FIRST - Black Capitalist in Texas, Nacogdoches TX
N 31° 36.209 W 094° 39.384
15R E 342863 N 3497676
A sign of history corrects the record and gives a more fuller sketch of William Goyens, an important figure in this part of East Texas for four decades, who, in spite of the racial prejudice of the time, became a successful capitalist and slaveholder
Waymark Code: WMXHTJ
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 01/16/2018
Views: 1
Oh, the history of slavery is America is complex and so very, very interestting.
This waymarked historical sign is located at the Nacogdoches county couerthouse, correcting a 1936 Texas Centennial State historical marker that reads as follows:
"WILLIAM ("BILL") GOYENS
Born a slave in
South Carolina, 1794
Escaped to Texas in 1821.
Rendered valuable assistance
to the Army of Texas, 1836.
Interpreter for the
Houston-Forbes Treaty
with the Cherokees, 1836.
Acquired wealth and
was noted for his charity.
Died at his home on Goyens' Hill
1856.
His skin was black
His heart, true blue.
Erected by the State of Texas
1936"
The waymarked sign reads as follows:
"WILLIAM GOYENS (1794-1856)
TEXAS' FIRST BLACK CAPITALIST
This monument marks the site of a large city lot owned by William Goyens in the 1840s. Contrary to the information on this 1936 Texas Centennial marker, Goyens was not a slave but was born a free man of color in North Carolina in 1794.
William Goyens came to Nacogdoches in 1820, became a prosperous innkeeper and blacksmith, was the gunsmith and armorer for the Mexican army, and built wagons and operated a freight service between Nacogdoches and Natchitoches. He also bought and sold land and became one of the county’s major landholders.
Goyens was active in civic and political life in Nacogdoches and became the chief intermediary between the Indians and the settlers of East Texas. Goyens helped Sam Houston negotiate a peace treaty with Cherokees during the Texas Revolution.
When free negroes were banned from Texas after 1840, the leading citizens of Nacogdoches petitioned Congress and gained amnesty for Goyens, who lived the last part of his life on Goyens Hill, four miles west of Nacogdoches. William Goyens died in 1856, leaving an estate of 12,423 acres, a considerable amount of money and goods, five slaves, and a rich and respectable reputation.
This William Goyens Centennial marker was moved from its original location in a woods pasture near Goyens Hill to this more visible and protected site."
A free black man from South Carolina who was a slave owner himself -- oh my.
FIRST - Classification Variable: Person or Group
Date of FIRST: 01/01/1820
More Information - Web URL: [Web Link]
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