James B. Wells Jr.
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James B. Wells Jr.
James Babbage "Jim" Wells Jr. (1850–1923) was an American lawyer, rancher, and Democratic Party boss of South Texas. Wells is remembered for the nearly four decades he spent as a political kingmaker from his base in Cameron County, Texas, and as the namesake of Jim Wells County in the same state. Biography Early years James B. Wells Jr. was born July 12, 1850 on St. Joseph Island in Texas, a barrier island on the state's Gulf Coast. He was the son of Lydia Hastings and James B. Wells Sr., both of whom hailed from New England sailing families.Evan Anders, ''Boss Rule in South Texas.'' Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, 1982; pg. 5. The elder James Wells participated in the Texas Revolution of 1835-36 as a privateer, settling on St. Joseph Island after the end of the conflict to raise cattle and operate a merchant ship. As a boy James Wells Jr. lived in comparative isolation on St. Joseph Island, where he received most of his education directly from his mother. As he gr ...
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San José Island (Texas)
San Jose Island or San José Island (also known as Saint Joseph Island) is a barrier island on the Gulf Coast of Texas in the United States. long and wide. The island is oriented generally northeast-southwest, with the Gulf of Mexico on the east and south, Aransas Bay on the west, and Mesquite Bay on the north. At the southern end of the island is Aransas Pass (not to be confused with the City of Aransas Pass which is on the mainland), beyond which is Mustang Island and the town of Port Aransas. Aransas Pass is protected by jetties extending into the Gulf from both Mustang Island and San José Island. The island's northern end used to be separated from Matagorda Island by Cedar Bayou. Cedar Bayou does not run freely through the two islands any longer. History On July 26, 1845, Lt. Chandler of the USS ''Alabama'' waded ashore and planted the first American flag to fly over Texas territory on a sand dune on San Jose Island. Units of the Third Infantry established a small ...
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Rockport, Texas
Rockport is a city in Aransas County, Texas, United States. The population was 8,766 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat. Rockport is adjacent to the town of Fulton, and many refer to the combined communities as "Rockport-Fulton"; however, Rockport and Fulton are legally separate municipalities. History 19th Century Following the Civil War, a number of people considered developing the Live Oak Peninsula. Joseph F. Smith, who had founded the nearby town of St. Mary's in 1850, joined with Thomas H. Mathis and his cousin J.M. Mathis, who were agents of the Morgan Steamship line, and built a wharf at the site of what would later become the town of Rockport, in 1867. The same year, George W. Fulton and his wife, Texas heiress, and Joseph Smith's cousin, Harriet Smith Fulton moved to her extensive land holdings on the peninsula. Fulton also took an interest in the development of Rockport, as well as creating the town of Fulton farther up the coastline. In response, a nascent ...
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Cattle Rustling
Cattle raiding is the act of stealing cattle. In Australia, such stealing is often referred to as duffing, and the perpetrator as a duffer.Baker, Sidney John (1945) ''The Australian language : an examination of the English language and English speech as used in Australia'' Angus and Robertson, Ltd., Sydney, p. 32, In North America, especially in the Wild West cowboy culture, cattle theft is dubbed rustling, while an individual who engages in it is a rustler. Historical cattle raiding The act of cattle-raiding is quite ancient, first attested over seven thousand years ago, and is one of the oldest-known aspects of Proto-Indo-European culture, being seen in inscriptions on artifacts such as the Norse Golden Horns of Gallehus and in works such as the Old Irish ''Táin Bó Cúailnge'' ("Cattle Raid of Cooley"), the ''paṇis'' of the ''Rigveda,'' the ''Mahabharata'' cattle raids and cattle rescues; and the Homeric Hymn to Hermes, who steals the cattle of Apollo. Ireland & ...
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Texas Ranger Division
The Texas Ranger Division, commonly called the Texas Rangers and also known as ''Los Diablos Tejanos'' (), is an State bureau of investigation, investigative law enforcement agency with statewide jurisdiction in the US state of Texas. It is based in the capital city of Austin, Texas, Austin. In the time since its creation, the Texas Rangers have investigated crimes ranging from murder to political corruption, acted in riot control and as detectives, protected the List of governors of Texas, governor of Texas, tracked down fugitives, served as a security force at important state locations, including Alamo Mission, the Alamo, and functioned as a paramilitary force at the service of both the Republic of Texas, Republic (1836–1845) and the State of Texas. The Texas Rangers were unofficially created by Stephen F. Austin in a call-to-arms written in 1823 and were first headed by Captain Morris. After a decade, on August 10, 1835, Daniel Parker introduced a resolution to the Consult ...
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Property Tax
A property tax or millage rate is an ad valorem tax on the value of a property.In the OECD classification scheme, tax on property includes "taxes on immovable property or net wealth, taxes on the change of ownership of property through inheritance or gift and taxes on financial and capital transactions" (see: ), but this article only covers taxes on realty. The tax is levied by the governing authority of the jurisdiction in which the property is located. This can be a national government, a federated state, a county or geographical region or a municipality. Multiple jurisdictions may tax the same property. Often a property tax is levied on real estate. It may be imposed annually or at the time of a real estate transaction, such as in real estate transfer tax. This tax can be contrasted to a rent tax, which is based on rental income or imputed rent, and a land value tax, which is a levy on the value of land, excluding the value of buildings and other improvements. Under a p ...
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Peón
Peon (English language, English , from the Spanish language, Spanish ''wikt:peón#Spanish, peón'' ) usually refers to a person subject to peonage: any form of wage labor, financial exploitation, coercive economic practice, or policy in which the victim or a laborer (peon) has little control over employment or economic conditions. Peon and peonage can refer to both the History of Latin America#Colonial Era, colonial period and post-colonial period of Latin America, as well as the period after the end of slavery in the United States, when "Black Codes (United States), Black Codes" were passed to retain African-American freedmen as labor through other means. Usage In English, ''peon'' (Doublet (linguistics), doublet of ''Pawn (chess), pawn'') and ''peonage'' have meanings related to their Spanish etymology (foot soldier); a ''peon'' may be defined as a person with little authority, often assigned unskilled tasks; an underling or any person subjected to capricious or unreasonable Re ...
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Mexican-Americans
Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the United States, though they make up 53% of the total population of foreign-born Latino Americans and 25% of the total foreign-born population. The United States is home to the second-largest Mexican community in the world (24% of the entire Mexican-origin population of the world), behind only Mexico. Most Mexican Americans reside in the Southwest (over 60% in the states of California and Texas). Many Mexican Americans living in the United States have assimilated into American culture which has made some become less connected with their culture of birth (or of their parents/ grandparents) and sometimes creates an identity crisis. Most Mexican Americans have varying degrees of Indigenous and European ancestry, w ...
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Washington, DC
) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, National Cathedral , image_flag = Flag of the District of Columbia.svg , image_seal = Seal of the District of Columbia.svg , nickname = D.C., The District , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive map of Washington, D.C. , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , established_title = Residence Act , established_date = 1790 , named_for = George Washington, Christopher Columbus , established_title1 = Organized , established_date1 = 1801 , established_title2 = Consolidated , established_date2 = 1871 , established_title3 = Home Rule Ac ...
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Republican Party (U
Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party (Malawi) *Republican Party (Namibia) *Republican Party (Tunisia) Americas Brazil *Republicanos *Party of the Republic, in Brazil * Republican Party (Brazil), active 1945–1965 *Republican Party of São Paulo, active in Brazil 1873–1937 *Republican Party of the Social Order, in Brazil Chile *Republican Party (Chile, 2019) *Republican Party (Chile, 1982), active in Chile 1982-1987 United States * Republican Party (United States), the current major party; active since 1854 *American Republican Party (1843), active circa 1840s *Democratic-Republican Party, active circa 1790s–1820s *Liberal Republican Party (United States), active 1872 * National Republican Party, active circa 1820s *Puerto Rico Republican Party Other Republican Parties ...
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Reconstruction Era
The Reconstruction era was a period in American history following the American Civil War (1861–1865) and lasting until approximately the Compromise of 1877. During Reconstruction, attempts were made to rebuild the country after the bloody Civil War, bring the former Confederate states back into the United States, and to redress the political, social, and economic legacies of slavery. During the era, Congress abolished slavery, ended the remnants of Confederate secession in the South, and passed the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to the Constitution (the Reconstruction Amendments) ostensibly guaranteeing the newly freed slaves (freedmen) the same civil rights as those of whites. Following a year of violent attacks against Blacks in the South, in 1866 Congress federalized the protection of civil rights, and placed formerly secessionist states under the control of the U.S. military, requiring ex-Confederate states to adopt guarantees for the civil rights of free ...
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Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor. Bankrupt is not the only legal status that an insolvent person may have, and the term ''bankruptcy'' is therefore not a synonym for insolvency. Etymology The word ''bankruptcy'' is derived from Italian ''banca rotta'', literally meaning "broken bank". The term is often described as having originated in renaissance Italy, where there allegedly existed the tradition of smashing a banker's bench if he defaulted on payment so that the public could see that the banker, the owner of the bench, was no longer in a condition to continue his business, although some dismiss this as a false etymology. History In Ancient Greece, bankruptcy did not exist. If a man owed and he could not pay, he and his wife, children or servants were forced into " ...
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Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people, with matched weapons, in accordance with agreed-upon Code duello, rules. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in the late 18th century in England, duels were more commonly fought using pistols. Fencing and shooting continued to co-exist throughout the 19th century. The duel was based on a Code of conduct, code of honor. Duels were fought not so much to kill the opponent as to gain "satisfaction", that is, to restore one's honor by demonstrating a willingness to risk one's life for it, and as such the tradition of dueling was originally reserved for the male members of nobility; however, in the modern era, it extended to those of the upper classes generally. On occasion, duels with swords or pistols were fought between women. Legislation against dueling goes back to the medieval period. The Fourth Co ...
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