Summary
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Austin's Colony was the first and largest Anglo-American settlement in Mexican Texas and was established by Stephen F. Austin in 1821. The Records include contracts, land titles, surveyor's field notes, correspondence, registers, and plats of surveys created as a result of the process by which settlers were admitted to the colony and given title to land.
Biographical Note
Austin's Colony was the first and largest Anglo-American settlement in Mexican Texas and was established by Stephen F. Austin in 1821. It was authorized by the Mexican government and allowed for the introduction of 300 families into Texas. Austin received permission to introduce an additional 1700 families into the colony between 1825 and 1831 under the terms of four colonization contracts made with the state of Coahuila and Texas under Mexican laws providing land for immigrants. By the time the colonial land offices were closed in 1835, almost 1,000 land titles had been issued in Austin's Colony.
The main area of Austin's Colony was located in southeast Texas within an area bounded by the Lavaca and San Jacinto rivers, the San Antonio Road, and the coast. A small settlement, called the "little colony," was also established along the Colorado River above the San Antonio Road, near the present-day city of Austin. The town of San Felipe, founded on the Brazos River in 1824, served as the capitol of the colony and the location of Austin's land office. Other towns founded during this period in Austin's Colony include Matagorda, Brazoria, Columbia, Independence, and Washington-on-the-Brazos.
The primary business of the colony was the introduction of new settlers and the distribution of land. As the contractor, Austin was the principal organizer and administrator of the colony. Besides Austin, several other people were involved in the colony's affairs. A land commissioner was appointed to represent the government and was responsible for administering and recording the land titles and organizing the archives of the colony. In July 1823, Governor Luciano Garcia appointed Felipe Enrique Neri, the Baron de Bastrop, as the first commissioner for Austin's Colony. Subsequent commissioners included Gaspar Flores, Miguel Arciniega, Stephen F. Austin (acting as his own commissioner), and Robert Peebles. Samuel May Williams was hired by Austin in 1823, and performed a prodigious amount of work as secretary, title clerk and agent for Austin, and ultimately was his partner in the final colony contract. By 1834, the duties of land office clerk were increasingly performed by Gail Borden, Jr. Surveyors played an important role in the title process and included Rawson Alley, Gail Borden, Jr., John P. Borden, Thomas H. Borden, Samuel P. Browne, Horatio Chriesman, John Cook, Samuel Dickson, Jesse U. Evans, Isaac Hughes, Seth Ingram, John Jiams, Francis W. Johnson, James Kerr, George W. Patrick, John Goodloe, Warron Pierson, William Selkirk, Bartlett Sims, H. Smith, and Elias R. Wightman.
For more information on Austin's first colony, see the entry for Old Three Hundred at the Handbook of Texas Online.
For more information on Stephen F. Austin, see the entry for Austin, Stephen Fuller (1793-1836) at the Handbook of Texas Online.
Scope and Content
The main area of Austin's Colony was located in southeast Texas within an area bounded by the Lavaca and San Jacinto rivers, the San Antonio Road, and the coast. A small settlement, called the "little colony," was also established along the Colorado River above the San Antonio Road, near the present-day city of Austin. The town of San Felipe, founded on the Brazos River in 1824, served as the capitol of the colony and the location of Austin's land office. Other towns founded during this period in Austin's Colony include Matagorda, Brazoria, Columbia, Independence, and Washington-on-the-Brazos.
The primary business of the colony was the introduction of new settlers and the distribution of land. As the contractor, Austin was the principal organizer and administrator of the colony. Besides Austin, several other people were involved in the colony's affairs. A land commissioner was appointed to represent the government and was responsible for administering and recording the land titles and organizing the archives of the colony. In July 1823, Governor Luciano Garcia appointed Felipe Enrique Neri, the Baron de Bastrop, as the first commissioner for Austin's Colony. Subsequent commissioners included Gaspar Flores, Miguel Arciniega, Stephen F. Austin (acting as his own commissioner), and Robert Peebles. Samuel May Williams was hired by Austin in 1823, and performed a prodigious amount of work as secretary, title clerk and agent for Austin, and ultimately was his partner in the final colony contract. By 1834, the duties of land office clerk were increasingly performed by Gail Borden, Jr. Surveyors played an important role in the title process and included Rawson Alley, Gail Borden, Jr., John P. Borden, Thomas H. Borden, Samuel P. Browne, Horatio Chriesman, John Cook, Samuel Dickson, Jesse U. Evans, Isaac Hughes, Seth Ingram, John Jiams, Francis W. Johnson, James Kerr, George W. Patrick, John Goodloe, Warron Pierson, William Selkirk, Bartlett Sims, H. Smith, and Elias R. Wightman.
For more information on Austin's first colony, see the entry for Old Three Hundred at the Handbook of Texas Online.
For more information on Stephen F. Austin, see the entry for Austin, Stephen Fuller (1793-1836) at the Handbook of Texas Online.
The Austin Colony Records consist of 62.26 linear feet of documents such as contracts, land titles, surveyor's field notes, correspondence, registers, and plats of surveys dating from 1823 to 1841 (bulk 1825-1835), created as a result of the process by which settlers were admitted and given title to the land.
The records largely reflect the land title process, which involved several formalized steps carried out in compliance with the requirements of the Mexican colonization laws. In general, the main activities documented in the records are those of admitting settlers, surveying land, and awarding titles. Some items are also present which document the authorization of Austin's various contracts and other matters of general concern to the colony.
Some items are also present which document the authorization of Austin’s various contracts and other matters of general concern to the colony. The English Field Notes are books and notebooks of surveys made by for the colony by Anglo surveyors, which were then copied and translated into Spanish and filed with the land grant files. Austin’s Register of Families, written in 1825, consists of a list of colonists, their families and any dependents or enslaved persons, and from where they emigrated. For the titles created through each empresario contract fulfilled, there are 5 volumes (1840-1841) containing English translations of the titles and one volume of transcribed English translations of field notes (undated).
Nearly half of the material, 28 linear feet, comes from the survey plats and from the Corrected Map of Austin's Colony, the latter of which measures 8 ft. x 8 ft. The maps are stored in 7 map case drawers.
Date
The records largely reflect the land title process, which involved several formalized steps carried out in compliance with the requirements of the Mexican colonization laws. In general, the main activities documented in the records are those of admitting settlers, surveying land, and awarding titles. Some items are also present which document the authorization of Austin's various contracts and other matters of general concern to the colony.
Some items are also present which document the authorization of Austin’s various contracts and other matters of general concern to the colony. The English Field Notes are books and notebooks of surveys made by for the colony by Anglo surveyors, which were then copied and translated into Spanish and filed with the land grant files. Austin’s Register of Families, written in 1825, consists of a list of colonists, their families and any dependents or enslaved persons, and from where they emigrated. For the titles created through each empresario contract fulfilled, there are 5 volumes (1840-1841) containing English translations of the titles and one volume of transcribed English translations of field notes (undated).
Nearly half of the material, 28 linear feet, comes from the survey plats and from the Corrected Map of Austin's Colony, the latter of which measures 8 ft. x 8 ft. The maps are stored in 7 map case drawers.
1823-1841
Extent
62.26 Linear feet (37 document boxes, 23 bound volumes, 40 manuscript maps)
Language
Spanish
Arrangement
Austin's Colony Records are arranged into 4 series:
1. Contract Records and correspondence, 1825-1836 includes one sub-series:
a. Correspondence relating to land distribution, 1825-1836
Because the Records are physically part of the Spanish Collection, the contract records and correspondence are mixed in with material from other collections which accounts for the addition of 7 document boxes while only adding 5 linear inches of material to the collection.
2. Titles, 1824-1835
3. Testimonios and character certificates, 1830-1835
4. Survey field notes and maps, 1824-1837; undated
Preferred Citation
1. Contract Records and correspondence, 1825-1836 includes one sub-series:
a. Correspondence relating to land distribution, 1825-1836
Because the Records are physically part of the Spanish Collection, the contract records and correspondence are mixed in with material from other collections which accounts for the addition of 7 document boxes while only adding 5 linear inches of material to the collection.
2. Titles, 1824-1835
3. Testimonios and character certificates, 1830-1835
4. Survey field notes and maps, 1824-1837; undated
Austin's Colony Records (SC.AC). Archives and Records Program, Texas General Land Office, Austin.
Access Restrictions
Unrestricted access.
Use Restrictions
Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted and may be freely used in any way. State records also include materials received by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.).