The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 99, July 1995 - April, 1996 Page: 5
626 p. : ill. (some col.), maps, ports. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
1995 The Partnership of Stephen F. Austin and Joseph H. Hawkins 5
Austin had found a benefactor, and he was grateful. But while
Hawkins's generosity was freely given, it rested upon a shaky foundation.
He had left Kentucky a few years earlier under financial duress, a victim
of the same unstable economic conditions that had ruined Moses and
Stephen Austin and many others on the American frontier during and
after the War of 1812. In 1815 Hawkins and his brother Littleberry had
been "compelled to Dispose of their property" in a manner that appar-
ently netted little return.'0 Austin himself acknowledged in January 1821
that while "Mr. Hawkins is a lawyer of the [highest] standing in this
place-he is not rich ... ."n Hawkins's generosity would contribute sig-
nificantly to his own financial undoing in the coming years, an undoing
that figures prominently in the subsequent story of the Austin-Hawkins
partnership.
To the probable surprise of just about everyone but himself, Moses
Austin succeeded in his mission to Texas. Returning to Missouri after se-
curing permission to establish his colony, the ailing Moses did two
things. First, he wrote to his son's friend Hawkins, and proposed that
Hawkins take a "joint interest" in the colonization scheme. Next, he
wrote to Stephen, urging him to "Discharge your Doubts, as to the En-
terprise. ... raise your Spirits times are changing a new chance presents
itself nothing is now wanting but Concert and firmness."'2
Nearly everybody concerned with the project was more excited about
it than Stephen. A letter from his brother-in-law, James Bryan, did more
to convince him than did his father's urgings, but the enthusiasm of
Joseph Hawkins may have been the decisive factor in Austin's decision to
participate actively in his father's scheme. "[B]elieving the enterprise
laudable, and perhaps promising some reward to those who would toil
in its prosecution," Hawkins wrote, "I agreed to meet the proposition of
[Moses Austin], and take a joint interest in the grant and settlement. .. ."
Now an active partner in the decision-making, Hawkins explained that
he and Stephen "both concluded it was best for him [Stephen] to set
out immediately and meet the Spanish officers waiting at Nachitoches,
to conduct him to the grant...." Hawkins advanced Stephen "all the
funds he desired for the expedition and have promised to furnish more
any case, nothing more is known of Austin's journalistic career, and he never mentioned it in his
surviving correspondence.
10 Lexington Kentucky Gazette, Oct. 30, 1815; Kentucky Historical Society, "Joseph H.
Hawkins."
" Stephen F. Austin to His Mother,Jan. 2o, 1821, Austin Papers, I, pt. 1, p. 374.
" Joseph H. Hawkins to Mrs. Maria Austin, June 27, 1821, Austmn Papers, I, pt. 1, p. 398 (1st
quotation); Moses Austin to Stephen F. Austin, May 22, 1821, ibid., p. 393 (2nd quotation). It is
possible that Moses Austin and Joseph Hawkins had met some time in past years, but more likely
Stephen had simply told Moses of Hawkins's interest in the Texas plan.
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Periodical.
Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 99, July 1995 - April, 1996, periodical, 1996; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101217/m1/33/: accessed May 6, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.