Roll of Honor
Incident
A band of 200-300 Comanche warriors were raiding communities in central Texas near present-day Bastrop. Twenty-five volunteers organized a ranger company and elected Jacob Burleson as their captain. Three other Burleson brothers joined the company – Jonathan, John, and Aaron. Another brother was Edward Burleson who was the colonel of the frontier range forces. Another volunteer company of twenty-seven men commanded by Captain James Rogers, a brother-in-law of Burleson, joined the campaign.
The ranger companies spotted the Indians near Brushy Creek and the Indians started racing for a thicket. The rangers tried to cut them off from the thicket. When the rangers dismounted, the Indians charged. Captain Burleson saw a young ranger, aged 14; jump on his horse without untying it. Burleson ran back and untied the boy’s horse. Racing to his own horse, Burleson was just mounting the saddle when he was shot in the back of the head. Burleson reeled and fell from his saddle. The Indians fell upon Burleson’s body with a vengeance thinking they had killed Colonel Edward Burleson.
Colonel Edward Burleson arrived with an additional thirty rangers. Both sides started sniping at each other. Privates Edward Blakey and John B. (Jack) Walters were shot in the head and killed outright. Private James Gilleland was shot in the neck, the ball going down through his lungs. He would survive for 10 days and die on March 7. Colonel Edward Burleson reported that probably thirty Indians were killed.
Jacob Burleson’s father was an early founder of Stephen F. Austin's colony in Texas in 1823. His parents had 12 children. He was 36 years old at the time of his death. He was survived by his pregnant wife and two children. His wife had a son two months after his death and the child was named after him.
Edward Blakey was single and was survived by his widowed mother. It is unknown what his age was at the time of his death. His father and brother had both been killed fighting for Texas independence.
John B. (Jack) Walters, 24, had come to Texas from Missouri in 1825 and had worked as a carpenter, gunsmith, and a ranger in Texas.
Reverend James Gilleland, 40, was an organizer of the first Methodist church in Stephen F. Austin’s little colony in 1834.
Survivors
He was survived by his pregnant wife and two children. Edward Blakey was single and was survived by his widowed mother. He was single and was survived by his widowed mother. He was survived by his wife.
In Our Keeping
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BO-US-TX-4532DDE9- Stewardship
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- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
187 years is a long time for a name to go unread. Not today.
Private Gilleland served with the Texas Rangers.
Thank you for your service to the Austin community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Private James Gilleland is one of 17,623 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 54.2% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In TX, 1,463 of 2,421 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 60.4% of this state's fallen. That is 6.2 percentage points above the national rate of 54.2%.
At Texas Rangers, 104 of 122 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 85.2% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. James Gilleland's cause is highlighted.
How James Gilleland Compares
When Felonious Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. James Gilleland is highlighted in Mar.
Weapons Used Against Officers
Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. James Gilleland was killed by rifle.
Others Who Wore This Badge
121 officers from Texas Rangers are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
