Texas History Minute

southwestern portion of the territory

Dr. Ken Bridges

History knows Stephen F Austin as one of the great heroes of Texas History So often in life, a twist of fate or one simple decision can push a man in a completely different direction As it turns out, the “Father of Texas,” as Austin has been called, almost became one of the great figures of Arkansas History instead.

Stephen Fuller Austin was born in Austinville, Virginia, in 1793 He was one of five children, two of whom died in childhood His father, Moses Austin, established the namesake community as he sought to develop a lead mine in the area However, after a few years, the mine played out and the family moved west Eventually, they settled in Missouri, where Moses Austin established a new lead mining community west of the Mississippi River However, it was still Spanish territory for six more years until the Louisiana Purchase in 1803

His father sent him to a private boarding school in 1804 A few years later, Austin attended Transylvania University in eastern Kentucky, where he graduated in 1810 He rejoined his family shortly afterward In 1814, he ran for a seat in the Missouri Territorial Legislature, winning decisively At the age of 21, he was barely old enough to vote, much less to hold a seat in the legislature

In 1819, the economic panic of that year destroyed the Austin family businesses The elder Austin went to Mexico and received a massive land grant from the Spanish government, which was trying to bring settlers into southern and eastern Texas The younger Austin went south into the newly established Arkansas Territory, which had just been separated from the Missouri Territory in March as Missouri headed to statehood

Austin scraped together money to buy land near the Arkansas River near the potential location of the new territorial capital The move from Arkansas Post near the Mississippi River to the location of Little Rock in the central part of the territory reaped huge dividends for Austin He continued to invest in real estate and businesses across Arkansas and eventually settled in Hempstead County, in the

By October, Territorial Secretary Robert Crittenden was anxious to solidify his own power base in Arkansas Though the newly appointed territorial governor had yet to even show up in Arkansas, Crittenden took up the role of acting governor energetically, organizing political offices and putting his own stamp on affairs Crittenden called for an election for November 20, a little more than six weeks away, for the territorial legislature and for a territorial delegate to Congress James Woodson Bates, a Virginia native, lawyer, and ally of Crittenden, jumped into the race for delegate Though it was a non-voting position, the territorywide posting carried much prestige

Austin was caught off guard by the announcement and delayed making a decision about running but ultimately decided to jump into the race, making it a total of six candidates Austin campaigned energetically in the abbreviated campaign, but his late entry caused his name to be left off the ballot in two of the five existing counties in Arkansas at the time It was a close race, with Bates receiving 32 1% of the vote to 26 2% for runner-up Austin

After the arrival of Territorial Governor James Miller of New Hampshire, he took notice of Austin and appointed him as a district judge in the summer of 1820 Though Austin was not formally a lawyer, he accepted graciously Austin served as a judge for a little over a month before deciding to move on to other opportunities He resigned his judgeship and went south to New Orleans where he studied law and learned about his father’s ideas about bringing American settlers into Texas After his father died in 1821, Austin took up his land claims in Texas, bringing in hundreds of families by 1828, ably governing an increasingly prosperous colony Within a few years, he played a decisive role in events leading to Texas seeking its independence from Mexico By the time of his death on December 27, 1836, he was considered to be the “Father of Texas ”

Dr. Bridges is a Texas native, writer, and history professor. He can be reached at drkenbridges@gmail com

Peace, joy, and perfect health for all eternity

I have a few antique clocks and for those who are somewhat familiar with these fascinating machines, you also know what a frustration they are to keep running Recently, I was having problems with a grandfather clock and after a few weeks, I was being exposed for my lack of knowledge and ability when it comes to working on them I can do some tweaking and occasionally I’m rewarded with a bit of luck but more often than not I turn to an older gentleman who lives in my community and I depend on his expertise In this particular situation, he had already made two house calls and it still would not run consistently, then he said something during his visit that caused to me think about what makes us tick, (pun intended) He made a comment about how these mechanisms were so delicate and sensitive, that even the tiniest misalignment can prevent the entire apparatus from operating correctly We can identify how the human body is similar to these complex contraptions and how vulnerable and fragile we really are and only by God’s mercy and grace are we allowed to function as well as we do y Holland life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh” Proverbs 4:22. I’m not presenting some kind of hokey magical formula, but when practicing the presence of God in sincere faith, this becomes a legitimate spiritual principal that can generate contentment within our mind and soul His abundant promises are filled with light and life and all that He desires from us in return is a humble and sincere submission to His will God is truth and He declares that no matter the size of mountain we may face or what type of furnace we might be thrown in, He loves us, wants the best for us and will always be with us opportunity to know God and that our future includes continual joy and perfect health for all eternity Psalm 143:10

Verse of the Week

I’ve had my share of illness, and I’m sure you have too With life being a never-ending classroom of searching and developing, there are a couple of things we can keep in mind as we continue moving forward I believe in prayer, positive faith confessions and learning how to be an optimistic thinker This may not guarantee our miracle, but it can certainly keep us on the right path When walking our dog, I take advantage of this quiet time to talk to God about everything I can think of including my health and wellbeing I’m convinced when we speak God’s Word openly, we are absorbing His hope and healing power into our mind, soul, and body “For they (His Words) are

It’s true we are blessed, but the Lord does not promise a perfect pain-free life We understand that after the fall of mankind in Eden that unfortunately everything including our health has been plagued with a curse I’m reminded about this when I look at my yard and see that no matter how hard I battle against the weeds, they continue to irritate me Vehicles rust and wear out, our decks, fences, and porches rot away and everything is designed to decay, but it’s simply a reality of the natural world There is nothing wrong with doing everything we can to improve our health and our appearance, but at the end of the day, we must face the sobering fact that our body is also designed to be temporary Exercise, dieting, and cosmetic surgery are great, but like the old clocks that run faithfully for many years, there comes a time when all the parts wear out Yes, there will be seasons of aches and pains and for some, there will be serious issues that will require a larger amount of trust and assurance, but whatever may come, may we be committed to devoting our best years to obeying and serving our Lord For those who are in Christ, we can be excited to know this curse will not be present in heaven Darkness and evil will be defeated and everything will be perfectly transformed including our brand new bodies that will last forever Let us appreciate all the good times we have enjoyed and when the end of our pilgrimage finally arrives, we can be filled with confidence and excitement as this life was a brief yet glorious

Memorial Day party on a budget

Hey Taylor - Got a dilemma. I host a big Memorial Day BBQ every year, always a blast but it usually costs a pretty penny This year, my wife and I are trying to get rid of all our credit card debt (plenty of which comes from this annual party, tbh) What can I do? I’ve gotta stop spending but this is tradition! - Wyatt

Hey Wyatt - I hear you You can’t just let go of something important, but you also can’t let a tradition from the past jeopardize your future Sounds to me like you have to change things up a little, but do whatever you can to keep the essence of your annual bash A few ideas that could help:

BYOM I’m not sure how your Memorial Day BBQ usually works, but I love going to cookouts with the Bring Your Own Meat theme

It’s a great twist on your classic potluck, because it spreads out the spending, diversifies the menu, and it doesn’t force anyone aside from the host to do any cooking You get to be in charge of the grill, which I’m just assuming is your preference, and people bring you all sorts of delicious cuts to cook up Having hosted BBQs for big crowds myself, I know how high the food bill can go If people have to bring food for themselves, there’s usually plenty for everyone and it doesn’t all go on your credit card

Change of Location What’s the tradition we’re working with? If it absolutely has to be at your home, then ignore these thoughts. If this is about friends and family spending time together on Memorial Day, are there other places you can make that happen without feeling the financial burden of hosting? Maybe there’s another family you’re close with that wants to share the hosting duties, or perhaps this could

Living with children

become a day at the everyone brings their cooler Traditions are change and evolve w makes sense for the p involved; don’t worr changes making the worse, but rather how tweaks can keep this on without having a impact on your finan

Take things even fur the crazy option Instead of scaling back, what if you took your event to the next level? Again, I’m not sure what your group is into, but if this is a big gathering and a big deal, what would happen if you brought a band, raised a bounce house and charged a modest entry fee? Definitely run this idea by some friends before deciding it’s the way to go But there might be a world in which you do the planning and heavy lifting, and your friends happily cover the cost

The money is your top priority - you can’t fall back on old habits and run up more debt There’s a way for you to have your cake and eat it too, Wyatt, and hopefully one of these options will help get you there!

Taylor Kovar, CEO of Kovar Capital Read more about Taylor at GoFarWithKovar com

Disclaimer: Information presented is for educational purposes only and is not an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies Investments involve risk and, unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial adviser and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein To submit a question to be answered in this column, please send it via email to Question@GoFarWithKovar com, or via USPS to Taylor Kovar, 415 S 1st St, Suite 300, Lufkin, TX 75901

Concerning major behavior problems, parents often tell me they’ve “tried everything ” In more than forty years of doing this “parenting expert” gig, I’ve never run across a parent who was telling the truth about that Since the 1960s, we’ve drifted so far away from a commonsense understanding of the fundamentals of child discipline that most parents have no concept of what “everything” can and in many cases should involve

A recent conversation with a single mom illustrates the point She told me she’d tried “everything” with her disobedient, disrespectful, rebellious thirteen-year-old daughter Turns out that “everything” has consisted of sending her to her room (which is full of entertainment) until she apologizes (which the girl does when it serves her purposes), berating her (which often causes the child to laugh), and taking away her phone for the remainder of the day (one whole day!) In short, as in most cases, “everything” consists of virtually nothing I call it “trying to stop a charging elephant with a fly swatter”

The further problem is that when I suggest pulling out all the stops and actually approximating “everything,” the reaction is often palpable reluctance I can relate to salespeople when they hear, “Well, I’m going to go home and think about it,” knowing they’ll never see the customer again

Example: I told the above mom that if she didn’t stop fooling around with her daughter’s misbehavior, it was only going to get worse I recommended “kicking her out of the Garden of Eden” – that is, shutting her life down to a bare minimum: no phone, no privileges, no sleepovers, no new clothes (unless of necessity and in that event only what will suffice), no visitors, no nothing How long? For a month, and if an incident (defined in advance) occurs before the month is over, the month begins anew the next day

“That’s fairly, um, well, extreme, isn’t it?” Mom stammered

“Not as extreme, by a long shot, as calling you a vile name because you’ve refused one of her typically outrageous requests, or smoking pot before school, or using her phone to send pictures of her body to her juvenile delinquent boyfriend ”

“What if she runs away?”

“Where’s she going to go? You’ll be able to find out where she is within twenty-four hours Go get her and take a policeman along with you That’ll be the end of that ”

“Won’t that pretty much require that I shut my own life down?”

“You’re going to have to restrict your own activities, for sure, but there’s no such thing as an effective consequence that doesn’t inconvenience the person who must enforce it ”

At that point, I became the above salesperson. She needed to think about it and get back to me, which, needless to say, she never did

The problem is that unlike my parents, who grounded me (and rightly so) for the entire summer between high school graduation and going off to college, and parents of that generation, today’s parents want to be liked by their kids; therefore, they’re afraid of their kids In fifty years, the parent-child relationship has turned upside-down and kids know it and take advantage of it

To paraphrase one of the inimitable James Brown’s more famous numbers, “It’s a Child’s, Child’s, Child’s World ”

But the children have no idea how much they are losing in the bargain

Family psychologist John Rosemond: johnrosemond com, parentguru com

John Rosemond has worked with families, children, and parents since 1971 in the field of family psychology In 1971, John earned his masters in psychology from Western Illinois University and was elected to the Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society