According to the Texas Escapes website, "Columbus has the distinction of being "the oldest surveyed and platted Anglo-American town in Texas.(1 & 2)"
From 1821 until the present, the town of Columbus, as we know it today, has been a continuously occupied Anglo-American settlement. The settlement began as part of Stephen F Austin's "Old 300" settlers from the land grant the Mexican government gave to his father, Moses Austin. Stephen Austin inherited the grant and formed the group of settlers who originally came with him to develop and live in the land thus granted. Some settled in the location that has become Columbus, TX and Anglo-Americans have stayed in Columbus ever since.
Wikipedia gives this history of the town of Columbus, TX:
"Columbus was established in 1837. The area was first populated in 1821 on the legendary site of Montezuma's Indian village. Then in 1822 land grants were issued to members of Stephen F. Austin's Old Three Hundred, who included Benjamin Beason (originally spelled Beeson). Beason arrived in 1821, then received his land grant in 1822 and settled on the Colorado River with his wife Elizabeth "Betsy" and family. By late December of 1821, colonists Robert H. Kuykendall with his brother Joseph, and Daniel Gilleland arrived in the area of present-day Columbus also. In 1822, Benjamin Beason began operating a ferry across the Colorado River, and the settlement became known as Beason's Ferry or Beason's Crossing. Beason also established a gristmill, gin and a sawmill, and his wife operated a boarding house. Beason's Crossing became part of Austin's colony in 1822, when the colony was divided into two districts by Mexican governor José F. Trespalacios. The Mexican government granted the rights to establish a town and locals elected town officials. John J. Tumlinson, Sr. was elected alcalde, with Robert Kuykendall captain and Moses Morrison lieutenant. Tumlinson's land adjoined Beason's land, making up present-day Columbus. Tumlinson was killed by the Indians in 1823. In 1834, after the Tumlinson children inherited the estate, they sold land to William Dewees, who was married to Benjamin Beason's daughter, Lydia. Dewees's land grant was near the site of present-day Glidden, Texas. By 1836, Beason's Ferry Crossing was home to over twenty-five families. During the fight for Texas Independence, Sam Houston and his men camped along the banks of the Colorado River near Beason's Crossing. Following the Battle of the Alamo, Santa Anna's army headed for San Jacinto, and Sam Houston ordered that Beason's Crossing be burned during the Runaway Scrape. Beason's Crossing was officially renamed Columbus after the population returned....(3)"
Furthermore, according to the Texas State Historical Association, Columbus went through a rough patch between the Civil War and the Great Depression. During part of that time, the town was unincorporated but was still an active, viable town. It was just governed by the county government instead of the corrupted former city government. Here is part of what the TSTA website states: "Columbus was incorporated on August 22, 1866, after the Civil War, under the legislative act of January 28, 1858. The latter half of the nineteenth century was marred by almost continual violence. A fresh wave of killings in 1906 prompted the citizens of Columbus to petition the mayor and city council to reestablish the office of city marshall, abolished in 1903. The council voted three to two against the measure. Incensed by the council's lack of responsiveness, the citizens then approached county judge J. J. Mansfield, who ordered an election to decide the fate of the city charter. By a vote of ninety-nine to thirty-five Columbus was disincorporated, and the county commissioners' court took over daily operation of city government. Columbus remained unincorporated until 1927, by which time the population had risen to 3,100. The population declined during the Great Depression and did not climb above 3,000 again until the mid-1950s.(4)"
Lots of Texas historical markers are found in and around Columbus, TX testifying to the settlers of Austin's Old 300. The large marker on the Courthouse Square titles "Colorado County, city of Columbus" (5), the Abram Alley Log Cabin marker at the site of the log cabin and the marker near Beason's (Beeson's) Crossing (5)are two examples of the documentation used to substantiate the claim that Columbus, TX is the oldest continuously occupied Anglo-American settlement in Texas. Any earlier settlements would not claim Anglo-American heritage, being either Spanish or Mexican origins.
Additional sources:
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