Place:Texas, United States

source: Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names

source: Family History Library Catalog

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Texas is the second largest U.S. state in both area and population, and the largest state in the contiguous United States. Located in the South Central United States, Texas is bordered by Mexico to the south, New Mexico to the west, Oklahoma to the north, Arkansas to the northeast, and Louisiana to the east. Texas has an area of , and a growing population of 24.6 million residents. Houston is the largest city in Texas and the fourth-largest in the United States, while Dallas–Fort Worth is the largest metropolitan area in the state and the fourth-largest in the nation. Other major cities include San Antonio, El Paso, and Austin—the state capital. Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State, for historical reasons.

Texas contains diverse landscapes, resembling in places both the Deep South and the Southwest. Traveling from east to west, one can observe piney woods and semi-forests of oak and cross timbers, rolling plains and prairie, rugged hills, and finally the desert of the Big Bend. The phrase "everything is bigger in Texas" derives in part from the state's geographic sprawl and the wide open spaces of its desert and prairie regions. Due to its long history as a center of the American cattle industry, Texas is associated throughout much of the world with the image of the cowboy.

Historically and culturally, Texas is usually considered part of the American South. However, with its Spanish and Mexican roots, and the topography and Southwestern vegetation generally west of a Fort Worth to Corpus Christi line, it can also be classified as part of the American Southwest. While residents acknowledge these categories, many claim an independent "Texan" identity superseding regional labels.

The term "six flags over Texas" comes from the multiple countries that have claimed the territory. Spain was the first European country to claim the area of Texas. France held a short lived colony in Texas. Mexico owned the territory until 1836 when Texas won its independence, becoming an independent Republic. In 1845 it joined the United States as the 28th state. The state's annexation helped set off a chain of events that caused the Mexican–American War in 1846. Texas seceded from the United States in early 1861, joining the Confederate States of America on March 2, 1861.

In the early 1900s, oil discoveries initiated an economic boom in the state. Texas has since economically diversified. It has a growing base in high technology, biomedical research and higher education. Its gross state product is the second-highest in the nation.

History

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Pre-European era

The word Texas is derived from , a word in the Caddoan language of the Hasinai, which means "allies" or "friends".^[1] Scholars estimate that humans have lived in Texas for approximately years. The Paleoamericans that lived in Texas in the Pleistocene era (between 9200 – 6000 B.C.) may have links to Clovis and Folsom cultures; these nomadic people hunted mammoths and bison latifrons^[2] using atlatls. They extracted flint in the region of Alibates Flint of North Texas.

Despite the extinction of giant mammals along with climate change during the archaic period, Texas experienced population growth, beginning at the 3rd millennium BC. Many pictograms drawn on the walls of the caves or on rocks are visible in the State, including at Hueco Tanks and Seminole Canyon.

Native Americans in what's now Texas began to settle in villages shortly after 500 B.C., farming and building the first burial mounds. This phase of history is due to the influence the Mound Builders civilizations that lived in the Mississippi basin.^[2] The Caddo nation was formed between 500 and 800 while the Trans-Pecos populations were influenced by Mogollon culture.

From the eighth century, the bow and arrow appeared in the region,^[2] manufacture of pottery developed and Native Americans increasingly depended on bison for survival. Obsidian objects found in various Texan sites attest of trade with present days Mexico and Rocky Mountains.

Among the Native Americans that lived in Texas before European colonization were the: Alabama, Apache, Aranama, Atakapa, Caddo, Comanche, Coahuiltecan, Cherokee, Choctaw, Coushatta, Hasinai, Jumano, Karankawa, Kickapoo, Kiowa and Wichita.

Colonization

The first document in Texas history was a map of the Gulf Coast created in 1519 by Spanish explorer Alonso Álvarez de Pineda. Nine years later, shipwrecked Spanish explorer Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca became the first known European in Texas. For over a century, Texas was essentially ignored by European powers. It was settled accidentally in 1685, when miscalculations by René Robert Cavelier de La Salle resulted in the establishment of French colony Fort Saint Louis at Matagorda Bay rather than along the Mississippi River. The colony lasted only four years before succumbing to harsh conditions and hostile natives.

Spanish authorities, concerned that France posed a threat to New Spain, initiated settlement activities in 1690 with the construction of several missions in East Texas. After resistance from the native tribes, the Spanish missionaries returned to Mexico, abandoning Texas for the next two decades. France began settling Louisiana, and in response in 1716 Spanish authorities established a new series of missions in East Texas. Two years later, San Antonio was established as the first Spanish civilian settlement in Texas.

Hostile native tribes and remoteness from New Spain discouraged settlers from moving to Texas, leaving it one of New Spain's least populated provinces. In 1749, the Spanish signed a peace treaty with the Lipan Apache; this angered the enemies of the Apache, including the Comanche, Tonkawa, and Hasinai tribes. The Comanche signed a treaty with Spain in 1785 and later assisted in defeating the Lipan Apache and Karankawa tribes. An increased number of missions in the province allowed for a peaceful conversion of other tribes, and by the end of the 1700s only a few nomadic tribes were not Christianized.

When the United States purchased Louisiana from France in 1801, American authorities insisted that the agreement also included Texas. The boundary between New Spain and the United States was finally set at the Sabine River in 1819. Many American citizens refused to recognize the agreement, and several filibusters raised armies to invade Texas. In 1821, following the Mexican War of Independence, Texas became part of the new country of Mexico. Due to its low population, Texas was denied independent statehood, and instead became part of the state of Coahuila y Tejas.

Authorities in Mexican Texas had neither manpower nor funds to protect settlers from near-constant Comanche raids. In the hopes that an influx of settlers could control the Indian raids, the government liberalized its immigration policies for the region, and for the first time settlers from the United States were permitted to immigrate to Mexico. Under the Mexican immigration system, large swathes of land were allotted to empresarios, who would recruit settlers from the United States, Europe, and the Mexican interior. Texas grew rapidly, from a population of approximately 3,500 (primarily of Mexican descent) in 1825 to approximately 37,800 (only 7,800 of Mexican descent) in 1834.

Many new settlers to Texas openly flouted Mexican law, especially the prohibition against slavery. This, combined with several attempts by the United States to purchase Texas, convinced Mexican authorities that immigration should be halted. In 1830 Mexico officially outlawed further immigration from the United States to Texas. The new laws, which also called for the enforcement of customs duties, angered both native Mexican citizens (Tejanos) as well as recent immigrants. In 1832, a group of men led a revolt against customs enforcement in Anahauc. These Anahuac Disturbances coincided with a revolt in Mexico against the current president. Texians sided with the federalists against the current government and drove all Mexican soldiers out of East Texas. Texians took advantage of the lack of oversight to agitate for more political freedom, resulting in the Convention of 1832, which, among other issues, requested independent statehood for Texas. The following year, Texians reiterated their demands at the Convention of 1833. After presenting their petition, courier Stephen F. Austin was jailed for the next two years in Mexico City on suspicion of treason.

Republic

Within Mexico, tensions continued between proponents of a federalist system and those that wanted a more centralized government. In early 1835, wary colonists in Texas began forming Committees of Correspondence and Safety. The vague unrest erupted into armed conflict in late 1835 at the Battle of Gonzales. This launched the Texas Revolution, and over the next two months, the Texians successfully defeated all Mexican troops in the region. Texians elected delegates to the Consultation, which created a provisional government. The provisional government soon collapsed from infighting, and Texas was without clear governance for the first two months of 1836.

During this time of Texas political turmoil, Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna personally led an army to end the revolt. The Mexican expedition was initially successful. General Jose de Urrea defeated all the Texian resistance along the coast culminating in the Goliad Massacre. Santa Anna's forces, after a thirteen-day siege, overwhelmed Texian defenders at the Battle of the Alamo. News of the defeats sparked panic amongst Texas settlers.^[3] The newly-elected Texian delegates to the Convention of 1836 quickly signed a Declaration of Independence on March 2, forming the Republic of Texas. After electing interim officers, the Convention disbanded. The new government joined the other settlers in Texas in the Runaway Scrape, fleeing from the approaching Mexican army. After several weeks of retreat, the Texian Army commanded by Sam Houston attacked and defeated Santa Anna's forces at Battle of San Jacinto. Santa Anna was captured and forced to sign the Treaties of Velasco, ending the war.

The new republic faced many challenges. Political battles raged between two factions. The nationalist faction, led by Mirabeau B. Lamar, advocated the continued independence of Texas, the expulsion of the Native Americans, and the expansion of Texas to the Pacific Ocean. Their opponents, led by Sam Houston, advocated the annexation of Texas to the United States and peaceful co-existence with Native Americans. The conflict between the factions was typified by an incident known as the Texas Archive War.

Because the treaties of Velasco were signed under duress, the Mexican government never ratified them. Mexico launched two small expeditions into Texas in 1842. The town of San Antonio was captured twice and Texans were defeated in battle in the Dawson Massacre. Despite these defeats, Mexico did not keep an occupying force in Texas, and the Republic survived. The republic's inability to defend itself, however, added momentum to Texas' eventual annexation into the United States.

Statehood

As early as 1837, the Republic made several attempts to negotiate annexation with the United States. Opposition within the republic from the nationalist faction, along with strong abolitionist opposition to adding slave states within the United States, slowed Texas's admission into the Union. Political support within the United States for annexation finally went in Texas' favor when the expansionist James K. Polk won the election of 1844. On December 29, 1845, Congress admitted Texas to the U.S. as a constituent state of the Union.

When Texas gained statehood, Mexico broke diplomatic relations with the United States. The United States claimed that Texas' border stretched to the Rio Grande, citing the 1836 Treaties of Velasco. Mexico, never ratifying these treaties, claimed the Nueces River as its border. While the former Republic of Texas could not enforce its border claims, the United States had the military strength and the political will to do so. President Polk ordered General Zachary Taylor south to the Rio Grande on January 13, 1846. A few months later Mexican troops routed an American cavalry patrol in the disputed area in what is called the Thornton Affair. Polk declared this incident an act of war. The first battles of the war were fought in Texas: the Siege of Fort Texas, Battle of Palo Alto and Battle of Resaca de la Palma. After these decisive victories, the United States invaded Mexican territory ending the fighting in Texas.

After a series of United States victories, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the two year war. In return, for US $18,250,000, Mexico gave the U.S. undisputed control of Texas, ceded the Mexican Cession in 1848, most of which today is called the American Southwest, and Texas' borders were established at the Rio Grande.^[4]

The Compromise of 1850 set Texas's boundaries at their present form. Texas ceded land which later became half of present day New Mexico, a third of Colorado, and small portions of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Wyoming to the federal government, in return for the assumption of $10 million of the old republic's debt. Post-war Texas grew rapidly as migrants poured into the cotton lands of the state.

Civil War and Reconstruction

Texas was at war again after the election of 1860. Abraham Lincoln's election triggered South Carolina's declaration of secession from the Union. A State Convention considering secession opened in Austin on January 28, 1861. On February 1, by a vote of 166-8, the Convention adopted an Ordinance of Secession from the United States. Texas voters approved this Ordinance on February 23, 1861. Texas joined the Confederate States of America, ratifying the permanent C.S. Constitution on March 23, 1861.^[1] Not all Texans favored secession initially, although many of the same would later support the Southern cause. Texas’ most notable unionist was the state Governor, Sam Houston. Not wanting to aggravate the situation further in Texas, Houston refused two offers from President Lincoln for Union troops to keep him in office. However, he refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy and was deposed as governor.

While far from the major battlefields of the American Civil War, Texas contributed large numbers of men, and equipment to the rest of the Confederacy. A few battles were fought in Texas. Union troops briefly occupied the state's primary port, Galveston. Texas' border with Mexico was known as the "backdoor of the Confederacy" because trade occurred at the border, bypassing the Union blockade. The Confederacy repulsed all Union attempts to shut down this route,^[5] however, Texas' role as a supply state, in mid-1863, was marginalized after the Union capture of the Mississippi River. The final battle of the Civil War was fought near Brownsville Texas at Palmito Ranch.

Texas descended into near anarchy two months between the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia and the assumption of authority by Union General Gordon Granger. Violence marked the early months of Reconstruction. Juneteenth commemorates the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation in Galveston by General Gordon Granger, over 2½ years after the original announcement. President Johnson, in 1866, declared the civilian government restored in Texas. Despite not meeting reconstruction requirements, in 1870, Congress readmitted Texas into the Union. Social volatility continued as the state struggled with agricultural depression and labor issues.

Modern era

The first major oil well in Texas was Spindletop, south of Beaumont, on January 10, 1901. Other fields were later discovered nearby in East Texas, West Texas, and under the Gulf of Mexico. The resulting "Oil Boom" permanently transformed the economy of Texas. Oil production eventually averaged three million barrels per day at its peak in 1972; the resulting royalties provided and continue to provide a considerable source of income to the Permanent University Fund for Texas' public universities.

The Great Depression and the Dust Bowl dealt a double blow to the state's economy, which had significantly improved since the Civil War. Migrants abandoned the worst hit sections of Texas during the Dust Bowl years. Especially from this period on, blacks left Texas in the Great Migration to get work in the Northern United States or California and to escape the oppression of segregation.

On November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas, Lee Harvey Oswald assassinated president John F. Kennedy. Texas Governor John B. Connally was also critically injured in the incident but survived. On Air Force One at Dallas's Love Field Airport, Kennedy's vice president, the Texan Lyndon Baines Johnson, was sworn in as the next president.

Despite the tragedy, in the 1950 through the 1960s, Texas modernized and expanded its system of higher education. Under the leadership of Governor Connally, the state created a comprehensive plan for higher education, a different distribution of resources, and a central state apparatus designed to manage state institutions more efficiently. These changes helped Texas universities receive federal research funds.

Timeline

Population History

source: Source:Population of States and Counties of the United States: 1790-1990

Note: Texas was part of Mexico until its revolution in 1835-36 made it an independent republic, with a territory somewhat larger than the present State. It became part of the United States and was admitted as a State on December 29, 1845. It reached essentially its present boundaries in 1850, after the sale to the United States of an extensive northwestern area. In 1896 a long-standing dispute over what is now Greer County, Oklahoma was decided against Texas by the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1930 a Supreme Court decision transferred from Oklahoma to Texas a narrow strip on the eastern side of the Texas Panhandle. Beginning in 1905, international treaties and conventions have exchanged small tracts along the Rio Grande with Mexico, notably in and adjacent to the city of El Paso. Census coverage of eastern Texas began in 1850, although in 1820 and 1830 the census counts for (old) Miller County, Arkansas Territory, included some people in what is now Texas. By 1880 census coverage included the entire State.

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