Podcast: The Mother of Texas? Jane Long's Survival on Bolivar Peninsula

The Texas coast has hosted many movers and shakers from Texas's early history, including a few legendary women in this episode. Today, we're gonna explore the life of the “Mother of Texas”, Jane Herbert Wilkinson Long and much of her story takes place on the Bolivar Peninsula and Galveston Island.

Jane Long's story became a symbol of resilience and independence for women in early Texas, and her story and influence as a woman on the frontier have left an impact for generations. She reached legendary status during her lifetime and lived a long, fascinating life, and some of her most formative experiences happened right along Galveston Bay.

Jane was born in Maryland on July 23rd, 1798. Her family moved to Mississippi Territory when she was around 12 or 13. And in 1815, she married a man named James Long, a surgeon in the U. S. Army. In 1819, the Adams-Onis Treaty, also known as the Transcontinental Treaty, was an agreement between the United States and Spain that ceded Florida to the U. S. and established a boundary line between the U. S. and New Spain. Which would later become Mexico. Although this treaty solved a few territorial disputes, it caused a lot of discord in the regions around the new borders. Shortly after this treaty, James Long banded together an expedition and made his way into Spanish Texas, hoping to gain control and political authority over the area.

Jane Long followed James into Texas, and they first made their way to Nacogdoches. James traveled around the southeastern portion of Texas to rally support to gain control of Texas from New Spain. Jane was following James along every step of the way, often risking her life on the journey through the dangerous and contested countryside. James Long wasn't just a rogue adventurer. He saw himself as a leader of an independent Texas and even declared himself as the head of the provisional government.

James' first expedition ultimately failed. However, neither James nor Jane was ready to give up. In the early spring of 1820, James and Jane made their way to Point Bolivar, where James began to work to establish a defensive fort. When the Longs arrived on the Texas coast, Bolivar was a wild, untamed coastline. Native peoples still roamed the coast like the Karankawa.

This was Jane's first visit to Galveston Bay. Although this exhibition didn't work out for James or Jane either, this short trip left a lasting impression on her and produced a particularly fascinating tale for this young woman.

Around this same time, the notorious pirate Jean Lafitte had established his own base of operations on Galveston Island in 1817, where he lived for several years until roughly May 1820. I say roughly because, with Jane's story taken into account, the timeline gets a little fuzzy here. A few historical accounts suggest that James Long and Jean Lafitte were familiar and friendly.

They shared some common interests in overthrowing the Spanish. There was a brief period in 1820 when they were based across the entrance to Galveston Bay from each other. According to Jane, as Lafitte was abandoning the smoking ruins of his pirate colony on Galveston Island, he extended an invitation to the Longs to dine with him aboard his ship.

James was either not on the Bolivar Peninsula or too busy to attend. But Jane couldn't resist the opportunity to meet Lafitte. Jane later said of the event, "The dinner was sumptuous, and many very entertaining, as well as thrilling adventures were related by several of the party. But all attempts of Mrs. Long to obtain any important information from the host, respecting himself, was adroitly and politely parried, and she was compelled to return with as little knowledge as she had came concerning Lafitte's future operations." Jane stated that that night, Lafitte left Galveston for good.

However, if Jane's account is accurate, Lafitte left in early April instead of May, as is typically historically accepted. Jane just wasn't there in May... Many Texas historians suggest that this meeting never happened. Although Jane wrote it as a firsthand account. It sure does make for a good story, though.

Bolivar Peninsula essentially became Jane's second home as James was off building his rebellion by late 1820. Jane was back at the bustling fort on the Bolivar Peninsula, bringing along her daughter, Anne, and an enslaved young woman named Kian, spelled K-I-A-N. The following year, in August 1821, James and a party of soldiers left on another military excursion, from which they expected to return in just a few weeks. However, weeks and then months passed without any news from James. Slowly, everyone but Jane, now 24 years old and pregnant, Anne, and Kian abandoned the fort as the food supplies dwindled and winter set in.

Jane refused to leave Bolivar, saying, quote, My husband left me here, and I shall stay until he returns end quote. All the soldiers at this fort had made their way back to eastern Texas or back home. The isolation that Jane and crew faced must have been nearly unbearable, and for Jane and crew to sustain themselves, Jane fished and hunted birds in between bursts of firing a cannon toward a group of Karankawa to intimidate them whenever she felt this group may try to encroach on the fort.

The winter of 1821 was particularly harsh, and at one point, Galveston Bay even froze solid. Galveston Bay freezing over is an extremely rare event, but ice has formed over Galveston Bay multiple times in the past 200 years.

Don't forget, Jane was pregnant at this time. During the cold night of December 21st, 1821, Jane gave birth to another daughter, who she named Mary James Long. The following day, she again went hunting while six-year-old Anne collected cold, stun frozen fish, which they then placed in the brine of an empty pickle barrel for storage. The enslaved woman, Kian, played a crucial part in Jane's survival and that of her children. Some accounts suggest she helped care for the newborn and gathered food, and undoubtedly, Kion assisted Jane in those everyday activities, helping the group survive.

On December 26th, She finally received word from her husband. He was alive but being held prisoner in Monterrey. This was no doubt devastating news, but she continued waiting. In February, a ship carrying the first of Stephen F. Austin's colonists sailed into view, bringing food and other supplies with them.

Word began to spread about the plight of Jane, Kian, and the children. Rumors began to spread about James Long's whereabouts. After a lot of debate and persuasion from friends, the harsh winter, dwindling supplies, the threat of Karankawa attacks, and the immense challenge of giving birth in complete isolation were finally enough for Jane to leave Bolivar.

Jane agreed to leave in May of 1822, eight months after James left. On July 8th, she finally received news that James Long had been shot and killed while walking down the street in Mexico City. His death, of course, effectively ended the long expedition as a serious political movement. Jane never remarried, though she was surrounded by some of early Texas most famous bachelors. Sam Houston, Ben Milam, Stephen F. Austin, and Mirabeau Lamar were all long-time friends of Jane's.

Jane became a successful businesswoman, which was rare for a woman of her time. Later in life, she owned land and managed property in Fort Bend County. She opened a boarding house that would become a hub for the men during the Texas Revolution and in the days of the Republic of Texas. Jane Long lived to be 82 years old. She and James had three children. Although only Anne survived into adulthood,

Jane Long claimed to have been the first English-speaking woman to give birth in Texas, thus becoming the "Mother of Texas." However, according to the Texas State Historical Association, this was not actually true.

Census data from as far back as 1807 reveals the number of Anglo-American children born in Texas before 1821, but I think it's safe to say she was the first English speaker to give birth in Bolivar under those conditions. Even so, she played a significant role in some of Texas' early history, and her legacy is still studied today. While she wasn't technically the first Anglo woman to give birth in Texas, her story was widely promoted, making her an example of how Texas history was shaped by legend as much as fact.