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France Claims Texas
Robert Cavelier, Sieur de LaSalle established Fort St. Louis at Matagorda Bay, and thus formed the basis for France's claim to Texas. Two years later, LaSalle was murdered by his own men. -
Alonso De Leon
Mexican explorer Alonso de Leon reached Fort St. Louis, and found it abandoned, during an expedition planned to reestablish Spanish presence in Texas. -
Guiteirez-Magee expidition
About 130-men strong, the Gutierrez-Magee Expedition crossed the Sabine from Louisiana in a rebel movement against Spanish rule in Texas. -
Stephen F. Austin Colonizes Texas
Stephen F. Austin received a grant from the Mexican government and began colonization in the region of the Brazos River. -
Texans Get ANGRY!
Relations between the Texans and Mexico reached a new low when Mexico forbid further emigration into Texas by settlers from the United States. -
Battle of Velasco
The Battle of Velasco resulted in the first casualties in Texas' relations with Mexico. After several days of fighting, the Mexicans under Domingo de Ugartechea were forced to surrender for lack of ammunition. -
Texas Revolution Begins
Texans repulsed a detachment of Mexican cavalry at the Battle of Gonzales. The revolution began. -
The Goliad Campaign
The Goliad Campaign of 1835 ended when George Collingsworth, Ben Milam, and forty-nine other Texans stormed the presidio at Goliad and a small detachment of Mexican defenders. -
450 mexicans killed near San Antonio
Jim Bowie, James Fannin and 90 Texans defeated 450 Mexicans at the Battle of Concepcion, near San Antonio. -
Declaration of Texas Independence
The Texas Declaration of Independence was signed by members of the Convention of 1836. An ad interim government was formed for the newly created Republic of Texas. -
Plum Creek
The Battle of Plum Creek, near present-day Lockhart, ended the boldest and most penetrating Comanche challenge to the Texas Republic. -
Compromise of 1850
In a plan to settle boundary disputes and pay her public debt, Texas relinquished about one-third of her territory in the Compromise of 1850, in exchange for $10,000,000 from the United States. -
Texas Secedes
Texas seceded from the Federal Union following a 171 to 6 vote by the Secession Convention. Governor Sam Houston was one of a small minority opposed to secession. -
Camels come To Texas
Backed by the US military, a shipment of 32 camels arrived at the port of Indianola. The resulting Texas Camel Experiment used the animals to transport supplies over the "Great American Desert." -
Texas Readmitted
The United States Congress readmitted Texas into the Union. Reconstruction continued, however, for another four years. -
UT opened
The University of Texas opened its doors in Austin for its inaugural session. First courses were offered in the Academic Department and a Law Department. -
State Capitol
The dedication of the present state capitol in Austin ended seven years of planning and construction. The building was funded with 3,000,000 acres of land in north Texas. -
Black Gold
The discovery of "black gold" at the Spindletop oil field near Beaumont launched Texas into a century of oil exploration, electronics, and manned space travel. -
Eyes of Texas
"The Eyes of Texas" is performed for the first time, in a UT minstrel show. -
Fred Gipson
Fred Gipson, who writes Old Yeller and other children's books, is born in Mason. -
Slanton
The Slanton water well comes in, helping to transform semiarid west Texas into a breadbasket for the nation. -
Prohibition
Texas ratifies the Prohibition Amendment. -
Hubert Knickerboker
Hubert Knickerbocker of Yoakum witnesses Hitler's beer hall putsch and begins a writing career that leads to the Pulitzer Prize. -
Tornadoes
The weather bureau says this is the worst single day for tornadoes in Texas history. -
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