22nd Annual San Jacinto Symposium
“After San Jacinto: The Republic Stands Apart”
Friday, April 28, 2023
Patrons Dinner
Separate registration required
Location: Houston Bayou Club
8550 Memorial Dr, Houston, TX 77024
Time: 6:30pm–9pm
The Patron’s Dinner will be a plated dinner to raise funds for TSHA and allow patrons the opportunity to visit with Symposium speakers on an informal basis. The event will feature a presentation by JP Bryan on the Tejano heroes of the Texas Revolution.
Saturday, April 29, 2023
22nd Annual San Jacinto Symposium
Separate registration required
Location: San Jacinto College, Anderson-Ball Building
8060 Spencer Hwy, Pasadena, TX 77505
Time: 9:00am-3:00pm
Doors open at 8:30am, with presentations starting at 9 am
MODERATOR
Dr. James E. Crisp, Professor Emeritus, North Carolina State University
Presentation I
KENNETH HOWELL
Mirabeau B. Lamar’s Grandiose Vision of a Texas Empire
The people of Texas in 1838 elected Mirabeau B. Lamar, a native of Georgia, as the second elected president of the Republic of Texas. Unlike his predecessor, Sam Houston, Lamar opposed the annexation of Texas to the United States. Instead of turning over the sovereignty of the republic to their eastern neighbor, Lamar envisioned a vast Texas Empire, stretching from the Sabine River and the Gulf Coast westward to the Pacific Ocean and southward to include Mexico and perhaps even most, if not all, of South America. Lamar’s visions of empire were shared by many of his fellow Texans, but not all. Thus, his desire to build an empire met formidable opposition, which, in part, eventually foiled his efforts. Lamar’s desire to build an empire influenced almost every decision he made during his presidency. This presentation will highlight the young Georgian’s political development prior to arriving in Texas and demonstrate how Lamar’s southern roots impacted his grandiose vision for the future of the Republic.
Presentation II
KENNETH STEVENS
Innocents Abroad: Seeking U.S. Recognition of the Republic of Texas
As an independent nation from 1836 to 1845, Texas practiced a vigorous foreign policy. Though the founders of the republic often argued among themselves about the direction their policy should take, they universally agreed on the need to be diplomatically recognized by other nations, starting with their sister republic, the United States. Armed with a good deal of confidence but little experience, a succession of Texan officials and diplomats struggled to achieve their goal.
Presentation III
CHIP DAWSON
The Army and the Texas Republic
The Republic of Texas struggled to finance and supply an army for the new nation. Texas government officials drafted regulations and designed a ‘regular’ army but often needed to call upon short-term volunteers to supplement the regular force to defend the nation. Despite difficulties in maintaining the regular army, Texans intended to create an army along with other basic elements of a government for the Republic.
Lunch
12:00pm
The Box Lunch has sold out. Attendees may still bring their own lunch, though.
Please be sure to plan ahead if you did not purchase a box lunch when you registered.
Presentation IV
JIM KEARNEY
The German contribution to the Republic of Texas with special emphasis on the “Society for the Protection of German immigrants in Texas”
German immigrants began settling in Texas during the colonial period. Friedrich Ernst, the “Father of German Emigration to Texas,” inspired many German emigrants to choose Texas over the US by virtue of a glowing letter he wrote back to family and friends in the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg in 1832. The extended Kleberg/von Roeder family, to take an important example, responded and subsequently played an oversized role in both the republican and statehood periods of Texas. The process of chain emigration, inspired by the Ernst letter, continued unabated throughout the republican and early statehood periods. It was, however, augmented in a big way by emigration sponsored by the “Society for the Protection of German immigrants in Texas,” – Adelsverein in shorthand. Both processes contributed immensely to the viability of the republic, but the Adelsverein played an outsized role. The efforts of this corporation of German noblemen straddled the republican and early statehood periods, but its role was nevertheless significant and foundational to the republican experience.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
At the conclusion of the final presentation, the audience will be given an opportunity to ask questions of the speakers.
Sunday, April 30, 2023
The Battleground tour was cancelled