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Mexico Places Restrictions on American Immigration
Mexico sealed its borders and placed a heavy tax on the importation of American goods. Despite these restrictions, the Anglo population of Texas doubled between 1830 and 1834. More than 1,000 Anglos each month streamed into Texas. -
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Texas War for Independence and the Mexican-American War
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Stephen Austin Meets with Mexican President Santa Anna
Mexican politics became increasingly unstable. Austin traveled to Mexico City late in 1833 to present petitions for greater self-government for Texas to Mexican president Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. -
Stephen Austin Establishes a Colony in Texas
Stephen F. Austin established a colony between the Brazos and Colorado rivers. "No drunkard, no gambler, no profane swearer and no idler" would be allowed. Austin had issued 297 land grants to the group that later became known as Texas’s Old Three Hundred. Each family received 177 very inexpensive acres of farmland, or 4,428 acres for stock grazing, as well as a 10-year exemption from paying taxes. -
Battle of the Alamo
In late 1835, the Texans attacked. They drove the Mexican forces from the Alamo, an abandoned mission and fort. In response to the attack, Santa Anna came north and stormed and destroyed the small American garrison in the Alamo. All 187 U. S. defenders and several hundred Mexicans died in the Battle of the Alamo. -
Battle of San Jacinto
750 Texan army men were faced against 1500 Mexican soldiers. Three Texan spies were sent to destroy the only bridge the Mexican army had to escape. Within a short time of battle, 700 Mexicans were killed and another 730 were taken prisoner. -
Treaty of Velasco grants Texas Independence
Santa Anna signed two peace treaties with Texas president David G. Burnet. The public treaty consisted of ten articles; a second, secret treaty consisted of six additional articles. The secret agreement was to be carried out when the public treaty had been fulfilled. The public treaty provided that hostilities would cease and that Santa Anna would withdraw his forces below the Rio Grande and not take up arms again against Texas. -
Slidell's Rejection
In late 1845, President James K. Polk, "Polk the Purposeful", sent an emissary, John Slidell, to Mexico to purchase California and New Mexico. He was also asked to gain approval of the Rio Grande as the Texas border. When SLidell arrived, Mexican officials refused to meet with him. -
U.S. Annexes Texas
The United States annexed the Republic of Texas and admitted it to the Union as the 28th state. The U.S also inherited Texas's border dispute with Mexico which would quickly led to war. -
General Taylor marches troops across Rio Grande
General Taylor violated Mexico's territorial rights. Mexico responded to Taylor’s invasion of the territory it claimed by sending troops across the Rio Grande. Mexican soldiers killed 9 U. S. soldiers. Polk immediately sent a war message to Congress, declaring that by shedding “American blood upon American soil,” Mexico had started the war. -
U.S. declares war on Mexico
The U.S. Congress overwhelmingly votes in favor of President James K. Polk's request to declare war on Mexico in a dispute over Texas. -
Gold discovered at Sutter's Mill, California
The California Gold Rush in January 1848 was started when James Marshall, an American carpenter working on John Sutter's property struck gold. The word of chance of discovery quickly traveled east. -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ends war with Mexico
Mexico agreed to the Rio Grande border for Texas and ceded New Mexico and California to the United States. The United States agreed to pay $15 million, which included present-day California, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, most of Arizona, and parts of Colorado and Wyoming. The treaty guaranteed Mexicans living in these territories freedom of religion, protection of property, bilingual elections, and open borders. -
Zachary Taylor elected president
The Democrats nominated Lewis Cass for president and hesitated about the extension of slavery into America's vast new holdings. The Free-Soil Party nominaed Martin Van Buren. The Whig nominee and war hero Zachary Taylor easily won the election. -
California Applies for Statehood
California’s application for statehood provoked fiery protest in Congress and became just one more sore point between irate Northerners and Southerners, each intent on winning the sectional argument over slavery. Nevertheless, California won statehood in 1850. -
Gasden Purchase
President Franklin Pierce authorized James Gadsden to pay Mexico an additional $10 million for another piece of territory south of the Gila River. Along with the settlement of Oregon and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the Gadsden Purchase established the current borders of the lower 48 states.
