History timeline

  • 10,000 BCE

    10,00 B.C.

    Proto-Indians live at the Gault site.
  • 1500 BCE

    1500 B.C.

    Coastal American Indians make knives and scrapers from stone.
  • 100

    A.D. 100

    American Indians living near Galveston Bay begin making pottery.
  • Nov 10, 1000

    A.D. 1000

    The Caddos grow many kinds of crops in East TX.
  • Nov 10, 1519

    1519

    Alonso Alvarez de Pineda maps the TX coast.
  • Nov 10, 1528

    A.D. 1528

    Europeans arrive in TX and encounter the Karankawas.
  • Jan 1, 1541

    1541

    Explorer Francisco Vasquez de Coronado crosses the TX Panhandle.
  • Nov 10, 1554

    1554

    a Spanish treasure fleet shipwreck off of president-day Padre Island.
  • Nov 10, 1581

    1581

    Spanish Hernan Gallegos writes about the lives of the Jumano Indians in TX.
  • 1601

    Juan de Onate crosses the TX Panhandle on his way to Quivira.
  • 1659

    Spaniards first record seeing Apache Indians riding horses.
  • 1685

    A group of colonists led by french explorer Rene-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle lands in Matagorda Bay in TX.
  • 1690

    The Spanish build a mission named San Francisco de los Tejas.
  • 1718

    Martin de Alarcon establishes the San Antonio de Valero mission.
  • 1731

    Settlers from the Canary Islands arrive in San Antonio.
  • 1755

    Rancher Tomas Sanchez establishes the town of Laredo.
  • 1766

    The Marques de Rubi expedition begins.
  • 1779

    Antonio Gil Ybarbo founds the town of Nacogdoches in East TX.
  • Toledo Bend Reservoir

    Toledo Bend Reservoir on the Sabine River holds more than 5.5 billion cubic meters of water.
  • 1791

    Philip Nolan, a u.s. citizen, received permission to capture wild horses in Texas.
  • 1819

    U.s. citizen James long and a small Force invades Texas, only to be defeated by Spanish forces.
  • 1821

    Mexico, which includes Texas, wins its independence from Spain.
  • 1821

    The Spanish government grants Moses Austin permission to found a colony in Texas.
  • 1822

    Settler Jared Groce plant a cotton crop, possibly the first in Steven F Austin colony.
  • 1824

    Empresa Rio Martin de Leon settles families on the lower Guadalupe River.
  • 1824

    Mexican officials adopt the constitution of 1824. Coahuila and Texas are merged to form one state.
  • 1826

    The Fredonian Rebellion begins when Hayden Edwards declares independence from Mexico.
  • 1826

    An American Indian attack on the green DeWitt Colony forces settlers to ffle Gonzales.
  • 1827

    Stephen F Austin received a contract to settle an additional 100 families in Texas.
  • 1828

    General Manuel de Mier y Teran begins a tour of Texas for the Mexican Government.
  • 1829

    Taper begins publication in Austin's colony.
  • 1829

    Isaac Sunday School and private boys school in San Felipe.
  • 1829

    Presidents Guerrero issued a decree ending slavery in Mexico, but an exemption is made for Texas.
  • 1830

    On April 6th Mexico issues a law that changes rules on immigration and trade in Texas.
  • 1831

    The town of Gonzales receives a cannon from the Mexican Government to defend citizens against American Indian attacks.
  • 1833

    Mary Austins Holley letters, describing life in Early Texas, are published.
  • 1834

    Texas Farmers exports of 7,000 bales of cotton, worth about $315,000, to New Orleans.
  • 1834

    Steven F. Austin is arrested in Saltillo.
  • 1835

    Texas settlers hold about 3,500 Land grants.
  • 1835

    Texans become concerned when the Mexican Government officially abolished the constitution of 1824.
  • 1835

    An estimated 1,000 U.S. immigrants enter Texas each month.
  • October 2, 1835

    Texas settlers attack Mexican soldiers at Gonzales, forcing them to leave.
  • December 9, 1835

    Texas troops push Mexican troops out of San Antonio, capturing the city.
  • February 23, 1836

    The Siege of the Alamo begins.
  • 1836

    Velasco citizens hold a horse race on the coast near the town.
  • March 2, 1836

    The Texas Declaration of Independence is adopted
  • April 21, 1836

    Texans win the Battle of San Jacinto, ending the Texas revolution.
  • 1836

    Sam Houston becomes the first popularity elected president of the Republic of Texas.
  • December 10, 1836

    The first official Texas flag is adopted by the Texas Congress.
  • 1837

    Texans elect Mirabeau B. Lamar president.
  • 1837

    The U.S. Congress authorizes a diplomat to go to Texas.
  • 1838

    William H. Wharton is elected to the Texas Senate.
  • 1839

    Repeated attacks and discrimination for more than 100 Tejano families to flee Nacogdoches.
  • 1839

    Texas passes a homestead law, protecting settlers' homes from being seized to pay debts.
  • 1839

    France becomes the first European nation to recognize Texas as an independent country.
  • 1840

    Austin, the new capital, has 850 residents.
  • 1840

    The first college chartered by the Republic, Rutersville college, is founded.
  • 1840

    Galveston University opens its doors to 5 students.
  • 1841

    Texans again elect Sam Houston president of the Republic.
  • 1841

    William Kennedy publishes Texas: The Rise, Progress, and Prospects of the Republic of Texas.
  • 1841

    President Mirabeau B. Lamar sends the Texas Navy to Yucatan Coast.
  • 1842

    General Adrian woll and about 1,400 Mexican soldiers capture San Antonio.
  • 1842

    Snider de Pellegrini, director of a French colonization company, brings 14 settlers to Texas.
  • 1843

    The Tehuacan Creek Councils lead to peace between Texans and several Texas Indian groups.
  • 1844

    President Sam Houston sends troops into East Texas to end the Regulator Moderator War.
  • 1844

    Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels comes to Texas followed by a group of German immigrants.
  • 1844

    Texans elect Anson Jones president of the Republic.
  • 1845

    At least 30,000 enslaved African Americans live in Texas.
  • 1845

    The United States annexes Texas.
  • 1845

    On December 29 the U.S. Congress officially admits Texas to the Union and approves its first state constitution.
  • 1846

    Fighting breaks out between Mexican troops and U.S. forces at Palo Alto and Resaca De La Palma.
  • 1846

    Thomas J. Rusk and Sam Houston become the first Texans to serve in the U.S. Senate.
  • 1846

    Texas signs a peace treaty with the Penateka Comanches.
  • 1847

    Samuel H. Walker dies in combat during a conflict in Mexico.
  • 1847

    A state census reports the state's population at more than 124,000.
  • 1848

    Texans cast of first votes as U.S. citizens in a presidential election.
  • 1850

    In her book Texas in 1850, Melinda Rankin describes the state and urges people to move to Texas.
  • 1850

    The Texas population reaches 200,000 people.
  • 1852

    Work begins on the Port Isabel Lighthouse. When completed, it's lights could be seen from 16 miles away.
  • 1853

    U.S. Army troops abandon Fort Worth after settlers moved farther west beyond the fort.
  • 1853

    after many false starts, track is finally laid for the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos, and Colorado Railway.
  • 1854

    the American, Know Nothing, party becomes active in Texas.
  • 1855

    The Governor's mansion is built in Austin.
  • 1856

    Slaves in Colorado County acquire weapons and planned a rebellion but the plot is discovered before it can begin.
  • 1858

    The Butterfield Overland mail begins taking passengers and mail by Stagecoach from Missouri, through Texas, and on to California.
  • 1859

    Sam Houston easily defeat incumbent Hardin Runnels in the election for Texas governor.
  • 1859

    A series of clashes occur between Texas Rangers and Mexican Americans near Brownsville.
  • 1859

    Texas produces a record crop of more than 400,000 of cotton.
  • February 1861

    Texans vote, by more than 3 to 1, to separate from the United States.
  • October 1861

    Troops leave San Antonio for New Mexico, to capture the Southwest for the Confederacy.
  • 1861

    The Texas Frontier regiment is established.
  • October 1862

    Union forces capture Galveston.
  • September 1863

    A union attempt to invade Texas is turned back at Sabine Pass.
  • November 1863

    Union troops capture Brownsville.
  • 1863

    The Texas Cattle population increases rapidly during the Civil War.
  • April 1864

    In a battle near Mansfield, Louisiana, Confederate forces stop a union invasion of Northeastern Texas.
  • 1864

    Colnelo Christopher "Kit" Carson leads an attack against Plain Indians in the Panhandle.
  • May 1865

    The last Land Battle of the war is fought at Palmito Ranch, Texas.
  • 1865

    The Emancipation Proclamation goes into effect in Texas, bring the state's slaves.
  • 1868

    African-American George T. Ruby is elected as a delegate to the Republican National Convention.
  • 1868

    Richardson is established near Jacksboro.
  • 1869

    Republican Edmund J. Davis is elected governor.
  • 1869

    Texas Cowboys move a herd of 15,000 cattle to Market. It is the largest single herd of the area.
  • 1869

    Edmund J. Davis is elected governor, the last Republican to hold the office until Bill Clements was elected in 1978.
  • 1870

    Texas has 583 miles of rail road lines.
  • 1871

    A public school system is created in Texas.
  • 1783

    Spanish priest Juan Agustin Morfi, author of the History of Texas, 1673-1779, dies.
  • 1873

    Rangers begin to ship thousands of cattle from Denison after the Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad extends a line there.
  • 1874

    The Democratic party regains full control of state government.
  • 1874

    Plain Indians attack a group of Buffalo hunters in the Battle of adobe walls.
  • 1875

    Comanche leader Quanah Parker surrenders, ending the Red River War.
  • 1876

    About 2,700 animals die during a cattle Stampede near the Brazos River.
  • 1876

    Texas Legacy passes a law that allows the state to fund railroads with land grants.
  • 1876

    Texas adopt a new constitution.
  • 1876

    Texas A&M University opens and all male military Institution.
  • 1876

    Texans adopt the constitution that governs the state today.
  • 1879

    Apache leader Victoria launches raids among the Texas-Mexico border.
  • 1881

    The Texas and Pacific Railway meet the Southern Pacific line near El Paso, forming the first transcontinental railroad route through Texas.
  • 1882

    A ranch in the Panhandle produces enough barb wire to fence 250,000 Acres.
  • 1883

    The University of Texas formally opens.
  • 1886

    The Knights of Labor begin a major strike against Jake Gould's Railroad Company.
  • 1889

    There are more than 8,000 miles of railroad track in Texas.
  • 1889

    The Texas ligature passes the Antitrust Act of 1889.
  • 1890

    Texas normal college and teachers' training institute, now call the University of North Texas, opens in Denton.
  • 1890

    James Stephen Hogg the first native-born Texan to become governor is elected.
  • 1891

    The Texas Railroad Commission is established to regulate railroads in Texas.
  • 1892

    A leading Association of farmers endorses the populist party.
  • 1894

    Drillers strike oil in Corsicana.
  • 1894

    The first football game is played between the University of Texas and Texas A&M.
  • 1898

    Teddy Roosevelt organizes and trains the Rough Riders in San Antonio.
  • Coldest Spot

    The lowest recorded temp in TX was was a chilly -23 Degrees F, occurring in 1899 at Tuila and in 1933 at Seminole.
  • 1900

    Texas has more than 350,000 farms, and almost half of all farmers are tenant farmers.
  • 1900

    A hurricane hits Galveston, killing some 6,000 to 8,000 people.
  • 1901

    The Spindletop well strikes oil comma producing more than 17 million barrels of oil the next year.
  • 1901

    The Spindletop oil strike spurred the growth of the Texas oil industry.
  • 1902

    The Corsicana Oilers City basketball record by defeating the Texarkana team 51 to 3
  • 1905

    A large oil strike is made in the humble oil field in Harris County.
  • 1907

    The first Neiman Marcus department store opens in Dallas.
  • 1908

    Oil is discovered at Goose Creek along Galveston Bay.
  • 1911

    Jovita Idar becomes the first president of the league of Mexican women.
  • 1914

    The Houston Ship Channel is completed, leading to the growth of industry in the Houston area.
  • 1914

    The Houston Ship Channel opens, and Houston soon becomes an important oil refining Center.
  • 1915

    The Texas legislature passes the first state law requiring children to attend school.
  • 1918

    Texas troops are sent to France to fight in World War 1.
  • 1918

    Texas ratifies the 18th Amendment to the US Constitution, which bans the sale or manufacture of alcohol.
  • 1918

    After delegates of fighting for the right to vote, women are allowed to vote in Texas primary elections.
  • 1919

    An application is filled to drill for oil on state-owned land in West Texas. Several years later the Santa Rita number one strikes oil.
  • 1920

    Governor William hobby breaks the dockworkers' strike in Galveston.
  • 1924

    Texans elect Miriam "ma" Ferguson as the state's first female governor.
  • 1926

    Automobile registrations reach 1 million.
  • 1928

    For the first time in the state's history, the majority of Texans vote for Republican presidential candidate Herbert Hoover.
  • 1932

    Some 300,000 Texans are unemployed.
  • 1934

    James V Allred is elected governor of Texas.
  • Hottest Spot

    The Highest recorded temp in TX was a blistering 120 Degrees F, occurring in 1936 at Seymour and in 1994 at Montanans.
  • 1936

    Texas celebrates the hundredth anniversary of the Texas Revolution.
  • 1938

    Texans select W. Lee "Pappy" O'Daniel as governor.
  • 1939

    The southern aircraft Corporation, the first airplane manufacturer in Texas, is formed.
  • 1941

    Large numbers of Texans volunteer for military service in WWII.
  • Wettest Place

    In 1873 Clarksville received 109.4 inches of rain.
  • 1944

    THE U.S. Supreme Court declares the Texas white primary unconstitutional.
  • 1944

    A Texas law establishing White primariez is struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court with Smith V. Alwright.
  • 1945

    Texass Audie Murphy receives the Medal of Honor for stopping a German tank attack in France.
  • Longest River

    The Rio Grande, which begins in Colorado and flows along the TX-Mexico border, runs 1,896 Miles.
  • 1974

    Austin City Limits goes on the air with Willie Nelson as its first guest musician.
  • 1951

    More than 3 million automobiles are registered in Texas.
  • 1954

    Allan Shivers successfully runs for a third term as Governor.
  • 1955

    Women are allowed to serve on Texas juries for the first time.
  • Driest Place

    Wink received just 1.76 Inches of rain in 1956
  • 1957

    Texas woman call for an equal rights amendment to the state constitution.
  • 1959

    Texas musician Buddy Holly is killed in a plane crash.
  • 1960

    The U.S. Supreme Court rules that Texas owns Gulf Coastal tide lines up to a 10.35- mile limit
  • 1961

    Henry B. Gozalesz is elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, and John Tower is elected to the U.S. Senate.
  • 1961

    The manned space center, now the Johnson Space Center, is built in Houston.
  • 1963

    Lyndon B. Johnson becomes president of the United States after President John F. Kennedy is assassinated.
  • 1967

    Texas singer Janis Joplin's career takes off after a performance at the Money International Pop Festival.
  • 1967

    Texas Instruments released the first handheld calculator.
  • 1969

    The national Aeronautics and Space Administration says the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon.
  • 1970

    members of the Chicano movement and the Mexican American Youth Organization form La Raza Unida party.
  • 1972

    Barbara Jordan is elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
  • 1972

    Texan Barbara Jordan is elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. She is the first black woman from the south to serve in Congress.
  • 1974

    A major attempt to adopt a new Texas constitution fails.
  • Highest Point

    Guadalupe Peak is the highest point in the state, at 8,749 feet above sea level.
  • 1980

    the Texas population reaches 14 million.
  • 1986

    Raul Gonzalez is elected to the Texas Supreme Court. He is the first Mexican American elected to Statewide office.
  • 1986

    Texas writer Larry McMurtry receives the Pulitzer Prize for his novel Lonesome Dove.
  • 1990

    Texas musician Stevie Ray Vaughan is killed in a helicopter crash.
  • 1994

    the North American Free Trade Agreement has passed, using trade along the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
  • 1995

    George W. Bush takes office as governor.
  • 2000

    Rick Perry becomes the 47th governor of Texas.
  • 2000

    Pick up the Texas state government employs more than 230,000 people in more than 200 agencies, with a two-year budget totaling more than 98 billion dollars.
  • 2002

    Republicans gain control of the Texas House of Representatives.
  • Ogallala Aquifer

    The Ogallala Aquifer is the largest underground water source in T.X.
  • Irrigation

    More than 6 million acres of T.X. land are irrigated
  • 2006

    Texans become the national leader in wind power generation.
  • Livestock

    Sales of TX; livestock totaled more than $10.8 billion on 2007.
  • Acres of woodland

    T.X, contains more than 60 million acres of forests and woodlands.
  • 2008

    Rick Perry becomes the longest-serving governor in Texas history. He was elected governor again in 2010.
  • Big Bend National Park

    With 800,000 acres of land, is the largest national park in TX.
  • 2009

    Cowboys Stadium, later renamed AT&T Stadium, opens in Arlington.
  • Cotton Production

    In 2011 the value of T.X, cotton production reached over $1.5 Billion.
  • 2011

    Texas receives its lowest ever recorded rainfall.
  • Farms

    In 2012 there were more than 244,700 farms in T.X.
  • Computer worth

    TX; exports of computers and electronics were worth more than $45 billion in 2012.
  • Agriculture

    Agriculture added some $36 billion to the T.X, economy in 2012.
  • Largest natural lake

    Caddo Lake is the largest natural lake in T.X, covering more than 39 square miles.
  • Coal Production

    T.X. has an estimated 23 billion tons of lignite, a type of coal.
  • Oil Production

    In 2012 T.X. produced about 730 million barrels of crude oil worth about some $55 billion.
  • 2012

    Texas exports more than 134 billion dollars worth of goods.
  • 2012

    Based on the 2010 census, Texas games for new seats and Congress.