Imagine oxcarts rumbling into Austin. They carried the entire government of the Republic of Texas here in October 1839. This is the site of The First Austin Capitol of the Republic of Texas. Austin was chosen as the capital.
The First Austin Capitol of the Republic of Texas was quickly built. It was 1839. This one-story building faced east. A broad hall ran east to west at the back. Committee rooms were located there. The Senate chamber was in the north front area. The Hall of the House of Representatives was in the south.
Sam Houston opposed Austin as the capital. He thought it was too remote. It was vulnerable to attacks. These attacks could come from Mexican troops and Native Americans.
Mirabeau B. Lamar supported Austin. He believed in westward expansion. The location was central. It also had abundant natural resources. Lamar thought Austin had promise as an economic hub.
Judge Edwin Waller planned the new town. He chose a 640-acre site. It was on a bluff above the Colorado River. Waller Creek was to the east. Shoal Creek was to the west. The Waller Plan divided the area into 14 blocks. Congress Avenue ran from Capitol Square to the river.
Streets running north and south were named for Texas rivers. Their order matched the rivers on the state map. East and west streets got tree names. Waller preferred numbers.
The population grew to 839 by the next January. The First Austin Capitol of the Republic of Texas buzzed with activity. Alphonse Dubois de Saligny arrived from France. He was France’s chargé d’affaires. He bought land to build a legation.
Political turmoil marked Austin’s early years. Sam Houston ordered the national archives moved in 1842. He said it was for safekeeping. Austinites believed this meant moving the capital. They refused to give up the archives.
Houston moved the government anyway. It went first to Houston. Then it went to Washington-on-the-Brazos. The archives stayed put. Citizens foiled an attempt to seize land office records. This became known as the Texas Archive War.
Austin suffered. Its population fell below 200. Buildings deteriorated.
A convention met in Austin in 1845. It approved Texas annexation to the United States. Austin became the state capital until 1850. Voters would then decide.
Austin officially became the state capital in 1846. This was when authority transferred. It was from the republic to the state.
The First Austin Capitol of the Republic of Texas served until 1853. A more substantial building replaced it. This was on the present Capitol grounds. Austin’s status remained in doubt. It wasn’t until 1872. Then the city won a statewide election. Austin became the capital once and for all.
The Austin Kiwanis Club erected this plaque. It reminds us of the city’s humble beginnings. The First Austin Capitol of the Republic of Texas represents a pivotal time. It was a time of growth and political struggle for Texas.