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Jedediah Smith
Jedediah Smith was leading a party when a grizzly bear attacked. Ten days after the attack, he set out again, but this time Jedediah was looking for a pass through the Rocky Mountains. -
Rendezvous
1825-1840. William Henry Ashley created a trading arrangement called the rendezvous system. At a prearranged site, trappers and traders would meet from the East. -
Old Three Hundred
Between 1821-1825, Austin attracted about 300 families to his new settlement. These original Texas settlers families known as the "Old Three Hundred." -
Outlawed
Slave owners became angry when Mexico outlawed slavery in 1829. They wanted to maintain slavery so they could grow cotton, like they used too. -
Mormons
Most pioneers went west in search of wealth, but one large group migrated for religious reasons. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or Mormons, also moved west. -
Six to one
Bye 1830, the population had swelled to about 25,000. With Americans outnumbering the Tejanos six to one. -
Mary Austin Holley
Mary visited her cousin in Texas, she decied not to settle tehre, but published a widely read guide to the territory. Holley's guide was credited with bringing many settlers to Texas territory. -
Request
Austin went to Mexico City to present a list of requested reforms to Mexican officials. The most urgent request was that Texas become a self-governing state within Mexico. -
General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna
Mexican president, General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, agreed to most of the reforms. But Santa Anna then learned of a letter Austin had written. -
Mexico began their siege
Santa Anna's troops surrounded San Antonio. Alamo defenders held off the Mexican attack for 12 harsh and crual days. On the thirteenth day, Santa Anna ordered over 1,800 men to storm the fortress. -
Fight for the Alamo
Texans met at a settlement called Washington-on-the-Brazos to decide what to do about Santa Anna's troops. They decided to declare Texas a free and independent republic. -
Oregon Trail
Hundreds of settler began migrating west on the Oregon Trail. The Oregon Trial ran from Independence, Missouri, to the Oregon Territor. -
Oregon Fever
Nearly 1,00 people traveled from Missouri to Oregon. The next year, twice as many people came and became known as the "Oregon Fever" -
Anti-Mormon
An anti-Mormon mob in Illionois killed Joseph Smith, the Mormon leader. His death meant that the next Mormon leader would take his place. -
Brigham Young
Brigham Young is the next Mormon leader, so because Joseph died, he is now the new leader. Young was moved his people out of the U.S. and into Mexico. -
Salt Lake City
About 148 Mormon pioneers followed part of the Oregon Trail to Utah. With about 1,700 who soon joined them, they built a new settlement by the Great Salt Lake called Salt Lake City.
