This thesis analyzes the political career of Oran M. Roberts during the critical period from 1850 to 1873. Through a reassessment of Roberts's extensive personal papers in the context of modern historical scholarship, the author explains how Roberts's political philosophy reflected the biases and prejudices typical of his era, as well as his own material interests and ambitions. Topic areas covered include Roberts's position on the Compromise of 1850, his constitutional philosophy, his involvement in the secession movement in Texas (including his service as president of the state secession convention), his military career during the Civil War, his participation in Presidential Reconstruction, his views on Congressional Reconstruction, and his role in the process of "redemption" in Texas.

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This work is a study of white Texans' attitudes toward their role in the federal Union and their right to secede from it during the antebellum period. The central question of the study is why did people so strongly Unionist in 1846 became so strongly secessionist by 1861. In tracing this significant shift in Texans' sentiment, the author especially emphasizes the racial attitudes of white Texans, their emotional defense of the institution of slavery, and their strong conviction that the Negroes, if emancipated, would destroy white society. Of special importance to this study is the relationship of Texans' racial attitudes to their attitudes toward the Union.

Includes summaries of legislation from 1856 to 1949 regarding the blind, deaf and dumb, the mentally deranged, child welfare, the physically ill, and the aged. Also includes histories of schools and institutions established, including Deaf and Blind institute for Colored youths, State Lunatic Asylum, Epileptic Colony, Insane Asylum for Negroes, State Juvenile Training School, The State Orphan's home.

The study challenges many traditional stereotypes of Texas during Reconstruction. Contrary to what Democrats charged, the Davis government did not levy exorbitant taxes. Radical taxes seemed high in comparison to antebellum taxes, because antebellum governments had financed operations with indemnity bonds, but they were not high in comparison to taxes in other states. Radical taxes constituted only 1.77 percent of the assessed value of property in Texas, which was lower than the average for the United States and about the same for other states undergoing Reconstruction. In Texas most of the tax increases during Reconstruction were made necessary by the Civil War and the increase in population. The tax increases paid for state and local governments, frontier and local protection, public buildings, internal improvements, and public schools. Edmund J. Davis, Radical governor, contributed significantly to Texas government when he attempted to focus attention on reforming the tax system,limiting state expenses to state income, limiting state aid for railroad companies, and protecting the public from railroad company abuses.

This thesis studies the issue of unionism in Texas during the era of the Civil War.

"The purpose of this study was to show the position of Texas in the relations between the United States and Mexico from 1876 to 1910. With this thought in mind, the general problem has been to link the two countries through Texas. The Texas border relations between the United States and Mexico during this period were interesting because they showed the continued success of the efforts of the past years in building up better principles of settlement. " --leaf 129

Oran Milo Roberts was at the center of every important event in Texas between 1857 and 1883. He served on the state supreme court on three separate occasions, twice as chief justice. As president of the 1861 Secession Convention he was instrumental in leading Texas out of the Union. He then raised and commanded an infantry regiment in the Confederate Army. After the Civil War, Roberts was a delegate to the 1866 Constitutional Convention and was elected by the state legislature to the United States Senate, though Republicans in Congress refused to seat him. He served two terms as governor from 1879 to 1883. Despite being a major figure in Texas history, there are no published biographies of Roberts. This dissertation seeks to examine Roberts's place in Texas history and analyze the factors that drove him to seek power. It will also explore the major events in which he participated and determine his historical legacy to the state.

The Mexican Revolution probably affected Texas more than any other state. As the Revolution intensified, Texans responded with increased efforts to shape the Mexican policies of the Woodrow Wilson administration. Some became directly involved in the Revolution and the U.S. reaction to it, but most Texans sought to influence American policy toward Mexico through pressure on their political leaders in Austin and Washington. Based primarily on research in the private and public papers of leading state and national political figures, archival sources such as the Congressional Record and the Department of State's decimal file, major newspapers of the era, and respected works, this study details the successes and failures that Texans experienced in their endeavors to influence Wilson's Mexican policies.

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