery and resolve that continue to inspire generations." The captured post showed social engagement metrics of +48, 35 reactions, 3 comments and 6 shares and included commenters Kathryn Lanigan Pruitt and Kelly Rudiger.

The plaque is the "Victory or Death" Travis Letter monument tied to a statewide Alamo Letter Society effort to place Travis's 1836 letter in county courthouses. The Alamo Letter Society posted on Facebook: "Collin County and Senator Angela Paxton set a new Texas standard today as we dedicated their 'Victory or Death' Travis Letter plaque on this 190th anniversary of February 24, 1836, the day William Barret Travis penned the most famous 220 words in Texas history," and added, "A heartfelt thank you to Collin County and to all the men and women working behind the scenes who made this one of our finest dedications yet."

Alamo Letter Society members have described the campaign's origin and progress. Barry Hamblett said, "Bill McNutt, who is one of the founders of the Collin Street Bakery of Corsicana, he and his granddaughter were in San Antoinio, went to the Alamo, and she read the letter. And she said how come this isn’t posted all over the state of Texas. Every Texan needs to read this letter." Hamblett also said, "We’ve actually presented 23 counties in the state of Texas already with their plaques." Ken Raney added, "In addition to the 23 that are done, the last email that I saw, I think we’ve got 54 counties under way right now," and the society has been "Hoping to do between 20 and 50 counties a year."

County-level logistics remain unclear in Collin County's public packet. The eagenda records acceptance but does not show a recorded roll-call vote, plaque manufacturer, sponsor line wording, cost, installation timeline, or maintenance responsibility. Alamo Letter Society members have noted variation in displays, "We’ve had them displayed on granite, we’ve had them displayed on a pole, on a slab of concrete," Hamblett said, and other county meetings have proceeded with quick affirmative votes. Collin County's Court Order 2026-240-02-24 documents the motion; obtaining the full order, the meeting minutes or video, and a copy or photo of the installed plaque will confirm vote tally, exact plaque text and sponsor attribution, and who paid for production and installation.