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 Site of Capitol of the Republic of Texas - Houston, TX Posted by:  Raven
N 29° 45.615 W 095° 21.767
15R E 271536 N 3294558
A plaque by the entrance of the historic Rice Hotel in downtown Houston, Texas, denoting the geographical location of the original Capitol of the Republic of Texas from 1837 to 1839 (and briefly in 1843 as well).
Waymark Code: WMZCYG
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 10/21/2018
Views: 8
There's an old 1914 bronze plaque by the entrance to the historic Rice Hotel in downtown Houston, TX which reads: "SITE of CAPITOL of the REPUBLIC of TEXAS 1837-38-39 & 42 --- Commemorating days when after her glorious struggle TEXAS stood an independent nation. --- San Jacinto Chapter Daughters Republic of Texas A.D. 1914" To be clear, the Rice Hotel is actually NOT the original republic's Capitol being mentioned on the plaque... the hotel only resides on the SITE where the old capitol used to be. The original Capitol building was constructed by the Allen brothers in 1836, to be used by President Sam Houston as the Republic of Texas Capitol from 1837 to 1839 (and intermittently again in 1843). The building was eventually leased to various hotel operators and went through several name changes -- including the "Houston House" and the "Barnes House" -- before being demolished in 1881 in order to construct the Victorian-style 5-story Capitol Hotel. This building also got eventually demolished, to be replaced by the current 17-story Rice Hotel which was built in 1913. --- A brief history of the capitals -- and associated capitols -- of the Republic of Texas, per the Texas Almanac: " Capitals of the Republic of Texas
The provisional government of the Republic of Texas met at Washington-on-the-Brazos March 1, 1836. This convention, in which all powers of sovereignty were claimed and exercised, adopted the Declaration of Independence on March 2. They also wrote a constitution and inaugurated executive officers. Because of the movement of Santa Anna's troops, President Burnet selected Harrisburg on Buffalo Bayou as the temporary capital.
As Mexican troops moved eastward after their victory at the Alamo, President Burnet and part of his cabinet boarded the steamboat Cayuga at Harrisburg on April 15, 1836, making it the de facto capital of the Republic until the Texas officials went ashore at Galveston on April 26. The capital then moved to Velasco until October.
In October 1836, Columbia (today's West Columbia) became the first capital of an elected government of the Republic of Texas. President Houston, on Dec. 15, 1836, ordered the seat of government removed to Houston. The government began operating from Houston on April 19, 1837.
In 1839, the Capital Commission selected the "site of the town of Waterloo, on the north bank of the Colorado" as the permanent capital. This was confirmed by the Texas Congress Jan. 19, 1839, and the place was renamed Austin in honor of Stephen F. Austin. President Mirabeau B. Lamar and his cabinet moved there October 17, 1839. When Mexican troops threatened San Antonio in March 1842, President Sam Houston ordered the government moved to Houston. Officials moved to Washington-on-the-Brazos, in September, and Houston sent men to Austin to fetch the archives. Austin citizens feared that if the papers were moved, Austin would lose its status as capital permanently. In an action known as the Archive War, the citizens stopped Houston's men and returned the archives to Austin. Austin became the capital again in 1844.
Capitols of Texas
No trace is left of most of the early buildings in which the seat of government was housed. [...] A replica of the one-story frame building that served as the Capitol at Columbia has been built at West Columbia. A frame structure where the Rice Hotel stands today was the Capitol at Houston. When Austin was selected as the capital, several log buildings were used until the first permanent structure was erected. This burned Nov. 9, 1881, and a temporary Capitol located off the Capitol grounds at the head of Congress Avenue served until completion of the present structure, which was opened May 16, 1888."
Group that erected the marker: Daughters of the Republic of Texas
URL of a web site with more information about the history mentioned on the sign: [Web Link]
Address of where the marker is located. Approximate if necessary:
909 Texas Avenue
Houston, TX USA
77002
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Visit Instructions:
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