Bill Paxton is a distant relative of Sam Houston.
General Sam Houston's mother was born Elizabeth Paxton, her parents - Houston's maternal grandparents - are also Bill Paxton's six times great grandparents making him second cousin, four times removed, from the character he plays.
When Santa Ana was finally captured, he was dressed as an infantry man. What gave him away, was his men saluting him at capture.
Brendan Fraser adopted the horse he used for the majority of the series in real life. The horse's name is Pecas, the Spanish word for freckles, on account of his freckled coloring.