Austin, Stephen Fuller (1793–1836), a Texas pioneer, often called the founder of the state of Texas. He brought hundreds of American families into Texas, and was perhaps the most important figure in the movement for Texas independence. Texas' capital city is named in his honor.
Austin was born on the southwestern frontier of Virginia. Upon the death of his father, Moses Austin, young Austin took over his plans to create a settlement in the Texas territory of Mexico. In 1821 Austin established the first legal colony of Americans in Texas, on the Gulf coast south of present Houston, and by 1825 had moved 300 families there. Other colonists followed, and soon the Mexicans in Texas were far outnumbered by the Americans.
Angered by actions of the Mexican government that they considered unjust, the American settlers began to demand more political independence. One of their goals was to make Texas, then linked with the state of Coahuila, a separate Mexican state. In 1833 Austin went to the Mexican capital to propose that Texas be separated from Coahuila. An indiscreet letter that he wrote in a moment of anger was intercepted by the government. He was accused of planning revolution and was imprisoned for more than a year.
Released in 1835, Austin returned to Texas shortly before the settlers revolted against Mexico. He served briefly as commander in chief of the revolutionary army, then was sent to Washington, D.C., as a member of a commission that tried unsuccessfully to obtain recognition of the independence of Texas. After Texas gained independence in 1836, Austin ran for the Presidency of the Republic of Texas; he lost to Sam Houston. Austin became Houston's secretary of state, but died shortly after taking office.
