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The history of slavery in Texas began slowly at first during the first few phases in Texas' history. Texas was a colonial territory, then part of Mexico, later
Republic A republic () is a " state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...
in 1836, and
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
in 1845. The use of
slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
expanded in the mid-nineteenth century as
White American White Americans are Americans who identify as and are perceived to be white people. This group constitutes the majority of the people in the United States. As of the 2020 Census, 61.6%, or 204,277,273 people, were white alone. This represented ...
settlers, primarily from the
Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical List of regions in the United States, region of the United States. It is located broadly on the eastern portion of the south ...
, crossed the Sabine River and brought enslaved people with them.
Slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
was present in
Spanish America Spanish America refers to the Spanish territories in the Americas during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. The term "Spanish America" was specifically used during the territories' imperial era between 15th and 19th centuries. To the e ...
and
Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
prior to the arrival of American settlers, but it was not highly developed, and the Spanish did not rely on it for labor during their years in
Spanish Texas Spanish Texas was one of the interior provinces of the colonial Viceroyalty of New Spain from 1690 until 1821. The term "interior provinces" first appeared in 1712, as an expression meaning "far away" provinces. It was only in 1776 that a leg ...
. The issue of slavery became a source of contention between the Anglo-American settlers and Spanish governors. The governors feared the growth in the Anglo-American population in Texas, and for various reasons, by the early 19th century, they and their superiors in Mexico City disapproved of expanding slavery. In 1829 the
Guerrero Guerrero is one of the 32 states that comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo and its largest city is Acapulcocopied from article, GuerreroAs of 2020, Guerrero the pop ...
decree conditionally abolished slavery throughout Mexican territories. It was a decision that increased tensions with slave-holders among the Anglo-Americans. After the Texas Revolution ended in 1836, the
Constitution of the Republic of Texas The Constitution of the Republic of Texas was the supreme law of Texas from 1836 to 1845. On March 2, 1836, Texas declared itself an independent republic because of a lack of support in the United States for the Texas Revolution. The declaration ...
made slavery legal. Sam Houston made illegal importation from Mexico a crime in 1836. The General Provisions of the Constitution forbade any owner of enslaved people from freeing them without the consent of Congress and forbade Congress from making any law that restricted the slave trade or emancipated slaves. Americans of European extraction and enslaved people contributed greatly to the population growth in the
Republic A republic () is a " state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...
and
State of Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
. Settlements grew and developed more land under cultivation in
cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...
and other commodities. The cotton industry flourished in
East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that comprises most of 41 counties. It is primarily divided into Northeast and Southeast Texas. Most of the region co ...
, where enslaved labor became most widely used. The central part of the state was dominated by
subsistence A subsistence economy is an economy directed to basic subsistence (the provision of food, clothing, shelter) rather than to the market. Henceforth, "subsistence" is understood as supporting oneself at a minimum level. Often, the subsistence econo ...
farmers. Free and runaway blacks had great difficulty finding jobs in Texas. Many worked in other parts of the state as cowboys herding cattle or migrated for better opportunities in the
Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...
,
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, or southward to Mexico.


Early slavery

The first non-Native slave in Texas was
Estevanico Estevanico ("Little Stephen"; modern spelling Estebanico; –1539), also known as Esteban de Dorantes or Mustafa Azemmouri (مصطفى الزموري), was the first African to explore North America. Estevanico first appears as a slave in Portu ...
, a Moor from North Africa who had been captured and enslaved by the Spanish when he was a child. Estevanico accompanied his enslaver Captain
Andrés Dorantes de Carranza Andrés Dorantes de Carranza (ca. 1500 – 1550s), was an early Spanish explorer in the Americas. He was one of the four last survivors of the Narváez expedition, along with Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, Dorantes' slave Estevanico, and Alo ...
on the
Narváez expedition The Narváez expedition was a Spanish journey of exploration and colonization started in 1527 that intended to establish colonial settlements and garrisons in Florida. The expedition was initially led by Pánfilo de Narváez, who died in 1528. M ...
, which landed at present-day Tampa. Trying to get around the Gulf Coast, they built five barges, but in November 1528 these went aground off the coast of Texas. Estevanico, Dorantes, and
Alonso Castillo Maldonado Alonso del Castillo Maldonado (died after 1547) was an early Spanish explorer in the Americas. He was one of the last four survivors of the Pánfilo de Narváez expedition, along with Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, Andrés Dorantes de Carranza an ...
, the only survivors, spent several months living on a barrier island (now believed to be Galveston Island) before making their way in April 1529 to the mainland.Donald E. Chipman, "Estevanico"
''Handbook of Texas Online'', accessed 13 Aug 2009
American Indians captured and enslaved the party, putting them to work as laborers. They survived with the help of Castillo's faith healing among the Indians. Later they were joined by
Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca (; 1488/90/92"Cabeza de Vaca, Alvar Núñez (1492?-1559?)." American Eras. Vol. 1: Early American Civilizations and Exploration to 1600. Detroit: Gale, 1997. 50-51. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 10 Decembe ...
. Five years later, in September 1534, they escaped to the interior. Although Estevanico was still enslaved, after these events the Spaniards treated him more as an equal. Later he was given leadership of a Spanish expedition. His account, along with those of the others, led to more extensive Spanish exploration of the new territory.


Slavery in colonial times

Both the civil and religious authorities in
Spanish Texas Spanish Texas was one of the interior provinces of the colonial Viceroyalty of New Spain from 1690 until 1821. The term "interior provinces" first appeared in 1712, as an expression meaning "far away" provinces. It was only in 1776 that a leg ...
officially encouraged freeing enslaved people, but the laws were often ignored. Beginning in the 1740s in the Southwest, when Spanish settlers captured American Indian children, they often had them baptized and "adopted" into the homes of townspeople. There they were raised to be servants. At first, the practice involved primarily
Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño a ...
s; eventually
Comanche The Comanche or Nʉmʉnʉʉ ( com, Nʉmʉnʉʉ, "the people") are a Native American tribe from the Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the federally recognized Comanche Nation, headquartered in ...
children were likewise "adopted" as servants. Importation of enslaved Africans was not widespread in Spanish Texas. In 1751, after three Frenchmen were found to have settled along the Trinity River to trade with the American Indians, the Spanish arrested and expelled them from the colony.Barr (1996), p. 13. A 1777 census of
San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_ ...
showed a total of 2,060 people, with 151 of African descent.Williams (1997), p. 4. Of these, only 15 were enslaved, 4 males and 11 females.de la Teja (1956), p. 123. The 1783 census for all of Texas listed a total of 36 enslaved people. There was intermarriage among blacks, Indians and Europeans. In 1792 there were 34 blacks and 414
mulatto (, ) is a racial classification to refer to people of mixed African and European ancestry. Its use is considered outdated and offensive in several languages, including English and Dutch, whereas in languages such as Spanish and Portuguese ...
s in Spanish Texas, some of whom were free men and women. This was 15 percent of the total 2,992 people living in Spanish Texas.Douglas Hales, "Free Blacks"
''Handbook of Texas Online'', accessed 12 Aug 2009
When the United States purchased Louisiana in 1803, Spain declared that any enslaved person who crossed the Sabine River into Texas would be automatically freed. For a time, many enslaved ran away to Texas. Free blacks also emigrated to Texas. Most escapees joined friendly American Indian tribes, but others settled in the
East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that comprises most of 41 counties. It is primarily divided into Northeast and Southeast Texas. Most of the region co ...
forests. When some French and Spanish slaveholders moved to Texas, they were allowed to retain their enslaved people.Barr (1996), p. 14. In 1809, the Commandant General of the Interior Provinces, Nemesio Salcedo, ordered the Texas-Louisiana border to be closed to everyone, regardless of ethnic background. His nephew, governor of Texas
Manuel María de Salcedo Manuel María de Salcedo y Quiroga, (1776 in Málaga, Spain – executed, April 3, 1813), was a governor of Spanish Texas from 1808 until his execution in 1813. Salcedo gained leadership experience helping his father Juan Manuel de Salcedo, ...
, interpreted the order as allowing slaveholders from the United States to enter Texas to reclaim runaways. The United States outlawed the importation of enslaved people in 1808, but domestic trade flourished, especially in
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
during the
antebellum Antebellum, Latin for "before war", may refer to: United States history * Antebellum South, the pre-American Civil War period in the Southern United States ** Antebellum Georgia ** Antebellum South Carolina ** Antebellum Virginia * Antebellum ar ...
decades. In part due to the trade in enslaved people, New Orleans was the fourth largest city in the US in 1840 and one of the wealthiest. Between 1816 and 1821,
Louis-Michel Aury Louis-Michel Aury (1788 – August 30, 1821) was a French privateer operating in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean during the early 19th century. Early life Louis Michel-Aury was born in Paris, France, around 1788. French Navy Louis Aury se ...
and
Jean Lafitte Jean Lafitte ( – ) was a French pirate and privateer who operated in the Gulf of Mexico in the early 19th century. He and his older brother Pierre spelled their last name Laffite, but English language documents of the time used "Lafitte". Th ...
smuggled enslaved people into the United States through Galveston Island.Barr (1996), p. 14. To encourage citizens to report unlawful activity, most southern states allowed anyone who informed on a slave trader to receive half of what the imported enslaved people would earn at auction. The men sold enslaved people to
James Bowie James Bowie ( ) ( – March 6, 1836) was a 19th-century American pioneer, slave smuggler and trader, and soldier who played a prominent role in the Texas Revolution. He was among the Americans who died at the Battle of the Alamo. Stories of h ...
and others, who brought them directly to a customhouse and informed on themselves. The customs officers offered the enslaved people for auction, and Bowie would buy them back. Due to the state laws, he would receive half of the price he had paid. After that, he could legally transport the enslaved people and sell them in New Orleans or areas further up the
Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest Drainage system (geomorphology), drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson B ...
.Edmondson (2000), p. 91.


Mexican Texas

In 1821 at the conclusion of the
Mexican War of Independence The Mexican War of Independence ( es, Guerra de Independencia de México, links=no, 16 September 1810 – 27 September 1821) was an armed conflict and political process resulting in Mexico's independence from Spain. It was not a single, co ...
, Texas was included in the new nation. That year, the American
Stephen F. Austin Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas,Hatch (1999), p. 43. he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization ...
was granted permission by Mexican authorities to bring Anglo settlers into Texas.Williams (1997), p. 6. Most of the settlers Austin recruited came from the southern slave-owning portions of the United States. Under Austin's development scheme, each settler was allowed to purchase an additional of land for each enslaved person he brought to the territory. At the same time, however, Mexico offered full citizenship to free blacks, including land ownership and other privileges. The province continued to attract free blacks and escaped enslaved people from the
Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...
. Favorable conditions for free blacks continued into the 1830s. In 1823, Mexico forbade the sale or purchase of people, and required that the children of the enslaved be freed when they reached age fourteen. By 1825, however, a census of Austin's Colony showed 1,347 Anglo-Americans and 443 people of African descent, including a small number of free blacks. In 1827, the legislature of
Coahuila y Tejas Coahuila y Tejas, officially the Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila y Tejas (), was one of the constituent states of the newly established United Mexican States under its 1824 Constitution. It had two capitals: first Saltillo (1822–1825) f ...
outlawed the introduction of additional enslaved people and granted freedom at birth to all children born to an enslaved person. In 1829, Mexico abolished slavery, but it granted an exception until 1830 to Texas. That year, Mexico made the importation of enslaved people illegal. Anglo-American immigration to the province slowed at this point, with settlers angry about the changing rules. To circumvent the law, numerous Anglo-American colonists converted their enslaved people to indentured servants, but with life terms. Others simply called their enslaved people indentured servants without legally changing their status.Barr (1996), p. 15. Slaveholders trying to enter Mexico would force the people they enslaved to sign contracts claiming that they owed money and would work to pay the debt. The low wages the enslaved person would receive made repayment impossible, and the debt would be inherited, even though no enslaved person would receive wages until age eighteen.Vazquez (1997), p. 57. In 1832, the state passed legislation prohibiting worker contracts from lasting more than ten years.Vazquez (1997), p. 63. Many enslaved people who escaped from slaveholders in Texas or in the United States joined various East Texas Indian tribes. Although not considered equals in the tribes, they were generally treated well. Many former enslaved people fought with the
Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, th ...
against the Texan army that drove the tribe from East Texas in 1838.Barr (1996), p. 28. Enslaved people often fought against the
Comanche The Comanche or Nʉmʉnʉʉ ( com, Nʉmʉnʉʉ, "the people") are a Native American tribe from the Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the federally recognized Comanche Nation, headquartered in ...
tribe, however. The Comanche indiscriminately killed enslaved people and their white owners during raids. The Comanche sold any captured enslaved people to the Cherokee and Creek in
Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans who held aboriginal title to their land as a sovereign ...
, as they were both slaveholding tribes.Barr (1996), p. 29. By the 1800s, most enslaved people in Texas had been brought by slaveholders from the United States. A small number of enslaved were imported illegally from the
West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...
or Africa. In the 1830s, the British consul estimated that approximately 500 enslaved people had been illegally imported into Texas. By 1836, there were approximately 5,000 enslaved people in Texas.Barr (1996), p. 17. Exportation in the slave-owning areas of the state surpassed that of the non-slave-owning areas. A survey of Texas in 1834 found that the department of Bexar, which was mostly made up of Tejanos, had exported no goods. The Brazos department, including Austin's colonies and those of Green DeWitt, had exported 600,000 pesos worth of goods, including 5,000 bales of cotton.de la Teja (1997), p. 91. The department of Texas, which included the eastern settlements, expected to export 2,000 bales of cotton and 5,000 head of cattle.de la Teja (1997), p. 92. The abolition of slavery created tensions between the Mexican government and slave-holding settlers from the United States. These tensions came to a head in the Anahuac Disturbances. In August 1831, Juan Davis Bradburn, the military commander of the custom station on Upper Galveston Bay, gave asylum to two men who had escaped from slavery in
Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is bord ...
. The slaveholder hired
William Barret Travis William Barret "Buck" Travis (August 1, 1809 – March 6, 1836) was a 19th-century American lawyer and soldier. At the age of 26, he was a lieutenant colonel in the Texas Army. He died at the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution. ...
, a local lawyer, in an attempt to retrieve the men. When Bradburn arrested Travis on suspicion of plotting an insurrection, settlers rebelled. The disturbances were resolved through a combination of arms and political maneuvering. One result was the
Turtle Bayou Resolutions In 1832, the Anglo-American settlers were involved in a conflict with Mexican commander John Davis Bradburn (also an Anglo-American) near the northern extent of Trinity Bay at Anahuac, Texas. The settlers were opposed to control of their daily aff ...
, which were an explanation of the grievances that had led to the disturbances. One of the resolutions challenged Bradburn for "advising and procuring servants to quit the service of their masters, and offering them protection; causing them to labor for his benefits, and refusing to compensate them for the same."


Republic

As the Texas Revolution began in 1835, some enslaved people sided with Mexico, which provided for freedom. In the fall of 1835, a group of almost 100 enslaved people staged an uprising along the
Brazos River The Brazos River ( , ), called the ''Río de los Brazos de Dios'' (translated as "The River of the Arms of God") by early Spanish explorers, is the 11th-longest river in the United States at from its headwater source at the head of Blackwater ...
after they heard rumors of approaching Mexican troops. Whites in the area defeated and severely punished them. Several enslaved people ran away to serve with Mexican forces. Texan forces executed one runaway taken prisoner and resold another into slavery.Barr (1996), p. 32. Other enslaved people joined the Texan forces, with some killed while fighting Mexican soldiers. Three enslaved people were known to be at the
Battle of the Alamo The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Anto ...
; a boy named John was killed, while William B. Travis's enslaved person, Joe, and James Bowie's enslaved person, Sam, survived to be freed by the Mexican Army.Barr (1996), p. 6. The Section 9 of the General Provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of Texas, ratified in 1836, made slavery legal again in Texas and defined the status of the enslaved and people of color in the Republic of Texas. * People of color who had been servants for life under Mexican law would become property. *
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
should pass no law restricting emigrants from bring their enslaved people into Texas. * Congress shall not have the power to emancipate enslaved people. * Slaveowners may not free their enslaved servants without Congressional approval unless the freed people leave Texas. * Free persons of African descent were required to petition the Texas Congress for permission to continue living in the country. * Africans and the descendants of Africans and Indians were excluded from the class of 'persons' having rights. The following year all those who had been living in Texas at the time of independence were allowed to remain. On the other hand, the legislature created political
segregation Segregation may refer to: Separation of people * Geographical segregation, rates of two or more populations which are not homogenous throughout a defined space * School segregation * Housing segregation * Racial segregation, separation of humans ...
; it classified free residents with at least 1/8 African heritage (the equivalent to one great-grandparent) as a separate category, and abrogated their citizens' rights, prohibiting them from voting, owning property, testifying against whites in court, or intermarrying with whites.Barr (1996), p. 8. As planters increased cotton production, they rapidly increased the purchase and transport of enslaved workers. By 1840 there were 11,323 enslaved people in Texas.


Statehood

In 1845 the state legislature passed legislation further restricting the rights of free blacks. For example, it subjected them to punishments, such as working on road gangs if convicted of crimes, similar to those of enslaved rather than free men.Barr (1996), p. 9. By 1850, the enslaved population in Texas had increased to 58,161; in 1860 there were 182,566 enslaved, 30 percent of the total population. Texas ranked 10th in total enslaved population and 9th in percentage enslaved (30 percent of all residents). Forty percent of Texas enslaved people lived on plantations along the
Gulf Coast The Gulf Coast of the United States, also known as the Gulf South, is the coast, coastline along the Southern United States where they meet the Gulf of Mexico. The list of U.S. states and territories by coastline, coastal states that have a shor ...
and in the East Texas river valleys, where they cultivated cotton, corn, and some sugar. Fifty percent of the enslaved people worked either alone or in groups of fewer than 20 on small farms ranging from the
Nueces River The Nueces River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas, about long. It drains a region in central and southern Texas southeastward into the Gulf of Mexico. It is the southernmost major river in Texas northeast of the Rio Grande. ''Nueces' ...
to the Red River, and from the Louisiana border to the edge of the western settlements of San Antonio,
Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
,
Waco Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the s ...
, and
Fort Worth Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. Accord ...
.Barr (1996), p. 19. Some enslaved people lived among the cattlemen along the southern Gulf Coast and helped herd sheep and cattle. Rarely, an enslaved person also broke horses, but generally only white men were used for that dangerous task. If they died, the boss did not suffer a monetary loss.Barr (1996), p. 20. Enslaved people were not held between the Nueces River and the
Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...
. A large supply of cheap Mexican labor in the area made the purchase and care of a slave too expensive. Although most enslaved people lived in rural areas, more than 1000 resided in both Galveston and
Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...
by 1860, with several hundred in other large towns.Barr (1996), p. 24. Unlike in most southern cities, the number of urban enslaved people in Texas grew throughout the 1850s. Most worked as house servants or on farms on the edges of towns, but others served as cooks and waiters in hotels, as
teamster A teamster is the American term for a truck driver or a person who drives teams of draft animals. Further, the term often refers to a member of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, a labor union in the United States and Canada. Origi ...
s or boatmen, or as coachmen and skilled artisans, such as
blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...
s, carpenters, and barbers.Barr (1996), p. 24. Plantation enslaved people generally lived in one or two-room log cabins. Most field hands received two sets of clothing twice each year, with a hat and coat for winter. Meals often consisted of bread, molasses, sweet potatoes, hominy, and beef, chicken, and pork.Barr (1996), p. 18. Enslaved people often lived similarly to poor whites in Texas, especially those new to the territory and just getting started. The whites, however, could hope to improve their lives with their own hard work, while the enslaved people could have no such hope or expectation as, of course, their work belonged by law to their owners and not to them. Many churches in Texas accepted enslaved people as members. Both the
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...
and
Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...
churches appointed missionaries to the enslaved people and allowed active participation by them. In 1860, the Methodists claimed 7,541 enslaved people among their members in Texas. Some enslaved people became ministers, but their masters often tried to instruct them in what they were supposed to preach. As in other southern states, however, the enslaved people made Christianity their own and they developed strong religious faith.Barr (1996), p. 22. Many local communities adopted laws forbidding enslaved people from having liquor or weapons, from selling agricultural products, hiring their own time, or being hired by free blacks. In rural areas, counties often set up patrols to enforce restrictions on enslaved people traveling without passes from planter owners.Barr (1996), p. 21. Urban enslaved people often had greater freedoms and opportunity.Barr (1996), p. 25. Unlike most southern states, Texas did not explicitly ban education of enslaved people, but most slaveholders did not allow the practice. In 1865, 95% of the enslaved were illiterate.Barr (1996), p. 23. Many enslaved people ran away. Some hid in the bayous for a time, while others lived among the Indians, and a few managed to board ships bound for northern or foreign ports. Most runaways attempted to go to Mexico.Barr (1996), p. 28. By 1850, an estimated 3,000 enslaved people had successfully escaped to Mexico, and an additional 1,000 crossed into Mexico between 1851 and 1855. Ninety percent of the runaways were men, most between ages 20 and 40, because they were best equipped to deal with the long, difficult journey. All ages were represented, however, from 5 months to 60 years.Barr (1996), p. 30. As early as 1836, Texas slaveholders sent representatives to Matamoros to try to reclaim their runaways, but Mexico refused. See Underground Railroad § South to Mexico. A group of enslaved people killed the sheriff of Gonzales when he attempted to stop their going to Matamoros. Over 30 of the fugitives made it safely to freedom in Mexico.Barr (1996), p. 29. From 1849 until 1860, Texas tried to convince the United States government to negotiate a treaty with Mexico to permit extradition of runaways, but it did not succeed. Some slave hunters illegally traveled to Mexico and captured runaways. After José María Jesús Carvajal promised to return all escapees, more than 400 Texans joined his revolt of 1851. He tried to create a Republic of Sierra Madre in Northern Mexico but was defeated by the Mexican Army.Barr (1996), p. 31. White Texans were fearful about revolts, and as in other southern states, rumors of uprisings took hold rapidly, often in times of economic and social tension. In 1854, citizens in Austin and other towns drove many poor Mexicans from the area in fear that they might assist in revolts.Barr (1996), p. 26. Two years later, Colorado County hanged several enslaved people and drove one white man and several Mexicans from the area after uncovering a plot to equip 200 enslaved people with pistols and knives to escape into Mexico. In 1860, mass hysteria ensued after a series of fires erupted throughout the state. Planters had hundreds of enslaved people arrested and questioned forcefully. Several confessed to a plot by white
abolitionists Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The Britis ...
to avenge John Brown's execution by burning food supplies and poisoning slaveowners. Up to 80 enslaved people and 37 whites may have been executed as a result of the supposed plot.Barr (1996), p. 33. Later newspaper accounts revealed that most of what was confessed under torture appeared to be false. Many of the fires had coincided with a summer drought, and new matches were susceptible to spontaneous combustion. The supposed "poison" found in enslaved quarters was
baby powder Baby powder is an astringent powder used for preventing diaper rash and for cosmetic uses. It may be composed of talc (in which case it is also called talcum powder) or corn starch. It may also contain additional ingredients like fragrances. ...
.Barr (1996), p. 34. There was an auction block next to the Menger Hotel and near the Alamo.


Confederacy

Texas seceded from the United States in 1861 and joined the
Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...
on the eve of the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...
. It replaced the pro-Union
governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
,
Sam Houston Samuel Houston (, ; March 2, 1793 – July 26, 1863) was an American general and statesman who played an important role in the Texas Revolution. He served as the first and third president of the Republic of Texas and was one of the first two i ...
, in the process. During the war, slavery in Texas was little affected, and prices for enslaved people remained high until the last few months of the war. The number of enslaved people in the state increased dramatically as the
Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...
occupied parts of
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...
and Louisiana. Slaveholders in those areas often moved their enslaved to Texas to avoid having them freed. By 1865 there were an estimated 250,000 enslaved people in Texas. Many planters, however, lost part of their workforce temporarily to the
Confederate Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighti ...
, which impressed one-quarter of the enslaved on each plantation to construct defensive earthworks for the Texas coast and to drive military supply wagons.Barr (1996), p. 36. Anyone convicted of providing arms to enslaved people during the war was sentenced to between two and five years of hard labor. Unlike in other Southern states, only a small number of enslaved Texans, estimated at 47, joined the Union Army. Few battles took place in Texas, which acted as a supply state to the Confederacy. As Texas was much more distant from the Union Army lines for much of the war, enslaved people were unable to reach them.Barr (1996), p. 37. The last battle of the war was fought at Palmito Ranch near Brownsville, in 1865.


Emancipation

On June 19, 1865, Union General
Gordon Granger Gordon Granger (November 6, 1821 – January 10, 1876) was a career U.S. Army officer and a Union general during the American Civil War, where he distinguished himself at the Battle of Chickamauga. Granger is best remembered for his part in the ...
and over 2,000 federal troops arrived at Galveston Island to take possession of the state and enforce the two-year-old
Emancipation Proclamation The Emancipation Proclamation, officially Proclamation 95, was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by United States President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, during the American Civil War, Civil War. The Proclamation c ...
. There, he proclaimed his "General Order No. 3" on the balcony of Ashton Villa:
The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.
On some plantations, many enslaved people left immediately after hearing of the emancipation, even if their former owners offered to pay them wages.Barr (1996), p. 40. Throughout the summer, many East Texas newspapers continued to recommend that slaveholders oppose ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery, in the hopes that emancipation could be gradually implemented. Some slaveowners did not free their enslaved people until late in 1865.Barr (1996), p. 39. Slavery was officially abolished by the Thirteenth Amendment which took effect on December 18, 1865. Slavery had been theoretically abolished by President
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...
's
Emancipation Proclamation The Emancipation Proclamation, officially Proclamation 95, was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by United States President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, during the American Civil War, Civil War. The Proclamation c ...
which proclaimed, in 1863, that only those enslaved in territories that were in rebellion from the United States were free. Since the U.S. government was not in effective control of many of these territories until later in the war, many of these people proclaimed to be free by the Emancipation Proclamation were still held in servitude until those areas came back under Union control.


Legacy

June 19, the day of the Emancipation announcement, has been celebrated annually in Texas and other states as
Juneteenth Juneteenth is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. Deriving its name from combining "June" and "nineteenth", it is celebrated on the anniversary of General Order No. 3, i ...
. The long-term effects of slavery can be seen to this day in the state's demographics. The eastern quarter of the state, where cotton production depended on thousands of slaves, is considered the westernmost extension of the
Deep South The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the wa ...
. It contains a very significant number of Texas' African-American population. On the other hand, western parts of Texas were still a frontier during the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...
. While settled chiefly by
Anglo Anglo is a prefix indicating a relation to, or descent from, the Angles, England, English culture, the English people or the English language, such as in the term ''Anglosphere''. It is often used alone, somewhat loosely, to refer to peopl ...
-Southerners after the war; with the history of ranching, some of these parts have been more associated with the
Southwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
than the
South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
. In the 1870s, a system of legalized
racial segregation Racial segregation is the systematic separation of people into racial or other ethnic groups in daily life. Racial segregation can amount to the international crime of apartheid and a crime against humanity under the Statute of the Intern ...
and
white supremacy White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White ...
was enforced. In 1876 Texas adopted a new constitution requiring segregated schools and imposing a poll tax, which decreased the number of poor voters both black and white. By the late 19th century, Texas passed other
Jim Crow laws The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States. Other areas of the United States were affected by formal and informal policies of segregation as well, but many states outside the S ...
. The system of school support was inadequate, and schools for racial minorities were seriously underfunded. Texas did not, however, employ techniques common in other Southern states such as complex voter registration rules and literacy tests; even the "white primary" was not implemented statewide until 1923. In 1900, African Americans comprised 20% of the state's population of 3,048,710. The drop in proportion of population reflected greatly-increased European immigration to the state in the 19th century, as well as population growth. Like
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
, the Texas Democratic Party adopted a whites-only primary. Since they politically dominated the state for decades after 1900, the only contest for office was at the primary level. The white primary was another way to exclude African Americans from making electoral decisions, and it was not overturned by the
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
until 1944 in ''
Smith v. Allwright ''Smith v. Allwright'', 321 U.S. 649 (1944), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court with regard to voting rights and, by extension, racial desegregation. It overturned the Texas state law that authorized parties to set thei ...
''. States that had used it adopted other means to keep most African Americans from voting. African Americans immediately started raising legal challenges to disfranchisement, but early Supreme Court cases, such as ''
Giles v. Harris ''Giles v. Harris'', 189 U.S. 475 (1903), was an early 20th-century United States Supreme Court case in which the Court upheld a state constitution's requirements for voter registration and qualifications. Although the plaintiff accused the state o ...
'' (1903), upheld the states. Through organizations such as the
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.& ...
(
NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&n ...
), African Americans continued to work to regain their ability to exercise their civil and voting rights as citizens. The
civil rights movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
led to the U.S. Congress and President
Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
passing the
Civil Rights Act of 1964 The Civil Rights Act of 1964 () is a landmark civil rights and labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. It prohibits unequal application of voter registration requi ...
and the
Voting Rights Act The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark piece of federal legislation in the United States that prohibits racial discrimination in voting. It was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson during the height of the civil rights m ...
of 1965, which protected the rights of all citizens to integrated public facilities and enforcement of voting rights. On June 25, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act as
unconstitutional Constitutionality is said to be the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution; "Webster On Line" the status of a law, a procedure, or an act's accordance with the laws or set forth in the applicable constitution. When l ...
, a ruling which was shortly followed the implementation of Voter i.d. laws in Texas. Those against this decision typically argue that it unfairly targets key Democratic constituencies such as minority groups and the elderly, while proponents argue that the law's intention is to prevent voting by illegal immigrants.


See also

*
History of African Americans in Houston The African American population in Houston, Texas, has been a significant part of the city's community since its establishment.Haley, John H. (University of North Carolina at Wilmington). " Black Dixie: Afro-Texan History and Culture in Houst ...
* History of African Americans in Dallas-Ft. Worth * History of African Americans in San Antonio *
Estevanico Estevanico ("Little Stephen"; modern spelling Estebanico; –1539), also known as Esteban de Dorantes or Mustafa Azemmouri (مصطفى الزموري), was the first African to explore North America. Estevanico first appears as a slave in Portu ...
*
Juneteenth Juneteenth is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. Deriving its name from combining "June" and "nineteenth", it is celebrated on the anniversary of General Order No. 3, i ...
* Joshua Houston, former slave of Sam and Margaret Houston * Texas Confederate Museum


Footnotes and references


Footnotes


Inline references


References for footnotes

* * * Campbell, Randolph B., ''An Empire for Slavery: The Peculiar Institution in Texas, 1821-1865'', Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1989 * * * * * * *Salas. Mario Marcel, "Foundation Myth in Political Thought: The Racial Moorings of Foundation Myth", Dubugue:Kendal Hunt Publishers,2011


External links


Lester G. Bugbee, "Slavery in early Texas"
''The Political Science Quarterly'', vol. III, no. 3, 1898, transcribed text, Sons of DeWitt Colony Texas Website
Douglas Hales, "Free Blacks"
''
Handbook of Texas The ''Handbook of Texas'' is a comprehensive encyclopedia of Texas geography, history, and historical persons published by the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). History The original ''Handbook'' was the brainchild of TSHA President W ...
Online''
Randolph B. Campbell, "Slavery"
''Handbook of Texas Online'' {{Authority control
Slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
African-American history of Texas History of racism in Texas TX