This Day In Texas History - February 19

[joe817]

1813, the Spanish army under the Spanish Governor Salcedo and his his assistant Herrera abandon La Bahia (Goliad) and retreat to San Antonio.

1818 - Joanna Troutman was born. She was the designer of an early Texas Lone Star flag made of white silk with a blue star and the words "Texas and Liberty."

1836 - Fannin dispatched Duval(Burr H. Duval, commander of the Kentucky Mustangs) with teams and carts to take this artillery and ammunition and ordered Cooke to return with them to Goliad, where Cooke arrived about February 19. A council on February 19, in which Bonham represented Travis, caused Fannin to toy with the idea of moving his headquarters to Bexar or reinforcing the garrison there, but nothing was done. Fannin continued at Goliad, keeping his men busy rebuilding the old presidio, which he renamed Fort Defiance.

1838 - Indian captive Rachel Plummer was reunited with her husband after spending over a year with the Comanches. In May 1836 their settlement was attacked by a large group of Indians at Fort Parker in Limestone county. Five settlers were taken captive: Rachel and her son James Pratt Plummer, Cynthia Ann and John Parker, and Mrs. Elizabeth Kellogg. James Pratt was taken from Rachel, and she never saw him again. Rachel became a slave to the Comanches. Rachel was ransomed by Mexican traders north of Santa Fe in June 1837. Several months later, Rachel's brother-in-law escorted her back to Texas, where she was reunited with her husband. In 1838 she published an account of her captivity entitled Rachael Plummer's Narrative of Twenty One Months Servitude as a Prisoner Among the Comanche Indians. This was the first narrative about a captive of Texas Indians published in Texas.

1846 - Having officially entered the Union on December 29th, 1845, The Republic of Texas officially ended on this date. James P Henderson became the first governor of the new State of Texas. In its 10 years of independence, Texas accumulated a large debt. In addition, Mexico never officially recognized Texas as an independent country. So upon entry into the United States, tensions between the US and Mexico reached a boiling point, leading to the Mexican American War. By 1851, the debt accumulated by Texas was paid by act of Congress, in exchange for Texas giving up claims to territory that today is part of five Western States. Texas gave up what is now: the panhandle of Oklahoma; the eastern 2/3 of New Mexico; about half of Colorado; the southwest corner of Kansas, and a sliver of land about 100 miles wide and 200 miles long extending into Wyoming.

1873 - While serving as representative for District Twenty-six—comprised of Bastrop and Fayette counties—to the Thirteenth Texas Legislature, Louis Franke was robbed and fatally injured at the state capitol in Austin. He is buried in Black Jack Springs.