““Texas, Texas, Texas”Texas”

““Who has Who has Texas?”Texas?”

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Think back to when you were in first or second grade.

Did you ever play the game “Button, Button… Who has the Button”?

The object of the game was to pass a button around a circle of people...

and then try to guess who was holding the button.

until someone said “stop”...

Early in Texas history, different people were playing a similar game that could have been called...

Texas was passed from country to country, and many individuals claimed parts of Texas as their own.

Fill in Part 1 of your student Fill in Part 1 of your student activity sheet as the significant activity sheet as the significant individuals are discussed in the individuals are discussed in the following slides.following slides.

Here is how “Texas, Texas… Who Has Texas?” was played.

By 1800, Spain owned most of the American Southwest including Texas.

People seeking adventure began coming to Spanish Texas.

Some of these adventurers came for profit, others came to establish independent states.

These adventure-seekers were called filibustersfilibusters.

In 1800, Philip NolanPhilip Nolan, perhaps the most famous filibusterfilibuster, came to Texas to catch and sell wild mustangs. Many others followed suit.

The Spanish were suspicious of many people, and they thought that all filibustersfilibusters were trying to make Texas part of the U.S.

Spain was suspicious of some people such as James LongJames Long. Long came to Texas, captured Nacogdoches, and claimed Texas as a free and independent state.Eventually, the term filibuster filibuster became synonymous with a trouble maker who wanted to start rebellion.

Both Philip NolanPhilip Nolan and James James LongLong were executed by the Spanish government because of the fear that the filibustersfilibusters wanted to take Texas away from Spain.

Jane LongJane Long, James’s wife, learned of his death while living on Point Bolivar near Galveston. She was left alone with a young daughter and servant.Mrs. Long endured severe weather, scarce food, and the threat of attack from Native Americans and Spanish soldiers.

At one point she used a small cannon to frighten away some Karankawa Indians.

Later, Jane traveled to Mexico to investigate her husband’s death.

Jane Long’sJane Long’s bravery and independent spirit has earned her the nickname “Mother of Texas”.

She eventually returned to Texas where she bought land and became a successful business woman.

To make our “Pass Texas” game more complicated, Mexicans living in New Spain had been pushing for independence.

Father Miguel Father Miguel HidalgoHidalgo called for Mexico’s independence from Spain.

Father HidalgoFather Hidalgo was executed by the Spanish government, and Spain exercised tighter control of its land.

But, people began to see the cracks in Spanish control.

One of Hidalgo’s supporters, Bernardo Gutierrez de Lara, and a former U.S. soldier, Augustus Magee, decided to invade Texas and free it from Spanish rule. Their effort became known as the Gutierrez-Magee ExpeditionGutierrez-Magee Expedition.They raised an army of 800 and successfully defeated the Spanish over a period of a few months.

Eventually the larger Spanish army defeated the Republican army and restored control over Texas.

The expedition members established an independent state, but could not agree on how to run the government.

In 1820 Moses Austin Moses Austin met with Governor Martinez of Spain to request permission to establish a colony in Texas.

Moses was given permission to settle three hundred families in Texas.

There were other means of owning a piece of Spanish Texas besides rebellion.

Land Grant

The new land grant was the fertile farmland between the Colorado and Brazos Rivers.

Moses AustinMoses Austin paved the way for Anglo American colonization of Texas. However, he died in 1821, before his dream to colonize Texas was realized.

His dying wish was that his son, Stephen, fulfill his vision to colonize Texas.

Stephen F. AustinStephen F. Austin was given permission to colonize, and thus the first Anglo Americans came to Texas.

They felt like part of Texas belonged to them since they had permission to settle and had purchased land.

Just as Austin was making headway in establishing his colony, he learned that Mexico had finally won independence from Spain. His land grant was no longer valid in the new government, so he traveled to Mexico City and asked the new government of Mexico for permission to colonize.

It took a year, but eventually Austin was given the title of empresarioempresario.

An empresarioempresario was someone who arranged business deals including the buying and selling of land.

Empresario Empresario Stephen F. Stephen F. AustinAustin

Austin’s colony began to flourish. By 1827, over 200 people lived in the capital of the colony, San Felipe de Austin.The original three hundred families to settle in Austin's colony became known as the Old Three Old Three HundredHundred.

Austin’s colony was very successful. Other businessmen became empresariosempresarios and settled more families on their own land grants around Austin’s colony.

We have now seen three flags fly over Texas, and various individuals make claims to the land.

Let’s review the progression of the Texas “button”.

First, both SpainSpain and FranceFrance had claims to Texas during the years of exploration from the late 1500’s through the late 1600’s.

France had France had claims in claims in East Texas.East Texas.

Spain had Spain had claims to the claims to the American American Southwest, Southwest, which which included most included most of Texas.of Texas.

Eventually, Spain claimed most of the Americas including all of Texas.

France no longer had claims on America with the sale of the Louisiana Purchase (1803) to the US.

Meanwhile, adventurous individuals called filibustersfilibusters tried to take parts of Texas and create independent states.

James LongJames Long

Philip Philip NolanNolan

Guiterrez-Magee Guiterrez-Magee ExpeditionExpedition

EmpresariosEmpresarios such as Stephen F. Austin were given land grants to settle Texas.

Land Grant

Eventually, Mexico won independence from Spain.

So by 1821, three flags had flown over Texas- just three more to go!

SpainSpain

MexicMexicoo

FranceFrance

Complete Part 2 of your Complete Part 2 of your student activity sheet. student activity sheet.

The Anglo American colonization of Texas was well under way.

However, with colonization came conflict between the Mexican government and the colonists.

What do you think will be sources of conflict between these two groups?

““Texas, Texas, Texas”Texas”

““Who has Who has Texas?”Texas?”

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