Daughters of the Republic of Texas The Daughters of the Republic of Texas were officially founded in November 1891. The inspiration for the organization came from two young women, Betty Ballinger and Hally Bryan. Cousins, they had spent the summer at the Ballinger home in Galveston reading from Mr. Ballinger's library. Of particular interest to them was The History of Texas by Henderson Yoakum. Miss Bryan's father, Guy M. Bryan, was a charter member of the Texas Veterans Association, an organization started in 1873 and comprised of men who had taken part in the establishment and defense of the Republic of Texas. Talk turned to creating an organization for women who were descendants of Texas pioneers in order to honor and preserve the memories of their ancestors. On November 6, a group met at the Houston home of Mrs. Andrew Briscoe to implement the plan. The name selected for the new group, Daughters of the Lone Star Republic, was officially changed to the Daughters of the Republic of Texas in April 1892 at the association’s first annual meeting. Mrs. Anson Jones, the widow of the last president of the Republic of Texas, was the first president of the DRT. [1] The purpose of the organization is stated in its Bylaws. Specific goals are as follows: To perpetuate the memory and spirit of the men and women who achieved and maintained the independence of Texas. To encourage historical research into the earliest records of Texas, especially those relating to the Revolution of 1835 and the events which followed; to foster the preservation of documents and relics; and to encourage the publication of records of individual service of the soldiers and patriots of the Republic and other source material for the history of Texas. To promote the celebration of March 2 (Independence Day), and April 21 (San Jacinto Day); to secure and hallow historic spots by erecting monuments thereon; and to cherish and preserve the Unity of Texas, as achieved and established by the fathers and mothers of the Texas Revolution. [2] Other honor days were added later: January 26 (Lamar Day); February 19 (Texas Statehood Day); March 6 (Alamo Heroes Day); March 27 (Goliad Heroes Day); the third Saturday in September (Texian Navy Day); October 2 (Gonzales Day); November 3 (Stephen F. Austin's Birthday); and November 6 (Founders Day). The DRT today still upholds the traditions begun in 1891. [3] In 1907, the mission of the DRT to preserve the memory of Texas' early days took on new meaning. Membership of the Texas Veterans Association had declined until only six men were able to attend the 34th Reunion. The veterans voted to allow the DRT to carry on in their place. [4] Thus, in a very real sense, the DRT became the guardians of the heritage of the Revolution and Republic. Soon after its founding, the DRT became involved in preserving historic sites. Best known of these efforts is the preservation of the Long Barrack, one of the two original structures which had comprised Mission San Antonio de Valero, or the Alamo. Two names forever associated with this cause are Adina De Zavala and Clara Driscoll. On January 26, 1905, the Texas State Legislature granted the organization custodianship of the Long Barrack and Alamo Church in a bill entitled "Providing for the Purchase, Care, and Preservation of the Alamo." The legislation says in part: Section 3 . . . the governor shall deliver the property thus acquired, together with the Alamo Church property, already owned by the State [since 1883], to the custody and care of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, to be maintained by them in good order and repair, without charge to the State, as a sacred memorial to the heroes who immolated themselves upon that hallowed ground; . . . . [5] The DRT has taken their charge even further, accepting no tax revenue from any local, state, or federal agency. All money used in preservation of the Alamo comes from donations and sales in the Alamo Gift Museum. It is also worth noting that no fee is charged to visitors. The DRT also manages other historical sites besides the Alamo. These include the following locations:
The organization has been active in the preservation of other significant sites, most notably the San Jacinto Battleground. Monuments and plaques across the State, placed by the DRT, commemorate historic events and individuals. [7] The DRT today has more than 6,400 members on its rolls. The organization is divided into 108 chapters, which in turn, make up ten separate districts within Texas. A twenty-six-member Board of Management oversees the DRT. Eligibility to the DRT is open to "any woman having attained her sixteenth (16th) birthday . . . provided she is personally acceptable to the DRT and is a lineal descendant of a man or woman who rendered loyal service to Texas prior to the consummation of the Annexation Agreement of the Republic of Texas with the United States of America on the nineteenth day of February, eighteen hundred forty-six (19 February 1846)." [8]
1 Daughters of the Republic of Texas, 90 Years of the Daughters: History of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas (Waco, TX: Texian Press, 1981), 2, 5-6; Constitution and By-Laws of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas (Houston: Gray's Printing Office, 1892), 11-12. Back to Text 2 90 Years of the Daughters, 6-7;Daughters of the Republic of Texas: Charter and Bylaws & Manual of Procedure (Austin: The Daughters of the Republic of Texas, Inc., 1996), "DRT Charter," 1-2. Back to Text 3 DRT, Charter and Bylaws & Manual of Procedure, "DRT Charter," 1-2 Back to Text 4 90 Years of the Daughters, 9. Back to Text 5 "An Act Providing for the Purchase, Care, and Preservation of the Alamo," S.H. B. No. 1, January 26, 1905. For the DRT's role in preserving the Alamo, see Lewis Fisher, Saving San Antonio: The Precarious Preservation of a Heritage (Lubbock: Texas Tech University Press); Luther Robert Ables, "The Second Battle of the Alamo," The Southwestern Historical Quarterly 70 (January 1967): 372-412. Back to Text 6 DRT Charter and Bylaws & Manual of Procedure, "Organizational History," 8-11. Back to Text 7 Daughters of the Republic of Texas, The Precious Legacy: Compiled Records Concerning the Texas Veterans Association, Daughters of the Republic of Texas' History, Objects, The Marking of Historical Sites and Graves, compiled by Frances B. Underwood (Austin: The Republic of Texas Museum, 1994). Back to Text 8 DRT Charter and Bylaws & Manual of Procedure, "Bylaws, Article 1, Part B". Back to Text
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