C.C. the Alamo Cat

Author: Rachael Stephenson
Date of Trip: June 2013

I took my two boys on a visit to the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas. My oldest son, Gerald, had studied Texas history in 4th grade and has been asking to go visit. We arrived in time to hear one of the guides give a talk on the history behind the Alamo and the significance of the battle. My youngest, Eric, had a little trouble following the talk, but I think he understood enough to appreciate the visit. Both boys were most impressed with the artifacts on display, particularly the weapons (especially the long rifles) and the personal items owned by Davy Crocket and James Bowie.

As we walked the courtyard, Gerald kept a lookout among the shrubbery for the famous Alamo cat. With no luck in finding her, we visited the gift shop and purchased the book “CC the Alamo Cat” and a couple of postcards of her to commemorated our visit.

I could tell that both of them were disappointed not to get a glimpse of CC, so I suggested one last look around the courtyard. As we were making our last round, I stopped and asked two caretakers, Mark Nauschutz (Alamo horticulturist) and an assistant whose name I failed to get, who were pulling weeds if they knew where we could find CC, the Alamo Cat. Mr. Nauschutz told us that she was probably downstairs sleeping, since she has gotten older, she only comes out in the mornings to eat and stroll the grounds. He suggested that we return in the morning for a better chance at seeing her. I told him we were on our way out of town and would not be able to return, but my boys had read about the Alamo Cat and had been searching for her ever since we arrived, hoping to get a glimpse of her before we left. I then thanked him for taking time to help us.

As we started to leave, Mr. Naushcutz turned to his associate and asked her to go get CC for us. I could not believe our luck! Both of my boys jaws were on the ground in excitement. She was only gone for a few minutes and returned with a sleepy black and white cat in her arms, which she promptly placed in Gerald’s hands. You could not have wiped the smile off his face if you tried! Not only did they get to see CC, but they got to hold her and get pictures as well! I never dreamed that they would even see her, much less get pictures holding her! I cannot thank Mr. Naushcutz and his associate enough for making my sons’ trip to the Alamo one of the most memorable times of their lives!