Stephen F Austin's Accomplishments

Gordon Murphy

Mrs. Nash

English Honors 4

May 15, 2015

Stephen F. Austin Stephen F. Austin may be the most important person in Texas history. His contributions to his family and later his town and state were invaluable. Stephen F. Austin's father's influence on him helped shape his life in such a way that his accomplishments lead to the founding of great state Texas. Stephen F. Austin was born in November 3, 1793 in Austinville, Virginia. His father founded a town west of St. Luis and also founded a lead mine. While the town and lead mine prospered, he opened a general store. Austin spent much of his time helping his father at the general store. At the age of eleven, Austin attended Bacon Academy in Colchester, Connecticut. “Johannsen” His

Meanwhile, his father was trying to establish an American settlement in Texas, which was of Spanish rule. On December 23, 1820, he arrived in San Antonio to ask for permission from the Mexican governor for a land grant to make a colony. He was eventually granted the right to settle families in Texas. While Austin’s father was in Texas, he wanted to study law in earnest so he moved to New Orleans in January 1821. “Johannsen” He worked as a clerk, for a lawyer named Joseph H. Hawkins and in return, Hawkins Gave Austin legal training and gave him room and board. He also earned extra money working as an assistant editor of the Louisiana Advertiser. When Austin’s father returned home, he was ill and died soon after. He left his land grant to Austin and gave him instructions on how to build the colony. Austin then decided to give up on law completely and finish his father’s last dream. He had some trouble finding families that would come but he eventually got enough. Austin founded a settlement that consisted of 300 families on 200,000 acres of land that was located between the Brazos and Colorado rivers. But as the colony was starting to grow, Mexico won tier independence from Spain. That meant that Austin’s contract was forced to be renewed under new terms. He told the families that they had to obey the new laws that Mexico had made and with his background in law, he also wrote a criminal and civil code for settlement. Under the new terms, he was also able to bring 900 families into Texas between 1825 and 1828. By 1831, his population had reached over 5,500 people in just a few years. More Americans started to move into Texas until Mexico tried to stop further colonization. But the Texan colonists wanted to be able to govern themselves and have religious freedom. In 1833, a group of colonists asked Austin to give Texas rights as a state of Mexico. So Austin went up the Mexico government and asked for rights as a state of Mexico and that