Where Are The Archives?
The Archives War
How It All Started
On a beautiful spring day in March of 1842, a Mexican force under General Rafael Vasquez invaded Texas. Many Texans were not prepared for this attack. Vasquez had with him 700 soldiers and attacked many Texas cities including San Antonio, Goliad, Refugio, and Victoria. Which was was caused by the actions of the Lamar Administration. On March 10th, President Sam Houston called an emergency session of the Texas Congress. " I have decided that the government archives be withdrawn from the capital, due to the fear of many Texans that the Mexican forces will attack Austin, " Sam Houston stated.
Sam Houston
Sam Houston was the president of Texas at that time, working in his second term.
Angelina Eberly
Angelina was a resident who lived in Austin, and led a group of people to stop the rangers from taking the archives to Houston.
Austin Texas, 1843
This is where the Archives War took place.
The Archives
Is There A New Capital?
Residents in Austin opposed this move, thinking that this would make Houston the capital again. President Houston sent a company of rangers under Col. Thomas I. Smith and Captain Eli Chandler to Austin, in December, to remove the archives. Many bystanders said that once the rangers started to load the wagons, a group led by Angelina Eberly fired a cannon at them. " I don't wanna move our nations capital back to Houston. The capital has moved to many places. I'm not willing to have it moved again, " says Mrs. Eberly.
Back In Austin
On January 1st, 1843 the vigilance committee seized a cannon from the arsenal and over took the wagon with the archives. Only a small amount of shots were fired, before the rangers gave up to avoid any blood. This short conflict, the Archives War, concluded with the archives back in Austin. Many Texans were happy that the archives were to stay in Austin, the place named after the father of Texas.