Texas, 1850

1
Texas, 1850

• 212,000 in 1850 census
• By 1860 this figure will triple!
• Most whites came from the South
• Upper South vs. Deep South
• Germans and Irish
• Tejanos down to 5 of total population
• 58,161 blacks --almost all of them slaves

2
Life in Rural Texas

• Texas retained its public lands after annexation
• Texas Preemption Act 1854 50 an acre!
• Cotton in East Texas and along the
  Brazos-Colorado Basis was immensely profitable
• Concentration of slaves in those areas
• Most slaveowners had fewer than five slaves
• Most farmers continued the practices they used in
  their areas of origin
• Ranching still important in the raising of cattle
• Spread of Anglo ranching into South Texas
• King Ranch

3
Urban Industry? Not Likely

• Industry requires natural resources and a
  consumer base
• Texas lacked large surface deposits of materials
  such as iron and coal
• Most industry --such as it was-- was concentrated
  in Houston and Galveston
• Other cities of size were San Antonio, New
  Braunfels, and Marshall (all inland cities)
• The economy basically resembled the rest of the
  American South.

4
Transportation Issues

• Republic days The Santa Fe Trail Incident
• Texas viz-a-viz California
• The San Antonio-San Diego Mail Line
• The Jackass Line
• The Butterfield Overland Mail Route
• Buffalo Bayou, Brazos and Colorado Railroad
• Importance of Beaumont

5
Blacks in Texas

• Fewer than 400 free blacks lived in Texas before
  the Civil War
• Blacks officially barred from voting or serving
  on juries --but not from owning property
• Mostly concentrated in slave-holding areas
  (cotton)

6
Slavery in Texas

• With annual profits of 6 or more, slave-using
  plantations were seen as vital to the economic
  survival of the state
• Legal use of slaves as money
• Importance of plantations to the general economy
• Texas law clearly defined slaves as property but
  also as a group in need of control

7
Slavery in Texas

• Slave families (which had no legal status) coped
  as best they could
• Number one cause of running away family issues
• Resistance to slavery included poor work,
  sabotage and running away
• Where to run?
• The Texas Troubles more myth than reality
• Yet still cause for concern given everything else
  going on at the time

8
Tejanos After Statehood

• Lingering suspicions from the Revolution and the
  days of the Republic affected many Tejanos in a
  negative manner
• Juan Seguin
• After statehood, continued migration of Anglos
  from the rest of the States put pressure on
  Tejanos to sell their land or otherwise move on
• The Cart War
• Juan Nepomuceno Cortina
• the Cortina War
• Civil War repercussions

9
Native Americans

• Settlement into West Texas was hampered by the
  continued presence of the High Plains nomadic
  tribes --particularly the Comanche
• Indians very reluctant to negotiate (cf. Council
  House Incident from the Republic days)
• Yet frontier moving as much as fifty miles a
  year westward
• Displaced natives from hunting ranges
• Tempted nomadic raiders with easy targets
• Meusebach Treaty opens 3 million acres to
  settlers in exchange to cash payments to the
  Comanche

10
The Fort System

• Beginning in the early 1850s, the U.S. Army had
  begun building forts along the frontier
• By 1853, a new line of forts had to be built
  further west
• Confusion over the best tactic to use
• What advantage does cavalry have over infantry?

11
The Fort System
12
THE RESERVATIONS

• Major Robert Simpson Neighbors proposed a
  reservation system similar to that used for the
  Civilized Tribes in (what is now) Oklahoma
• Many nomadic tribes resisted
• Under Rip Ford, the Texas Rangers began raids
  on native encampments outside of Texas proper
• Unintended consequences the young warriors
  escaped and left the older, more pacifist elders
  to be killed
• By the time of the Civil War, the reservations
  were shut down

13
Women

• The ratio of men to women remained high on the
  masculine side but was slowly decreasing
• Racial mixing? Hey, its the frontier!
• Women could legally own property in Texas!
• But women radicals (e.g., Melinda Rankin) faced
  an uphill battle
• Rural conservative nature of Texans
• Relative lack of communications

14
Education

• Perpetual school fund created by Constitution
  of 1845
• Languished until Gov. Pease created the common
  school funding system
• Many towns had private academies
• Some of the permanent fund allocated for higher
  education (Univ. of Texas)
• Most colleges, however, were private
• Some were little better than high schools
• Baylor is considered the first real university
  in Texas
• Despite all this, most Texans were literate
• Texas supported over sixty weekly newspapers in
  1860 (as well as three daily and three tri-weekly
  papers)

15
Religion

• Many Texans are influenced (indirectly) with the
  Southern mode of the Second Great Awakening
• Importance of individuals theology
• Awareness of saving grace
• More contemporary movements such as
  Transcendentalism and Unitarianism did not make
  it to Texas
• Slavery was not counted as a sin
• Pauls exhortation slaves, be obedient to your
  masters
• Dual nature of Black Christianity syncretism and
  hidden meanings

16
Politics The Compromise of 1850

• Tensions were high in the wake of the Treaty of
  Guadalupe Hidalgo
• Where was the Texas border past El Paso?
• Will Texas annex New Mexico?
• Does the Wilmot Proviso apply to Texas?
• Gov. Wood didnt wait to find out
• 1849 Santa Fe County established
• Most residents ignored or resisted Texas rule
• Congressional debate ground the business of the
  nation to a halt in 1850
• Talk of secession by fire eaters (Wigfall)

17
Politics The Compromise of 1850

• Henry Clays Compromise was seen as a solution
  that mollified all sides
• Texas border fixed along lines used today
• New Mexico separated from Texas
• Texas compensated to the tune of 10,000,000
• Enough to retire outstanding debts from Republic
  --The Texas Bribery Bill
• Sam Houston would make new enemies by voting in
  favor of the Compromise.

18
Politics Whigs vs. Democrats

• The Whig Party, which had long enjoyed support
  among wealthy Southerners, suffered in the 1850s
• Antiwar position in the Mexican-American War
• Lincolns Spot Resolution
• Divisions between Free Soil Whigs and Cotton
  Whigs would soon cause the party to disintegrate
• Many Texas Cotton Whigs drifted back into the
  Democratic Party
• Antislavery Whigs found solace in the
  Know-Nothing Party (even Sam Houston!)
• Texas politics of the late 1850s dealt more with
  pro-Houston politicians fighting with pro-Runnels
  forces

19
Politics The Kansas-Nebraska Act

• Californias increasing popularity led to calls
  for the Federal government to assist in the
  building of a rail line linking California to the
  rest of the country
• But where would we start the railroad?
• New Orleans?
• Memphis?
• St. Louis?
• Omaha? (OMAHA? Thats not even in a state!)

20
Politics The Kansas-Nebraska Act

• Clearly, whichever section of the country
  controlled the eastern terminus of the line would
  dominate the settlement of areas along the line,
  and California
• Stephen Douglas, D-Illinois, proposed to the
  Senate a bill to admit Kansas and Nebraska into
  the Union
• Douglas has a dog in this race!
• To keep the balance of power, Douglas proposed
  to allow popular sovereignty to decide the
  slavery question
• But what about the Missouri Compromise? Its
  over!

21
Politics Rise of the Republicans

• Both sides of the slavery debate were furious
• New England Antislavery Societys attempts to
  colonize Kansas caused great uproar in the
  South
• Sam Houston spoke in favor of the Act, and was
  denounced in the Texas Legislature
• The Whigs disintegrated, and many anti-slavery
  men eventually grew to support the new Republican
  party
• But not in Texas politicians were either pro- or
  anti-Houston Democrats

22
Politics The Coming of War

• Sam Houston would run for Governor (while still a
  Senator) in 1857 and 1859
• Loses the 1857 election on basis of K-N vote
• Wins the 1859 election on Runnels weaknesses
  dealing with the Comanches
• Bleeding Kansas
• Dred Scott
• John Browns on Harpers Ferry, VA in 1859

23
Secessionitis

• The nomination of Abraham Lincoln
• Spot Resolution
• Lincoln-Douglas Debates
• Southerners feared Lincoln as a radical (not
  really the case)
• Most Texans supported Breckenridge and the
  Southern wing of the Democratic Party
• Houstons pro-Union stance cost him tremendous
  popularity

24
Secessionitis

• South Carolinas secession in December of 1860
  sparked a crisis
• Other Southern states began to secede
• President Buchanan claimed to have no power to
  intervene
• Texans demanded a vote on secession
• Sam Houston pleads for union, can only stall for
  time
• Convention votes for secession later ratified by
  referendum
• Lincolns offer to Sam Houston declined

25
Texas in the Civil War

• Importance of Texas
• Source of food cattle, crops
• Source of trade Mexico, long Gulf coast
• Second largest state in the South in terms of
  population
• Isolation from rest of the South made it a
  popular place to send slaves as the war progressed

26
Texas in the Civil War

• Military operations involving Texans
• Rip Ford and the Texas forts
• Texas units in the CSA
• Rangers under Terry
• Sul Ross
• Hoods Brigade
• Albert Sidney Johnston at Shiloh

27
Texas in the Civil War

• Military operations involving Texans
• Invasion of New Mexico 1862
• Battle of Valverde
• Battle of Glorieta Pass
• Stanwix Station, Arizona Territory

28
Texas in the Civil War

• Life in Texas during the war was difficult,
  though Texas did not see as much fighting as the
  Upper South
• Rationing, shortages, and other problems
• Comanche raids
• Conscription and opposition to rebel rule
• Union Loyal League
• North Texas and the Peace party
• Battle of the Nueces

29
Texas in the Civil War

• Occupation of Galveston
• Union forces occupied Galveston Island in 1862 as
  part of the general blockade strategy
• Follows 1st Battle of Sabine Pass
• Forces under Magruder would liberate the island
  on New Years Day 1863 (Federals were in the
  process of leaving anyway)

30
Texas in the Civil War

• 1st and 2nd Battle of Sabine Pass --most Texas
  history books reference only the second one
• 1st Sabine saw the occupation and destruction of
  Fort Griffin
• 2nd Sabine saw the attempted invasion of Texas
• Dick Dowling and his Irish Brigade
• Lack of intelligence about the sandbars
• Several hundred Union soldiers captured
• Emphasis redirected to South Texas

31
Texas in the Civil War

• Rip Ford in South Texas
• Bagdad
• Brown takes Brownsville Union operations in
  South Texas disrupted much of the trade flow
  throughout early-mid 1864
• Ford would spend the rest of the year driving the
  Federals off
• Battle of Palmetto Ranch, May 1865 too little,
  too late