Excellent Republic of Texas Letter Describing Plans for the Capital City of Austin, 1839, Plus

Lot 360

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Cincinnati , OH 45232
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American History, Featuring the Property of N. Flayderman & Co. by Cowan's Auctions

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American History, Featuring the Property of N...

By Cowan's Auctions

Jun 9, 2017 - Jun 10, 2017

Set Reminder 2017-06-09 10:00:00 2017-06-10 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : American History, Featuring the Property of N. Flayderman & Co. https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/cowans/american-history-featuring-the-property-of-n-flayderman-co-2392 Cowan's Auctions dawnie@cowans.com

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Lot Description

Lot of 2, including 3pp ALS from W.D. Shelton to his brother about the Republic of Texas, ca 1839, and his 1862 Civil War discharge document.

W.D. Shelton was an ambitious man who saw potential in the lawlessness of the newly formed Republic of Texas. He wrote his brother, James R. Shelton:

I wish, but feeling, determined in my own mind to be a citizen of Texas… No country probably under the sun, offered so extensive a field for the lawyer, as this…I am now preparing myself, and will by the next term court, in September be ready, enter this extensive field of operation with no other determination than excelling… It is true that Texas sprang into existence under peculiar circumstances, and from her birth, as a nation up to the present time has been seen of wide and I say, wild speculation a field for fraud…But this is not all, Texas….(Republic of Texas, San Augustine, May 10, 1839).

Shelton did not attempt to describe the landscape to his brother, but he discussed the vast opportunities for speculation in land and business. He also spoke about the establishment of many aspects of the city, including a new capital.

Counties have been appointed to locate the Seat of Government, in other words to select the most suitable location to affix the capital of the Republic upon at the foot of the mountains at a place called Waterloo on the Colorado River. The city will be called The City of Austin.

Establishing Austin as the capital was more difficult than anticipated. President Mirabeau B. Lamar and his cabinet moved there October 17, 1839, but between encroaching Mexican troops threatening to take the city and Sam Houston's men trying to move the Republic of Texas national archives from Austin to Houston in 1842, the city struggled to maintain permanent status as the capital. Despite numerous challenges, Austin was officially named the state capital in 1845 at the same time that the annexation of Texas to the United States was approved.

Despite his optimism about opportunities in Texas, Shelton was unsuccessful in his efforts. He failed to start a profitable practice in Texas and moved back home to Columbia, TN. He remained there until at least 1861, when, at the onset of the Civil War, he enlisted in the Confederate Army. He mustered into the 2^nd Tennessee Volunteers, Co. B, but by June of the next year he applied for discharge due to chronic bronchitis. Offered in the lot are his discharge papers. On the application, surgeon Thomas Mattingly wrote, at his advanced age (58 yrs) he is not likely to recover (Baldwin, June 6, 1862). His superiors approved the discharge. Instead of returning to Columbia, he resettled in Tupelo, MS.

Condition

Toning of the letter page with some smudging of the ink which can make it difficult to read at times. Typical folds on the letter and discharge. The discharge has some brittleness at the folds and oxidation of the ink. Shelton goes into much greater detail about the happenings of the new country and his own thoughts. It reads beautifully. The quotations chosen are only a small sample.
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