"Longtime resident Bruce Marshall, 85, passes away," by Katie Hall, Austin Community

Bruce Marshall, a fourth-generation Texan whose family helped found the community on the Westbank, died on May 23. He was 85.

His funeral was held at St. John Neumann Catholic Church, land where Marshall raised his family and land that he sold to the church in 1999.

Marshall’s son Randy Marshall, 47, pointed out during the funeral that Eanes Creek was just a stone’s throw away, the creek that his brother was baptized in and where he spent many of his childhood days.

Marshall is descended from his great-grandfather Robert Eanes, donor of Eanes School, where Eanes Elementary School now sits. When contractors advised Marshall to raze the family’s historic Eanes Ranch House, he decided to renovate it instead, Randy Marshall said. The ranch house is now the Eanes History Center on Eanes Elementary School’s campus.

During his eulogy, Randy Marshall said his father was “a man whose hobby in life was talking.”

Many friends echoed that.

“Those who knew Bruce could sit and be enthralled by his stories for hours,” Robert Jones Jr. said.

Bruce Marshall’s friend Milburn Taylor recalled they would have coffee at La Madeleine’s on a weekly basis.

“We always joked about how we solved all the world’s problems, but nobody would listen to us, so we had to solve them all over again next week,” Taylor said.

Marshall was a painter and an author who focused on early Texas history. Forty-four of his paintings hang in permanent museum collections, including the University of Texas’ Institute of Texan Cultures at San Antonio, the Susanna Dickinson Museum, the San Jacinto Monument, and the Alamo.

His work was exhibited in a host of museums including the Smithsonian Institution, the Museum of the History of Man in Brussels, Belgium, and four times in the rotunda of the Texas State Capitol.

“He was truly the Rembrandt of the West,” Taylor said.

Marshall wrote and illustrated three books: Uniforms of the Republic of Texas, Uniforms of the Alamo and the Texas Revolution and the Men Who Wore Them: 1835-1836, and his historical novel, City of Silver.

Marshall is survived by his wife of 54 years, Ann; his three children, Susanne Gregg, Randolph (Randy) Marshall and Cody Eanes Marshall; and 10 grandchildren.

Submitted by Ande Rasmussen

Bruce Marshall is a fourth generation Texan. He is the descendent of a Confederate General, grew up on ranches in Texas and Mexico, and was taught to ride and shoot by an uncle who was a Texas Ranger!

Among Marshall's best known works are: The Texas Citizen Soldier (6' x 12') commissioned by the National Guard Association of Texas and hanging in the Texas Room at the National Infantry Museum; The Patriot (5' x 9') hanging in the Mahler Student Center of Dallas Baptist University; and Ten Historic Texans commissioned by Southwestern Bell as a cover for over 15 million telephone directories.

His work is also in the permanent collection of the War Memorial Museum in Virginia, the University of Texas Institute of Texan Cultures in San Antonio, the San Jacinto Monument, and the Alamo.

His work has been exhibited at the Texas Capitol Rotunda four times, the University of Arizona, the Cannon House Office Building in Washington DC, the Smithsonian, and the Musee de l'Homme in Brussels, Belgium.

The State of Texas created a special title for him: "Artist of the 65th Legislature". Other unique titles bestowed upon him have been "Artist in Residence of the Texas Navy" and "National Artist, Confederate States of America".

Marshall wrote and illustrated both Uniforms of the Alamo and the Texas Revolution and Uniforms of the Republic of Texas" These books are the culmination of years of research and feature lavish watercolors. His biography, Bruce Marshall: The Man & His Legacy by Dr. James Semones, is forthcoming.

Bruce Marshall is a fourth generation Texan. He is the descendant of a Confederate General, grew up on ranches in Texas and Mexico. His work is in the permanent collection of the War Memorial Museum in Virginia, the University of Texas Institute of Texan Cultures in San Antonio, the San Jacinto Monument, and the Alamo.

His work has been exhibited at the Texas Capitol Rotunda four times, the University of Arizona, the Cannon House Office Building in Washington DC, the Smithsonian, and the Musee de l'Homme in Brussels, Belgium.

The State of Texas created a special title for him: "Artist of the 65th Legislature". Other unique titles bestowed upon him have been "Artist in Residence of the Texas Navy" and "National Artist, Confederate States of America".

Marshall wrote and illustrated both Uniforms of the Alamo and the Texas Revolution and Uniforms of the Republic of Texas. These books are the culmination of years of research and feature lavish watercolors.