Before the arrival of European settlers, what is now known as the great state of Texas was once occupied by various Indian tribes.  Some of these tribes were the Caddos, the Karankawas, the Coahuiltecan, the Apaches, the Cherokee, the Choctaw, the Chickasaw, the Kickapoo, and the Shawnee.  The Comanches later came to Texas and probably proved to be the most feared by the early settlers.

Several explorers, from both Spain and France were known to have explored the Texas region.  Among these were Alonso Alvarez de Pineda, Cabeza de Vaca, Francisco Vasquez de Coronado,  and Robert Cavalier  Sieur de LaSalle.  Although Spain had been the first to explore the Texas region, it was LaSalle who claimed the region near the mouth of the Mississippi River for France.  He called this region Louisiana, and some of this land included Texas.  The French flag flew over Texas from 1685 to 1690 when Spain's Alonso de Leon discovered that LaSalle had been killed by one of his own men and his fort had been destroyed.  Spain now reclaimed Texas and began to build missions there.  The most well-known of these missions was the Alamo. 

In 1803, France sold Louisiana to the United States, and Texas found itself bordered between the United States and New Spain (present-day Mexico).  The Spanish planned to settle the territory, but in 1821, they gave permission to Stephen F. Austin, "the father of Texas",  to bring American families into the territory.  American settlers moved into the territory only to find that Mexico had won its war over Spain, thus making Texas a Mexican state.  Both Americans and Mexicans settled in the region, and conflicts began.  The Americans felt bound to the United States and trade was established between them.  This alarmed the Mexican government, and they banned American immigration to Texas.  This caused an uproar with the American settlers already there.  A Texas Revolution seemed imminent.  On October 2, 1835, war broke out when  Mexican troops tried to seize a cannon from Texas settlers. The cannon had a banner that read, "Come and Get It!" flying on it.  The Texans defeated the Mexican soldiers, and this began the Texas Revolution. 

On February 23, 1836, Mexican General Santa Anna and his Mexican army of about 2,000 men surrounded the Alamo.  On March 6, 1836, all 189 Alamo defenders lay dead after the Mexican army attacked, leaving approximately 1,600 of the Mexicans dead, as well.  Then on March 27, 1836, James Fannin and nearly 400 Texans were mercilessly slain by the Mexican army under the order of Santa Anna.  But...Sam Houston and his Texans awaited Santa Anna and his army and defeated them on April 21, 1836 at the Battle of San Jacinto.   The San Jacinto Monument was dedicated on April 21, 1939,  to honor the  battle and the men that had made Texas free and independent from Mexico.

During the siege of the Alamo, 54 delegates met at Washington-on -the-Brazos.  Five of these delegates were chosen to prepare the Texas Declaration of Independence, which was signed on March 2, 1836.  David G. Burnet was elected President of the Republic of Texas.  Sam Houston would later become President of the Republic, followed by Mirabeau B. Lamar in 1839.  Under President Lamar, the community of Waterloo was renamed Austin, in honor of Stephen F. Austin, and it became the permanent capitol of the Republic.

On December 29, 1845, U.S. President James Polk followed through on his promise to annex Texas, and we became the 28th state of the United States of America.  When Texas approved the resolution to enter the Union, the Constitution of 1845 stated that Texas had the right to split into four states plus the original state of Texas.   That right still remains today. 

By 1959, most Texans weren't concerned with secession from the United States; however, several turn of events swayed their interest.  One such event were the Indian raids on the Texas frontier, and the government offered no help to Texas.  This caused a loss of faith in the U.S. government.  And with most of the Texans being immigrants from the South, the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 felt like a declaration of war.  So it was that 177 delegates met on January 28, 1861 in Austin to determine whether Texas would leave the Union.  Four days later, the votes were almost unanimous - 166 to 8 voted for secession.  The Texas Ordinance of Secession was drafted and signed on February 2, 1861; it was the official document which separated Texas from the Union.  This document cancelled the Texas Annexation Laws of 1845.  It was also one of the events that would lead Texas into a Confederacy and the Civil War.  Governor of Texas at the time, Sam Houston was against secession; and therefore, refused to take the oath of allegiance to the Confederacy.  So his office of governor was taken over by Edward Clark.  On March 25, 1861, the Constitution of the Confederate States was approved by the delegates.  Texas joined South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, and Louisiana to form the Confederate States of America.

The Civil War began on April 12, 1861; it  was the one war which not only separated a Union, but it was a war where brother fought against brother.  While most Texans donned the grey uniform to fight for Jeff Davis and under General Robert E. Lee, there were a few who fought on the side of the Union.  Texas furnished more than its share of manpower during this war.  By April 17, 1861, four more states joined the Confederacy - those being Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina.  The war was a long and bloody one, and its last battle was fought on Texas soil near Brownsville where our Confederate soldiers won.  However, they soon learned from Union prisoners that General Robert E. Lee had surrendered more than a month earlier at the Appomattox Court House in Virginia on April 9, 1865. 

After the Civil War, Confederate soldiers returned home to Texas to find a poor economy with much needed reconstruction.  By 1866, the abundance of longhorn cattle marked the beginning of the Texas cattle drives to northern markets.  On March 30, 1870, Texas was readmitted into the Union, but reconstruction of the great state would last another four years.

From the late 1870's to the 1900's, Texas grew rapidly in population.  Its cities expanded and economic production grew, as well.  Agriculture continued to be in primary control of Texas' economy.  Because of this, most Texans engaged in farming and ranching., and the growth of railroads further stimulated this economy.  Yet by the end of the 19th century, Texas had emerged as the leading producer of both cotton and cattle, while its once-popular agricultural economy now struggled.  

During the next century, Texas would discover "black gold", better known as "oil", which would launch the state into a new area of exploration.  Texas would also delve into electronics and manned space travel.  What once was a rural and agricultural state has been transformed into an urban and industrial one. 

I'm proud to call this great state my home.  I was born and raised here, and I'm proud to be a Texan!

Special thanks to Robert Jenkins Onderdonk for the above photo entitled "The Fall of the Alamo".

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