The Texas Historian, Volume 58, Number 4, May 1998 Page: 1
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Triangular Relationships:
HOW THREE RACES RELATED TO EACH OTHER
IN CENTRAL TEXAS PRIOR TO THE CIVIL WAR
By Melanie Jacobson, Kirby Hall School, AustinTexas Slaves. Photo courtesy The Center for American History, The University of
Texas at Austin, Prints & Photographs Collection, CN05168.lavery was a controversial
issue throughout the United
States during the ante-
bellum period of 1840-1860,
and there was a vast gap
between the predominant
Northern and Southern views on the
subject. The slavery issue in Texas,
however, was shaped differently be-
cause of the Hispanic population. In
central Texas, there was a triangular
relationship among the Anglo, Afri-
can-American, and Hispanic races
prior to the Civil War. In some ways,
the Hispanics proved to be a compli-
cation for the Anglo slave owners. In
other ways, they were like saviors to
some of the slaves. The Mexican atti-
tudes against slavery had a great effect
on slavery as they worked to under-
mine it locally in a very basic way:
helping the slaves escape.Slavery in central Texas before the
Civil War can be seen as both a tri-
umph and a tragedy. The triumphs
were, however, more momentary than
the tragedies, which had a deeper
impact on the people of Texas. De-
spite all of the disagreements and
disputes over the slavery issue, there
are several positive outcomes which
can be seen when the events in cen-
tral Texas are examined. The fact that
two races with totally different cul-
tures, like the Hispanics and
African-Americans, could help each
other was one of these triumphs. That
these two races could come together
and empathize with each others' lives
was a triumph over the subjugation of
slaves. On the other hand, there were
misfortunes to balance with these tri-
umphs. Even though the Constitu-
tion of the United States of America,which was ratified in 1781, says "We
the people of the United States of
America...," one race was clearly domi-
nant over others. Hispanics were
never thought of as real citizens of
Texas, even though they were na-
tive to the territory, and this was a
great tragedy. Although many
Hispanics helped the slaves escape
from central Texas to Mexico via their
own version of the Underground Rail-
road, many also paid a very unfair
price for their efforts.
In order to understand why the
events in central Texas took place, it is
necessary to examine the conditions
of slave life. The actions of the white
slave owners clearly, but tragically,
dictated the quality of the slaves' lives.
"In Austin, as in other Southern cit-
ies, these bondsmen [slaves] assumed
liberties and displayed an indepen-
dence that violated the prevailing
concept of race relations: white su-
premacy and black servitude." The
white slave owners in central Texas
counties were unhappy because the
slaves were treated as equals by the
Hispanic population. The laws in
Texas were reported to be very lax for
the slaves. The first slaves in Texas
were often allowed to have guns, drink
alcohol, and hire themselves out for
work in Mexico. This worried slave
owners who settled in Texas later. As
a result, because the slave owners were
afraid that their slaves might become
riotous, the owners sometimes be-
came more rigid in their ways. Slavery
in Texas, with the new slave ownersMay 1998 / 1
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Texas State Historical Association. The Texas Historian, Volume 58, Number 4, May 1998, periodical, May 1998; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth391416/m1/3/?q=tex-fron: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Texas State Historical Association.