Texans are celebrating their independence this weekend. It was 183 years ago Saturday when 59 delegates from across the state voted to formally split from Mexico.
Dr. Stephen Hardin, a state historian at McMurry University in Abilene, says the revolution was prompted by what's known as the Law of April 6, 1830 to limit the number of U.S. citizens flooding into Mexican Texas at the time.
“This was an attempt, not necessarily to kick out the people that were there, but to curb this unrestricted and illegal immigration,” he says.
“When he heard about this law, Stephen F. Austin chuckled and said 'You might as well try to dam the Mississippi with a dam of straw.'”
What followed was the "Come and Take It" Battle of Gonzalez, fall of the Alamo, Goliad and victory at San Jacinto.
“No other state has an Alamo. No other state was an independent nation for 10 years. Texans can and do take pride in that,” says Hardin.
Events are planned all weekend across the state -- including a Fun Run/Walk Saturday at the San Jacinto Museum of History and two-day celebration at the Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site.