The Creation and Annexation of Texas

Texas took many steps toward independence and annexation. This all began with the idea of Manifest Destiny, which was the thought that God wanted white men to take land for their own pleasing. This idea was spread by Mountain Men, who in search for beaver and other furs for trade, probed the Rockies to explore more of the western part of the country. The most famous Mountain Man, Jedediah Smith, crossed the Great Basin and the Sierra Nevada to reach the California trail, which linked the U.S. to the Pacific coast. In 1842 an official government expedition led by John C. Frémont set across the western country, following these trails made by the Mountain Men. Most of nothing was found on this expedition but Frémont’s vivid and romantic accounts of the west drew settlers to the far west. Soon wagons of courageous and hopeful pioneers were making the demanding 2,000 mile and about 5 month journey west. With this great migration to the west American expansionists were seeking new territory. Though Mexico had most of the control of the south and west territories. Many provinces were located throughout the land the American migrants were hoping to settle in. Of all the provinces of Mexico, Texas was most vulnerable to the U.S. expansion. Texas had abundant, fertile land, and lay close to U.S. borders. It had a small population of Hispanics known as Tejanos to protect the province. To further grow and protect Texas, Mexico agreed to allow Americans settle in Texas. In return Americans had to become Mexican citizens, to worship as Roman Catholics, and to accept the Mexican constitution, which banned slavery. Mexico hoped that this would convert the Americans from a potential threat to an economic asset. Led by Stephen F. Austin, Americans began to settle east of San Antonio, in Austin founded and named by Austin. The Americans sought the economic opportunity of good farmland in large amounts, like many other settlers on other frontiers. By 1835, Texas was home to about