May Timeline
May 1
1718 - San Antonio de Valero (the Alamo) was established. It was moved to its present day site in 1724.
1912 - A causeway connecting Galveston with the mainland of Texas was opened.
1913 - Texas Ranger Captain John Armstrong died on his ranch in Willacy County, TX. His most famous adventure was capturing John Wesley Hardin.
May 2
1822 - Proclaimed as Augustin I, Emperor of Mexico, Augustin de Iturbude signed the permit for Stephen F. Austin’s colony, the first of such permits to be signed.
May 3
1689 - Alonso de Leon’s expedition found the remains of LaSalle’s Fort St. Louis and discovered two Frenchmen with the Tejas Indians. They began the return trip to Mexico City.
1863 - A U.S. Navy landing party on Joseph Island was attacked and repulsed.
May 4
1836 - During this month, Toby and Brother Company was asked to be purchasing agents for the new Republic of Texas. To raise money, they sold 500,000 acres of Texas land for at least 50 cents an acre.
May 5
1718 - Martin de Alarcon founded San Antonio de Bexar Presidio and the Villa de Bexar.
1824 - The provinces of Texas and Coahuila were made as one state by the Mexican Congress. Texas was to be administered by a political chief.
May 6
1834 - Feeling that Mexico was not ready for democracy, Santa Anna turned ’dictator’. He was also dictator from 1841-1845.
May 7
1846 - Zachary Taylor marched toward Brownsville and Fort Brown with guns, men and wagons. Fort had been established by Taylor to house troops in the Mexican War. Today, Texas Southmost College stands there.
May 8
1744 - The cornerstone of the Alamo was laid.
1846 - The Battle of Palo Alto, the first battle of the Mexican War, was fought.
1888 - The present capitol building was accepted by the Capitol Building Board and Capitol Building Commissioners.
May 9
1840 - Sam Houston and Margaret Maffette Lea were married.
1846 - Gov. James P. Henderson was granted leave in order to take command of the Texas troops in the Mexican War. After the war he returned as Texas’ governor.
1846 - The Battle of Resaca de la Palma, the second battle of the Mexican War, was fought.
May 10
1865 - The 9th governor of Texas, Francis Lubbock, joined with Confederate President Jefferson Davis as they fled south after the evacuation of Richmond. They were captured on this date near Irvinsville, GA. Lubbock was imprisoned for six months in solitary confinement.
May 11
1861 - The Austin State Hospital opened under the name ’State Lunatic Asylum’, with twelve patients. It is the oldest such hospital in Texas.
1953 - A destructive tornado ripped through Waco, killing 114 people.
May 12
1903 - The ’Eyes of Texas’ was first heard at a University of Texas Glee Club performance. The president of the University always told the students to do their best because ’The eyes of Texas are upon you’. Student John Lang Sinclair penned the words while using ’I've Been Working on the Railroad’ as the tune.
May 13
1846 - President James K. Polk signed a declaration of war against Mexico.
1856 - Thirty-four camels were unloaded from the Supply docked at Indianola.
1865 - The last battle of the Civil War was fought on this date at Palmetto Ranch in Texas. A month earlier Lee had surrendered to Grant.
May 14
1815 - Dr. James and Jane Long were married on this day. When James died in 1822, Jane continued his work for Texas and became known as the ’Mother of Texas’.
1836 - Two treaties of Velasco, a public treaty and a secret treaty were signed by President Burnet and Gen. Santa Anna.
May 15
1839 - The battle on the San Gabriels was fought and a letter describing the Cordova Rebellion was found.
1846 - After the Comanche Peak meetings the Keechi, Tonkawa, Waco, Wichita, Comanche and other tribes met. They acknowledged protection and promised to release prisoners.
May 16
1888 - Constructed from native Texas materials, the present Texas capitol was officially opened to the public and dedicated in Austin. The statue on the dome faces south because of anti-Union feelings.
May 17
1755 - The county seat of Webb County, Laredo, was founded by a Spanish land grant.
1835 - The Committee of Safety and Correspondence was organized by settlers of Lavaca County and Gonzales.
1871 - The Salt Creek Massacre occurred when a wagon train was attacked by Indians.
May 18
1839 - During this month, the Texas Rangers declared war on the Cherokees over land disputes.
May 19
1836 - Cynthia Ann Parker, her brother John, Rachel Plummer and several others were taken by Comanches from Parker’s Fort. Cynthia Ann would become the mother of the last Comanche War Chief, Quanah Parker.
May 20
1788 - Henry Smith, provisional governor from November 14, 1835 to March 1, 1836, was born in Kentucky.
1857 - Camp Wood was established as a U.S. military post in Real County on the Nueces River. It was abandoned in March, 1861.
May 21
1893 - The last stone was placed in the Austin dam, and it was declared to be the largest dam in the world. The power house supplied power for the city’s electric street cars.
May 22
1675 - Fernando del Bosque led an expedition from Mexico across the Rio Grande to claim title to the land there. They erected wooden crosses showing ownership.
May 23
1541 - ’The First Thanksgiving’. (see May 24)
1861 - Ben Thompson enlisted in the Second Regiment of Texas Mounted Rifles.
1934 - On this date, Texas Ranger Frank Hamer and five others shot and killed the notorious Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, both outlaws from Dallas.
May 24
1541 - Coronado and his men were taken care of by the Tejas Indians in Palo Duro Canyon. The day before they celebrated with a day of thanksgiving.
1841 - The Battle of Village Creek occurred between Indians, Rangers and citizens.
May 25
1865 - Fort Sabine surrendered to Union troops.
1896 - The Texas division of the United Daughters of the Confederacy was begun at Victoria. They were first organized to sew, make bandages and raise money for the Confederacy.
May 26
1839 - Capt. John Bird led some fifty men into Indian country and ran across Comanches hunting buffalos. The ’Bird’s Creek Indian Fight’ occurred near Temple.
1853 - John Wesley Hardin was born in Bonham, Texas.
May 27
1971 - Audie Murphy, World War II hero from Texas and most decorated soldier of the War, died in an airplane crash in Virginia.
May 28
1813 - The first newspaper printed in Texas was Gaceta de Tejas. It appeared in this month and was printed on front and back of a single sheet of paper, published once and in Spanish.
May 29
1862 - Martial law was declared in Texas.
1863 - A U.S. Navy attack occurred at Port Isabel.
May 30
1872 - One of the first Federal regiments in Texas after the Civil War, the Fourth United States Cavalry, was transferred to Fort Clark in February. During May, Mackenzies cavalrymen fought numerous battles with Kickapoo, Lipan and Mescalero Apaches.
May 31
1865 - Ben Thompson was suspected of having killed Alberto Algerio in Austin. Exactly 12 years later, he was found not guilty of shooting Mark Wilson and Charles Williams at the Capital Theater.