Timeline Description: Modern Texas began in the early 1940s. Before that, however, Texas has had many different faces. The Lone Star State has been occupied by the French, the Spanish, and a part of Mexico. Long before recorded history, Texas was home to many different tribes of indigenous people.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1500 | Native Americans occupied Texas. For millennia, diverse groups of Native Americans existed in the region we now know as the state of Texas. The area between the Rio Grande and the Red River were home to at least eight tribes. |
| 1519 | The recorded history of Texas began. Spanish conquistadors were the first recorded to arrive and found the Texas region. They found the indigenous people and learned that they had been there for many years. |
| November, 1528 | Galveston Island. Cabeza de Vaca was shipwrecked on what we now know as Galveston Island. After six years of trading in the region, he explored further into Texas as he traveled to Mexico. |
| February 18, 1685 | Fort St. Louis was established. Robert Cavelier, Sieur de LaSalle, established Fort St. Louis. This occurred during an expedition to reestablish the presence of the Spanish in Texas. |
| April 22, 1689 | Fort St. Louis was found abandoned. Alonso de Leon reached the fort on an expedition to take more Spanish to Texas. It was abandoned when he reached it. |
| January 3, 1823 | Brazos River region was colonized. After receiving a grant from the Mexican government, Stephen F. Austin began to colonize the region of the Brazos River. |
| April 6, 1830 | Relations between Mexico and Texas at a low. After the Constitution of 1824 failed to address the rights of Texas, Texans and Mexicans failed to relate when Mexico did not allow emigration into Texas by settlers from the United States. |
| June 26, 1832 | The Battle of Velasco. Texas’ relations with Mexico resulted in casualties. After several days of war, the Mexicans were forced to surrender due to a lack of ammunition. |
| 1832 | The Convention of 1832 and 1833.(1832-1833) The growing dissatisfaction among the two settlements triggered the two conventions to create policies that would satisfy both parties. |
| March 2, 1836 | The Declaration of Independence was signed. Members of the Convention of 1836 signed the Texas Declaration of Independence and an ad interim government was formed. |
| March 6, 1836 | The Battle of the Alamo. Col. William B. Travis and his Texans were overwhelmed by the Mexican army after a two week battle in San Antonio. |
| September 11, 1842 | Mexicans took prisoners. Even though the Mexicans retreated from this San Antonio battle, 1400 of them took prisoners. |
| December 20, 1845 | Texas became a state. President James Polk followed through on a platform promise and made Texas the 28th state. |
| March 30, 1870 | Texas was readmitted into the union. Reconstruction continued until 1873 for this state, but its readmittance into the union occurred on March 30th, 1870. The Lone Star State has resources as rich as her history. Texas is well known for oil and other natural resources in the large state. Cattle, cowboys, and a rich culture persevere in Texas. |