Early Statehood and the Antebellum Periods
Late in December of 1845, the United States Congress approved the Texas State Constitution, and Texas became as a state. Prior to statehood, San Antonio and the Texas frontier was a dangerous place full of uncertainty. As a result of the continuous warfare and exile of Mexican sympathizers, San Antonio’s population had dwindled down to about 800 citizens by 1846 (Fehrenbach 2009). Following Texas’s statehood, San Antonio began to grow quickly with many new settlers establishing homes in the vicinity of the missions near existing settlements such as La Villita (THC 1972).