Sam Houston
st
1
President of the
Republic of Texas
Houston’s Goals For Texas
 Houston laid out these goals during his first
address of the Texas Congress:
• Stressed a need for peace with American Indians
• Spoke of the need to stay alert and on guard
against attack by Mexico
• Wanted Texas to be annexed by the United
States
1st Actions in Office
 He needed to appoint a cabinet of executive department heads to
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assist him.
Stephen F. Austin becomes secretary of state and after a few months
dies and Sam Houston declares him the “Father of Texas”
Henry Smith become secretary of the treasury
Thomas J. Rusk as secretary of war
Samuel Rhoads Fisher as secretary of the navy
 The constitution requires a court system be set up in Texas.
 The new congress sets up a supreme court, four district courts, 23
county courts, and a justice court.
1st Actions in Office Continued
 The new Republic needed to specify its boundaries.
 Congress claims the Rio Grande as the border of the new Republic.
 The Mexican government does not recognize the border.
 Many people who live south and west of the Nueces River still
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consider themselves Mexicans.
The new Republic of Texas needed a capital.
Two brothers, John and Augustus Allen offer their newly founded
town, Houston, as the state capital.
The brothers offer incentives such as providing government
buildings and lodging for officials.
Houston becomes the new capital.
In January 1837 the town of Houston had 12 residents and one log
cabin. Four months later 1,500 people lived there.
Texas vs.. Mexican Boundaries
Problem #1
 Many volunteers from the United States arrived too late but were still
wanting to fight Mexico, which causes growing unrest among the troops.
 Some, like the army’s commander Felix Huston, wanted to invade Mexico.
 Houston replaces Huston with Albert Johnston to ease tensions
 Huston challenges Johnston to a duel and Johnston is severely wounded.
Solution
 To regain control Houston placed all but 600 troops on leave and
never recalls them.
Result
 Putting the army on leave worked.
 Houston relies on the Texas Rangers to defend the frontier and
keep the peace.
 The Texas Rangers rode horses and used new pistols called
revolvers.
Problem #2
 The new nation (Texas) has serious economic problems.
Solution
 The government tries to raise money by selling land, asking the
United States for loans and collecting taxes and custom duties.
 The government increased the money supply by printing paper
money.
 The government also tries to give away land (which Texas has plenty
of) to stimulate the economy.
Result
 The government has no gold or silver to back the money.
 Confidence in the government fell, value of the money dropped.
Problem #3
 Although the Republic was in debt, it was rich in land.
Solution
• Texas officials gave away a lot of land hoping the various land
policies would help the economy by increasing settlement.
(37 million acres of territory)
Result
• Land speculation was rarely profitable because land was so easy to
obtain.
Problem #4
 The new nation needed to have a policy on how it would handle any
conflicts with American Indians.
 As settlements spread onto Indian land, many conflicts arose.
Solution
 Sam Houston had lived with the Cherokee and even became a
citizen of the Cherokee nation. He had married a Cherokee woman
years before. His experiences caused him to be sympathetic with
the Indians.
 Houston wanted to give the Cherokee title to and control over land
in East Texas. The Texas Senate refused. Remember Texans was the
land they had just fought for!
 Sam Houston wanted to make peace with the Indians.
 Houston and Congress set up a policy establishing a line of forts
along the frontier and encouraging trade with the Indians.
Result
 Some Texans did not approve of Houston’s policy.
 They thought Houston’s Indian policy was slowing westward
development. Conflict made it difficult to maintain peaceful
relations.
 Texans were angered because they wanted the land
You’re
OUT!
Mirabeau Lamar
nd
2
President of the
Republic of Texas
1st Actions of Lamar
 Presidents of the new republic could not run consecutive
terms.-write this on your content frame!
 Lamar is elected the second President.
 Lamar did not like Houston and disagreed with most of his
policies.
 Lamar wanted Texas to have a better public educational
system.
 Lamar becomes known as the “Father of Texas Education”
 Lamar wants to pick a permanent capitol for Texas. The
government picks a town and renames it Austin.
 Lamar’s administration passes a homestead law that protected a
family’s home and up to 50 acres from seizure for debts.
Problems #1 & 2
 Under Lamar, financial problems worsened. The value of the Texas
currency fell.
 Military spending rises from $881,000 under Houston to $1.5
million dollars mainly due to Lamar’s Indian policy.
 Lamar spent money on the Navy which included 6 new ships.
Solution
 The state issues new money called red backs.
Result
 The red backs were worthless within 3 (highlight in your notes) years.
 Texas’ debt rose from $3.3 million to 8 million during Lamar’s Presidency.
Problem #3
 Lamar dislike the Indians and wanted to remove them from Texas.
Solution
 Lamar orders the Cherokee to leave Texas, but they refuse.
 Lamar sent soldiers to forcibly remove them.
 Fighting breaks out in the Battle of Neches and more then 100
Cherokee lay dead including Chief Bowles.
 March 19,1840 Comanche Indians go to the Council House in San
Antonio to talk peace. They did not bring all their captives as
instructed.
 The Council House Fight ended in 35 Comanche deaths including
women and children and the death of at least 7 Texans.
Result
 The Comanche kill their remaining captives.
 Fighting between Texans escalates and during the Battle of Plum
Creek more then 130 Comanche are killed.
 Texan forces continue to drive the Comanche out of Texas.
 By the end of his term, Lamar had achieved his goal of removing
the Cherokee from East Texas. However, some Texans were
concerned about the increased warfare and the expense that
went with it.
 Lamar’s Indian policy cost the Republic $2.5 million and many lives.
Ha Ha
Ha Ha!!!
Sam Houston
3rd President of the
Republic of Texas
Problems #1 & 2
 Sam Houston wants to create a balanced budget-where spending
doesn’t exceed revenue.
 He struggled to reduce the growing national debt.
Solution
 Houston cuts jobs and salaries, cut the size of the army and the
Rangers.
 Houston had new money printed to replace the red backs.
Result
 Houston drops the budget from 4.8 million to $500,000, but is still
unable to balance the budget and debt continued to rise.
 Value of the new money quickly fell (test question) because
Texans had little faith in the money their government issued.
Problem #3
 Houston wants to return his peaceful policy toward on American
Indians.
Solution
 Houston encourages trade with the Indians by establishing frontier
trading posts. (Highlight for test)
 He signs peace treaties with various Indian groups.
 Leaders of Indian groups and the Texas government agree to stop
fighting.
Result
 The leaders hold a peace council.
 The Comanche and Houston sign a peace treaty the Treaty of Tehuacana
Creek.
 Peace between American Indians and settlers returned to the Texas
frontier for a time.
 However, this treaty does not establish boundaries for Comanche land
which will become an issue later on.
Biggest difference between Houston
and Lamar?
Treatment
of
Enemy
Friend
The Indians