The only successful European impresarios in mid-nineteenth
century Mexican Texas—men authorized to bring immigrants
to settle the vast spaces of Mexico's northern territories—were
Irish. On their land grants, Irish settlers founded Refugio and San
Patricio and went on to take active roles in the economic and
political development of Texas.
	
    It required a hardy spirit to weather the perils that accompanied
these opportunities—the long journey, shipwrecks, hostile
Indians, and disease—and Irish pioneers proved fit for the task.
They were not seeking relief from famine or English oppression in
their own country. What they were seeking, and what they
obtained, was land.

     Graham Davis tells this Irish-Texan story of the search for land
by recounting the experiences of the original impresarios John
McMullen, James McGloin, James Power, and James Hewetson,
and he finishes the book with a description of the ranching empire
of Power's nephew, Thomas O'Connor.

    In between, he examines the marriages, commercial contacts,
political alliances, and language ties that "Mexicanized" these
successful entrepreneurs. Living in the heart of the war zone, some
of the Irish settlers fought for independence while others remained
loyal to the Mexican government that had made them citizens and
given them land.

   Davis offers a vivid picture of the hardships of pioneer life and
the building of communities, churches, and schools. He describes
how Irish ranchers had the opportunity to thrive after the
annexation of Texas and emphasizes their willing acceptance of
Mexican ranching methods. He makes a convincing case that the
Irish came to Texas not as victims but as entrepreneurs and 
opportunists in search of land.

_________________________________________________________

GRAHAM DAVIS  teaches history and Irish studies at Bath Spa
University College in Newton Park, England.


Number Ninety-two: Centennial Series of the Association of
Former Students, Texas A&M University


What people are saying about this book


"By widening the lens of both Texan and Irish emigration history to 
include Spanish-speaking Irish opportunity seekers, Davis offers his 
readers a provocative and lively account of overlooked pioneers 
whose impact on the formation of Texan culture, must be unearthed 
if that culture is to be fully understood."—Irish Studies Review, 2003

". . . an important step forward in the re-writing of the history of
ethnicity in North America. A compelling and significant piece of
scholarship."—Donald Harman Akenson, Queen's University, Ontario,
and the University of Liverpool

". . . based on exhaustive research in Mexican as well as Texan
archives, and—what makes his study most engaging—on the
letters and memoirs of Irishmen and women who actually braved
the hardships and dangers of pioneer life on the early Texas
frontier."—Kerby Miller, University of Missouri-Columbia