HOME | DD

Description
Note: I gave Sam stubble not too long ago so bc of that this is outdated orz
expect me to redraw it as soon as I can :')

since I left my rp account I thought I should make Sam a profile card where I can keep all his info in ;;u;;
I'm gonna try to do this with Lana too btw so keep an eye out for that!!

State Info

➤ Basic
  ○ Official Name(s) | Provincia de Tejas (during Spanish rule), Nuevas Filipinas (secondary during Spanish rule), Coahuila y Tejas (during Mexican rule), Republic of Texas (after independence), State of Texas (after annexation)
  ○ State Nicknames | The Lone Star State (official), The Banner State, The Jumbo State, The Beef State, The Blizzard State
  ○ State Abbreviation | TX
  ○ Name Origin | Comes from the word teyshas (sometimes spelled tejas, tayshas, texias, thecas, techan, teysas, or techas) widely used by the natives of East Texas, especially the Caddo and Hasinais, that usually meant "friends" or "allies"
  ○ Admission to Union | December 29, 1845
  ○ State Number | 28th
  ○ Area | 268,601 sq. mi. (695,674 sq. km.)
  ○ Demonym | Texan, Tejano
  ○ Population | 26.96 million
  ○ Ethnic Groups | 45.8% White, 36.1% Hispanic/Latino, 11.3% Black, 3.5% Asian, 3.2% other
  ○ Religious Demographics | 18.72% Catholicism, 26.41% Protestantism, 8.12% other Christian, 0.24% Judaism, 2.19% Islam, Buddhism, other, 44.32% unaffiliated
  ○ Current Governor | Greg Abbot (Republican)

➤ State Symbols
  ○ State Capital | Austin
  ○ State Motto | Friendship
  ○ State Song | "Texas Our Texas"
  ○ State Bird | Mockingbird
  ○ State Large Mammal | Longhorn
  ○ State Small Mammal | Nine-Banded Armadillo
  ○ State Reptile | Texas Horned Lizard
  ○ State Amphibian | Texas Toad
  ○ State Fish | Guadalupe Bass
  ○ State Insect | Monarch Butterfly
  ○ State Flower | Bluebonnet
  ○ State Tree | Pecan Tree
  ○ State Fruit | Texas Red Grapefruit
  ○ State Vegetable | Sweet Onion
  ○ State Dish | Chili
  ○ State Gem | Blue Topaz
  ○ State Stone | Petrified Palmwood
  ○ State Precious Metal | Silver
  ○ State Sport | Rodeo
  ○ State Instrument | Guitar
  ○ Neighboring States | (U.S.) New Mexico, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas
(Mexico) Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, Chihuahua

Personal Info

➤ Basic
○ Human Name | Samuel Navarro Acosta
○ Nicknames | Tex, Texass, Sam, Sammy (only family and close friends)
○ Gender | Male
○ Height | 6'2" (188 cm)
○ Weight | 214 lbs (97 kg)
○ Birthday | March 2nd (independence from Mexico)
○ Physical Age | 23-24 years old
○ Actual Age | 488 years old
○ Romantic/Sexual Orientation | Demiromantic heterosexual
○ Species | Human personification
○ Race/Ethnicity | Mestizo / Karankawa and Spanish
○ Languages Spoken | Fluent English and Spanish, intermediate German, basic French
○ Belief | Roman Catholicism
○ Personality Type | ENFP
○ Zodiac | Pisces
○ Current Residence | San Antonio
○ Occupation | Animal care technician at the San Antonio Humane Society
○ Relationship Status | Taken
○ XX | Aesthetics

➤ Personality

In reality Sam is not the hardest guy to figure out. When you first meet him he gives off the impression of being this calm friendly guy, and most of the time this is what he tries to be. The Texan will most definitely greet you with a big smile and a firm handshake the first time you meet him. He is really quite neighborly. He loves to give others a helping hand, with this being instilled onto him early on in his life. Once you gain his trust and friendship you can expect this man to be quite the loyal friend as he will try to never let you down. Sam is also quite the caring guy. This is because of how hispanic culture is. So don't be surprised if he hugs you and kisses you on the cheek when you see him, although only if you're a woman. If you're a man you can still expect a warm greeting, just in a less affectionate way. Sam is also quite the gentle person. He'll never treat someone roughly or disrespectfully as he always prefers to be gentleman-like with others. He often calls people sir or ma'am, regardless of their age, out of politeness and respect. Just make sure you never lose his respect or you won't find him to be the best guy you'll want to be on the wrong foot with.

Sam is able to voice himself out well. He is rather good at communicating and understanding others. He gained this skill when he started craving his independence from Mexico back in the 1800s, and it proved to be vital as the years progressed. Like many Texans, Sam is quite the traditional man due to a majority of the state being conservative in the political sense. This does not mean he's completely right wing though. Due to the state's incredibly large diversity he does have a few liberal ideas at times. He does in fact value his religion a lot, with him having been a rather devout Catholic ever since the Spanish first set up missions and presidios in his land. However, one result that may often be seen as negative that came from the Spanish colonization is that Sam absolutely hates being ignored for long periods of time by someone. This is due to how as a province the Spanish government did not pay much attention to him due to how the constant Native American raids on the missions and presidios made it difficult to protect them. Not only that but the province also acted merely as a buffer zone between the French colonies to east and the wealthier Spanish colonies.

Another thing that many people note about Sam is that he can take insults and criticism quite well. This is due to many times in his life after the Anglo settlers came to his land being frequented by discrimination and stereotypical remarks. As a result when something is said to him that may easily offend others, he just tends to laugh it off or just doesn't give much thought to it.

Despite these endearing traits, Sam does have some hindering qualities that can make him a hard individual to get along with at times. He is that he is rather loud with some of his beliefs for one. Sometimes when something is said that he doesn't completely agree with, he'll get into an argument with the person who said it. When this happens an outside hand is usually needed to calm the feud as he is not too keen in admitting he's wrong, even if he knows it. One fact people have to note with him, is that Sam can be reckless to no end. At times it just seems like he completely lacks common sense, not giving much though to actions others may deem as simply being plain stupid. This along with him being quite a hyperactive man isn't exactly the best combo. Another thing is that he can be a little too prideful of himself. He will sometimes start bragging about the things his people have accomplished in the past, much to the annoyance of others. He'll often think he's the best state in the Union, which stems from the large amounts pride most Texans have for their state. Even with all of these faults he tries his best not to act too big headed, as it has many times put him on the wrong foot with others.

➤ Appearance

Sam has the physical appearance of an average twenty-three or twenty-four year old with eyes that are light amber in color, sometimes even appearing to be golden or yellowish. He has a tanned complexion partially due to his mixed Spanish and indigenous heritage and also due to him being out in the sun a lot during the late 1800s. Sam's hair is dark brown in color and will get almost black when it's wet. This signifies the importance of Texas' oil industry. The hair at the right side of his head always sticks upward no matter how many times he brushes it; it represents the Panhandle.

His overall build is quite large. Usually the first thing people notice is that he's a very tall individual. This being because of his Karankawa ancestry, since the men of this tribe were known for being over six feet tall. His arm and legs are quite muscular due to him playing sports such as football quite often along with him taking his horse for a ride a few times each week. This doesn't mean he's completely buff though. He has a bit of belly fat since his eating habits are not the best. You will often see him with food from Whataburger or a bowl full of Blue Bell ice cream. He's also prone to gaining weight very easily due to the state's obesity rate being quite high at about thirty percent.

Like most personifications, Sam has gained multiple marks from the past. He has one scar that runs horizontally across the right side of his collar bone and almost reaching his shoulder blade from the Texas Revolution. This scar started to develop even before the first battle, representing the rising tensions between the Texans and the central Mexican government. However, as the war progressed it started becoming larger and more noticeable due to the five battles lost, the deaths, and the casualties the Texian Army experienced. He also has multiple small scars around his body from the many hurricanes that have made landfall in his state, although most have faded as to where they are difficult to spot unless they are recent. The only one that has become permanent is the curved scar on the lower left side of his back that he received from the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 due to not only the major loss of life it caused, but also due to the severely negative impact it had on the city economically.

Clothing wise Sam usually wears a green unbuttoned shirt with a black undershirt, as this is versatile for the state's unpredictable weather. He also often wears a pair of blue denim jeans. If it gets too cold however he'll just put on a regular t-shirt, usually depicting one of his state's football teams, and a thicker jacket. If it gets extremely hot he'll most likely wear a light t-shirt or a sleeveless shirt with shorts. Most of the time Sam is seen wearing a pair of cowboy boots, which represent King Ranch in the southern portion of the state. However if wants to go walking or to the city he'll put on some tennis shoes.

Headcanons

➤ Physical
○ The hair on one side of his head always sticks up in a messy fashion no matter how much he tries to comb it. It represents the Texas Panhandle. It started getting like that when he became independent from Mexico in which they claimed to own that land, but due to the Panhandle actually having been disputed territory in reality. His hair got to what it is now when he gained statehood which is when Texas officially received that land.

○ Sam's dark brown hair represents Texas' oil. It was first discovered at Spindletop on January 10, 1901. This helped Texas' economy go from its rural and agricultural roots into the petroleum and industrial age. It has been said that the discovery of oil in Texas sparked the beginning of the modern oil era. Even today, over a hundred years later, the petroleum produced there is very important for the state's economy.

○ Sam's eyes are a light hazel, sometimes appearing to be an almost striking golden or yellow in appearance due to the light. They don't really represent anything specifically, but he was born with them due to him being of half European descent.

○ He has gained quite a lot of scars over the years, although most do tend to disappear over time. However, a few permanent ones have stayed and can still be seen. He has a scar that runs horizontally across the right side of his collarbone, almost reaching his shoulder blade, from the Texas Revolution. Another thing is that every time a hurricane makes landfall in his state, he usually ends up gaining either a bruise or a scar depending on its intensity. They usually end up fading over time, but the one scar that has become permanent is the one on the lower left side of his back which he received because of the Galveston Hurricane of 1900.

○ Most people note that Sam is quite a tall individual, standing at six feet and two inches. There are three major reasons for this. First of all Texas' economy is one of the fastest growing in the country. It's only behind North Dakota as the fastest growing state. And it accounts for almost 10% of the US' total GDP. Second of course is its land mass. For those of you who don't know it's the second largest state, with a total area of 268,820 square miles. Thirdly, and this is the most important reason, is that it's in his genes. Something that many of the early explorers to Texas noticed was the Karankawas' height. The men were said to be over 6 feet tall, so this was bound to make Sam pretty tall.

➤ Speech
○ Here's how his speech has changed over the years: when he was still with the natives, he only spoke the language of his tribe as well as the languages of the tribes close to his mother, the Karankawa tribe. When the Spanish came he did have a native accent, but eventually he lost it when they stopped letting him see them. When the Old Three Hundred came to Texas he started learning English. He had a Spanish accent at first but quickly lost it due to how the settlers immediately became a majority of his population, with them outnumbering the Tejanos 30,000 to 7,000. He actually did have a typical Southern drawl for some time, but with the recent wave of immigrants from Latin America, California, and the Northeast, it has started to fade. He still has a type of a Southern accent, but it's not the same as the one found in the states of the Deep South. He does say y'all and drops the g on the end of words a lot, but the twang is not as easily noticeable since he doesn't heavily emphasize the words. His accent can be described as a mix between the Midwestern and Southern accents.
○ Sam talks really fast due to the fact that he frequently combines and drops of words and letters when he talks. So some people who aren't as fluent in English may have a hard time really understanding him due to this.

○ Out of old habit Sam does occasionally uses Southern slang, saying phrases like 'tan my hide' and 'that dog won't hunt.' Something that is very common of him to say is 'fixin' to' which means that you're about to do something.

○ Whenever Sam gets really angry he starts talking even faster than he usually does, thus his Southern accent starts showing even more. It can get so bad that sometimes the person he's yelling at may end up not being able to understand what he's saying. Luckily though, this rarely happens.

○ In the past he was completely fluent in the Karankawa language since it was his first language. Not only this, but due to how the Karankawa were known to occasionally share camp sites and/or trade with other tribes, specifically the Tonkawa, Caddo, and Coahuiltecans, Sam picked up on some of these languages as a kid as well. Nowadays all of these languages have faded from his memory due to him not using or being exposed to them at all for centuries. ○ He actually knows quite a few of languages. As expected, Spanish and English are his two main languages and he is equally fluent in both. He used to be fluent in German when many German immigrants came to Texas in the late 1800s, although it doesn't come as easily to him anymore since he hasn't been practicing it as much ever since WWII. He is however able to read it and understand it when being spoken to almost perfectly.

○ When Sam speaks German, it's in a dialect only found to be spoken by the descendants of Germans who immigrated to Texas back in the mid-19th century. This particular dialect is a mixture of English and 19th century German.

○ There was a time when Sam was actually very bad at speaking Spanish. This started happening around in the late 1800s. Since his government was taken over by the Anglo-Americans after the Texas Revolution, he was surrounded basically 24/7 by people who only spoke English. As a result he barely used Spanish so it began getting very rusty for him. It wasn't around the mid to late 1900s that he started getting better at it as there was a resurgence of Spanish-speaking immigrants to Texas and more took on roles in government as well. Nowadays he's once again fluent in Spanish.

○ Sam can speak mainly two different dialects of Spanish. He mainly speaks Standard Mexican Spanish with most people he comes across. However, with some that speak this same dialect, he speaks Chicano Spanish which is the dialect many of Mexican descent in Texas and the other the Southwestern states of New Mexico, Arizona, and California speak in.

➤ Behavior/Personality
○ Sam does not like hurricanes at all, although it's not extreme enough to be considered a phobia. This is due to the previously mentioned Galveston Hurricane of 1900 which killed between 6,000 to 12,000 people. It is still considered the worst natural disaster in US history. Whenever a hurricane comes to the Gulf of Mexico expect him to be far away from the area where it's expected to make landfall.

○ He gets slightly moody during early spring and late autumn and sometimes even winter as well, especially in the recent years. This represents Texas' infamous unstable weather.

○ When Sam is personally insulted by someone, he usually does not take it to heart and just tends to laugh it off. He's just learned to not let it faze him. This is due to hardships such as racism he's faced in the past.

○ Like mentioned above Sam is not easily offended now, but that does not mean it's a skill he's always had. After the war with Mexico the Anglo settlers did become suspicious of the Tejanos despite how much they contributed to the newly founded country, and this discrimination lasted for quite a long time after. As a result Sam was what some would say a grouch for a rather long time due to being treated like this by his own citizens. He become what we know him as now after things like the Civil Rights Act were passed.

○ Whenever Sam sleeps he doesn't snore, but he breathes really loud. Not only that, he can also suffer from shortness of breath whenever he overexerts himself. This represents how Texas is the leader in CO2 emissions among the US states. If it were it's own country it would be the world's 8th largest emitter of carbon dioxide, right behind Canada.

○ He is a really big dog lover. Sam has loved them ever since he was a kid due to the Karankawa valuing the animal. The tribe name is even believed to have meant 'dog-lovers' or 'dog-helpers.'

○ For some reason Sam calls every soda Coke, be it Sprite, Mountain Dew, or Orange Crush. It's just something most Texans do. Except for Dr Pepper of course. That deserves to be called for what it is.

○ Sam honestly has no idea what the fuck he's doing when he's drunk. To expand a little on this he's basically a clumsy drunk. It's like he loses control of his limbs when he's drunk and he just ends up falling down, a lot. Most of the time he ends up falling down flat on his face, much to the distress of his girlfriend.

○ He is a very lighthearted and good humored person. Sam's laughter is usually loud and incredibly contagious, being the type that no matter the situation, once you hear it you will more than likely start laughing along with him.

➤ Past
○ Sam was raised by the Karankawa tribe until the Spanish actually became serious about building missions in Texas. When they did, around the early 1700s, he was taken to and resided in a mission named San Jose. A few years after however he was taken to the newly founded Spanish settlement of San Antonio.

○ Sam was given the name Doowal by the Karankawa when he was born, which means 'sun' in their language. This was because of his golden eyes. Since they had never seen anything like it they compared them to the brightness and color of the sun.

○ Sam's father was actually a Spanish human. He was one of the men who got shipwrecked off the coast of Galveston Island from the Narváez expedition in 1528. He inherited quite a lot of traits from him, such as his brown hair and light hazel eyes.

○ During his time as a republic Sam got sick a lot due to his government's huge debt.

○ For a few decades in the late 1800s and early 1900s Sam was in fact Protestant, Baptist to be exact. The reason for this is pretty much the same as to why he wasn't very fluent in Spanish for a while. Even though one of the compromises for the Anglo-Americans settling in Mexican Texas was to convert to Roman Catholicism, most didn't, so as a result for a long time Protestantism was practiced by many more people. He converted mostly because of his first president, Sam Houston. The thing is Houston was a member of the Know-Nothing Party, which had nativist ideals where they wanted to end the influence of immigrants and Catholics in American politics. Because of this, Houston managed to convince our Sam to convert. It didn't last too long though, and he converted back to Roman Catholicism around in the 1940s.

○ Okay here is the story about Sam's first real love. She was this human girl around in the mid 1800s. She was the daughter of one of the first Anglo settlers that came to Texas. Sam had befriended her mother in those early years so he was able to watch her grow up and such which in turn made them pretty close. Now just saying, those years were really turbulent and unstable for Sam so he was able to find comfort with her and he eventually developed romantic feelings for her as she grew to become close to his physical age at the time. Now one thing that kinda kept them from not really getting together was that her dad hated him so yeah not to mention they knew he was a personification also. So they were together in secret even though I know that’s cliche af ok no need to tell me. The sad thing is towards the end of the 1860s they ended up moving away to some other state so after that Sam never saw her again lol I know it's angsty but angst is my life. Her name was Genevieve btw. ○ Sam got the horse he has now, Rubí, from his first president, whom Sam viewed as a father figure to him, around in the late 1840s. He got her when she was still a foal as a gift for his birthday.

➤ Misc.
○ Sam can play the acoustic guitar. Really well actually. He likes to play multiple musical genres.  Sometimes he'll even go out and perform on the streets of places like the San Antonio River Walk. It's not for money, he just really likes playing for other people. You'll usually find him doing this when he's especially stressed out because it relieves him. He can also sing pretty well too. One reason for this is because many famous musicians have come from Texas such, as Beyoncé. Also because Texas is one of the states with the most songs written about it. Texas' capital, Austin, is also known as the live music capital of the world.
○ Currently Sam lives in San Antonio. This is because when he first came to the Spanish he was taken to a Catholic mission in the area, so he feels very much at home there since he's basically seen the city build up since it was founded.

○ Every time he attends a university, he makes sure to join the school's Collegiate FFA chapter. He finds that it reminds him a lot of the past, and it also helps him get to know the people there. Sam feels like it connects him with many of his people due to how the Texas' FFA association is the largest in the country.

○ Even though he receives money from the government, Sam prefers to be able to earn money for himself since it makes him feel like he is contributing something to his people. At one point or another Sam has held multiple jobs as a vet tech, Texas history teacher, and a job in the petroleum industry. He absolutely loves animals such as dogs, cats, and horses, enjoys teaching his young citizens about his history, and due to oil playing such a large part in his state's economy, he also has an interest in that. He has also had more low key jobs such as a ranch hand and a worker at pet stores. Currently, he works as an animal care technician at the San Antonio Humane Society because of his love for animals. He usually tends to help take care, play, train and feed the shelter's dogs, but he'll still often work with other animals as well.

○ Sam does not consider America as a father figure in any way. In my interpretation Sam is actually older than the U.S. personification by many years, so he views them as more of a little brother.

○ He also views Arizona, New Mexico, and California as his siblings, and Mexico as his adoptive mother.

○ Sam actually owns some property out in Texas' hill country, which is also near Frio River. He goes over there sometimes to relax and just to have a get away.

○ He owns a dark blue 2012 Ford F-150 truck.

Historical/Foreign Relations

➤ Spain | The land that is nowadays referred to as Texas was first discovered by the Spanish explorer Alonso Álvarez de Pineda, who mapped its coastline and claimed the new land for Spain. Sam's time under Spanish rule was not really a pleasant one in the slightest. It's safe to say that he was basically ignored due to the lack of useable resources Texas had at the time, and to top off the nearly endless raids by the natives on the missions and presidios made an even less desirable place to colonize. To be honest it never got any better for him, and Texas was freed from Spanish rule on August 24, 1821 when Mexico gained its independence.

➤ France | Like I mentioned before, Spain barely paid any attention to Texas so this let other countries be able to sneakily try to take over, even if they didn't intend to in the first place. France comes into the picture in when French explorer René-Robert Cavalier, Sieur de La Salle arrives and establishes a colony, Fort St. Louis, in Matagorda Bay. Needless to say he originally had wanted to establish his colony in the mouth of the Mississippi River but instead ended up there. They were very ill equipped and after heading off to search for the Mississippi River, La Salle was killed by his own men. To top it all off they had stolen one of the Karankawa's canoes and, not ones to forgive theft, they completely destroyed the colony and it's inhabitants, sparing only a few children. That ended France's role in the region for a while up until Texas gained its independence from Mexico. You see, Texas wanted foreign recognition because they hoped it would that if other countries recognized the Republic of Texas as an independent nation, then there would be a chance that Mexico might eventually recognize Texas' independence, or really just pressure them into doing so, and that this would prevent another war (that never happened though :c). Many European countries wanted Texas independence to be recognized due to how it would help prevent further U.S. expansion. France was the first European nation to recognize Texas' status as a country. The two countries traded goods Texas set up an embassy in 1842 in Paris in what is now the Hôtel de Vendôme and France opened up a legation—a form of embassy—which still stands in Austin.

➤ Mexico | When Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821, Texas became one of its states. Since Texas' population was extremely low—just about 4,000 Tejanos lived there at the time— the Mexican government was desperate to populate the area. It wasn't long at all before Stephen F. Austin, with permission from the Mexican government, came with 300 Anglo-American families and settled in the region near the Brazos River in 1823. Let me just say the new immigrants did not follow the requirements they were supposed to have done before coming there. These three requirements were: 1) they had to learn the Spanish language, 2) convert to Roman Catholicism, and 3) be loyal to the Mexican government. Obviously very few settlers obeyed the three compromises and most brought over slaves even though slavery was against the law in Mexico. Now, the relations between the Mexican government were very poor and the desire for secession reached its peak when the government tried to enforce the ban on slavery. As you all already know, the Texans did end up seceding, went into a war which lasted from 1835-1836, and then gained its independence. It didn't end there though. Most Texans wanted annexation by the U.S. and this was granted in 1845. Texas' annexation of course angered Mexico, especially since it never recognized Texas' independence and instead viewed it as a rebellious territory. The U.S. and Mexico went into war because of this in 1846 and it ended in 1848 with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

➤ United States of America | Texas' first relations with the U.S. of course were already mentioned right above this so there isn't much else to add other than what happened during the time Texas was independent. Due to how the Mexican government was in chaos at the time and that there was "an immense disparity of the physical force on the side of Mexico", U.S. representatives believed that it would not be able to threaten the U.S. or Texas much so on March 3rd, 1837, the U.S. became the first nation to recognize the Republic of Texas as an independent country and in fact even recognized it as a "sister state". In 1841 the U.S opened a legation in Austin and Texas set up an embassy in Washington, DC. Just saying, Texas' primary goal had always been to be annexed by the U.S. The thing is the U.S. was very reluctant to do so for two reasons: 1) Texas would become a slave state, and this would upset the balance between slave and free states and 2) due to Mexico still considering Texas as part of its land, it would be a sure way of starting a war. Eventually though the U.S. did annex the Republic of Texas on December 29, 1845. This of course led to the Mexican-American War when Mexican troops attacked American troops at the Rio Grande, a territory they both claimed and on May 13, 1846, the U.S. Congress declared war, a war that Mexico ended up losing. One last significant event happened before Texas became the state we all know it to be. Due to its status as a slave state, Texas became one of 11 states to secede from the Union to form the Confederate States of America despite the then governor, Sam Houston's, protests. Not much happened on Texas' lands during the Civil War and it mostly served to send troops and supplies to the warfront. It wasn't until March 30, 1870 that Texas was readmitted to Congress.

➤ Great Britain | Britain was always rather reluctant to officially recognize Texas' independence because of its friendly relations with Mexico. Even though they did secretly trade goods, it wasn't until the 1840s when Texas showed intentions of joining the U.S. that Britain ended up encouraging them to remain independent out of fear of U.S. expansion. In 1842 they even ended up allowing Texas to set up a legation in a building at Pickering Place. St. Jame's Street. Although of course the legation was disbanded when Texas was annexed by the U.S. in 1845.

➤ Belgium | Due to the closeness of the dates when they each gained their independence, with the European nation claiming independence in 1830 and Texas in 1835, Belgium showed interest in giving recognition to the fledgling nation. Belgium set up a legation in Austin and Texas had an embassy in Brussels. They also did mutual trade, with Texas exporting corn, cotton, and other raw materials and Belgium exporting iron, tea, beer, and other products.

➤ Netherlands | In mimicry of Belgium's actions, the Netherlands also took steps in recognizing the Republic of Texas' independence. The Netherlands set up an embassy in Austin and Texas set up an embassy in Amsterdam. Like the other European nations, the two were engaged in trade with Texas exporting the usual corn, cotton, and other raw materials and the Netherlands exporting textiles, chocolate, beer, and other products.

➤ Germany | While there have been many different cultures that have left their mark on Texas, the Germans have arguably left one of the greatest besides that of Mexican-Americans, Anglo-Americans, and African-Americans. The first Germans came to Texas in 1831, when Johann Friedrick Ernst gained land in present day Austin County and eventually convinced many other German families—most of whom were from districts in Oldenburg, Westphalia, and Holstein—came to join him through a series of letters, some of whom were published as well. Immigration to Texas was eventually widely publicized in Germany due to the wide tracts of cheap and fertile land along with its abundant game and fish. German nobles hoped to bring themselves wealth and power, as well as alleviate rural Germany's overpopulation and thus created the Adelsverein to colonize German peasants in Texas. The greatest wave of German immigration came in the 1840s, when the Adelsverein helped more than 7,000 Germans reach Texas. The Adelsverein also helped found multiple towns such as New Braunfels and Fredericksburg. The German language was widely used in many areas, mostly those in Central Texas, and only began to fade in the late 1970s. Along with this, a unique type of German dialect was eventually developed solely in Texas.

➤ Coahuila | As early as 1689, the Spanish governor at the time of the province of Coahuila, Alonso de León, extended his authority over the province of Texas. However in 1963, the Catholic missions in East Texas were withdrawn. It wasn't until 1716 when the governor of Coahuila, Martín de Alarcón, reestablished control once again over Texas. The two provinces were split again and governed separately with Alarcón's successor in 1726. It wasn't until Mexico gained its independence and the Constitution of 1824 was passed until the two were once again united due to their sparse population. It wasn't only Coahuila and Texas that were merged however. Nuevo León was combined with them as well, but was quickly detached on May 7, 1824. Coahuila y Texas was finally disestablished once and for all when the president of Mexico, Antonio López de Santa Anna, revoked the Constitution of 1824 and replaced the state governments with administrative divisions from Mexico City, and Texas declared its independence shortly after.

➤ New Mexico | For much of their history together, Texas and New Mexico have not been the nicest to each other. This is because of the Santa Fe Expedition back in 1841. Basically the Republic of Texas’ president, Mirabeau Lamar, sent an expedition into New Mexico, without the approval of the Congress of the Republic, in an attempt to secure their control of the Santa Fe Trail for it’s trade as well as to try to get the New Mexicans in the Santa Fe area to become part of Texas. Let’s just say it was a complete flop. Not only were they ill-equipped and had hard time finding a suitable route, but when they finally did make it to Santa Fe they were captured by and imprisoned by the New Mexican Governor Manuel Armijo who still had close ties with Mexico. So yeah Sam himself and New Mexico's personification are not always on the best terms, although over the years they have managed to forget about what happened and now annoy each other in a more friendly way.

Please do not trace my art or steal/copy any of my headcanons, ideas, designs, etc. Do not use him in any way without my permission as he is for my use only.
If you do wish to draw him or use him for any of your works, you may as long as you credit me for him. This OC has been independently worked on since September 2014.
If you need any help with your OC, just ask!

Samuel Navarro Acosta | Texas (2014-2017) © withwingsthatfly

Description
Note: I gave Sam stubble not too long ago so bc of that this is outdated orz
expect me to redraw it as soon as I can :')

since I left my rp account I thought I should make Sam a profile card where I can keep all his info in ;;u;;
I'm gonna try to do this with Lana too btw so keep an eye out for that!!

State Info

➤ Basic
  ○ Official Name(s) | Provincia de Tejas (during Spanish rule), Nuevas Filipinas (secondary during Spanish rule), Coahuila y Tejas (during Mexican rule), Republic of Texas (after independence), State of Texas (after annexation)
  ○ State Nicknames | The Lone Star State (official), The Banner State, The Jumbo State, The Beef State, The Blizzard State
  ○ State Abbreviation | TX
  ○ Name Origin | Comes from the word teyshas (sometimes spelled tejas, tayshas, texias, thecas, techan, teysas, or techas) widely used by the natives of East Texas, especially the Caddo and Hasinais, that usually meant "friends" or "allies"
  ○ Admission to Union | December 29, 1845
  ○ State Number | 28th
  ○ Area | 268,601 sq. mi. (695,674 sq. km.)
  ○ Demonym | Texan, Tejano
  ○ Population | 26.96 million
  ○ Ethnic Groups | 45.8% White, 36.1% Hispanic/Latino, 11.3% Black, 3.5% Asian, 3.2% other
  ○ Religious Demographics | 18.72% Catholicism, 26.41% Protestantism, 8.12% other Christian, 0.24% Judaism, 2.19% Islam, Buddhism, other, 44.32% unaffiliated
  ○ Current Governor | Greg Abbot (Republican)

➤ State Symbols
  ○ State Capital | Austin
  ○ State Motto | Friendship
  ○ State Song | "Texas Our Texas"
  ○ State Bird | Mockingbird
  ○ State Large Mammal | Longhorn
  ○ State Small Mammal | Nine-Banded Armadillo
  ○ State Reptile | Texas Horned Lizard
  ○ State Amphibian | Texas Toad
  ○ State Fish | Guadalupe Bass
  ○ State Insect | Monarch Butterfly
  ○ State Flower | Bluebonnet
  ○ State Tree | Pecan Tree
  ○ State Fruit | Texas Red Grapefruit
  ○ State Vegetable | Sweet Onion
  ○ State Dish | Chili
  ○ State Gem | Blue Topaz
  ○ State Stone | Petrified Palmwood
  ○ State Precious Metal | Silver
  ○ State Sport | Rodeo
  ○ State Instrument | Guitar
  ○ Neighboring States | (U.S.) New Mexico, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas
(Mexico) Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, Chihuahua

Personal Info

➤ Basic
○ Human Name | Samuel Navarro Acosta
○ Nicknames | Tex, Texass, Sam, Sammy (only family and close friends)
○ Gender | Male
○ Height | 6'2" (188 cm)
○ Weight | 214 lbs (97 kg)
○ Birthday | March 2nd (independence from Mexico)
○ Physical Age | 23-24 years old
○ Actual Age | 488 years old
○ Romantic/Sexual Orientation | Demiromantic heterosexual
○ Species | Human personification
○ Race/Ethnicity | Mestizo / Karankawa and Spanish
○ Languages Spoken | Fluent English and Spanish, intermediate German, basic French
○ Belief | Roman Catholicism
○ Personality Type | ENFP
○ Zodiac | Pisces
○ Current Residence | San Antonio
○ Occupation | Animal care technician at the San Antonio Humane Society
○ Relationship Status | Taken
○ XX | Aesthetics

➤ Personality

In reality Sam is not the hardest guy to figure out. When you first meet him he gives off the impression of being this calm friendly guy, and most of the time this is what he tries to be. The Texan will most definitely greet you with a big smile and a firm handshake the first time you meet him. He is really quite neighborly. He loves to give others a helping hand, with this being instilled onto him early on in his life. Once you gain his trust and friendship you can expect this man to be quite the loyal friend as he will try to never let you down. Sam is also quite the caring guy. This is because of how hispanic culture is. So don't be surprised if he hugs you and kisses you on the cheek when you see him, although only if you're a woman. If you're a man you can still expect a warm greeting, just in a less affectionate way. Sam is also quite the gentle person. He'll never treat someone roughly or disrespectfully as he always prefers to be gentleman-like with others. He often calls people sir or ma'am, regardless of their age, out of politeness and respect. Just make sure you never lose his respect or you won't find him to be the best guy you'll want to be on the wrong foot with.

Sam is able to voice himself out well. He is rather good at communicating and understanding others. He gained this skill when he started craving his independence from Mexico back in the 1800s, and it proved to be vital as the years progressed. Like many Texans, Sam is quite the traditional man due to a majority of the state being conservative in the political sense. This does not mean he's completely right wing though. Due to the state's incredibly large diversity he does have a few liberal ideas at times. He does in fact value his religion a lot, with him having been a rather devout Catholic ever since the Spanish first set up missions and presidios in his land. However, one result that may often be seen as negative that came from the Spanish colonization is that Sam absolutely hates being ignored for long periods of time by someone. This is due to how as a province the Spanish government did not pay much attention to him due to how the constant Native American raids on the missions and presidios made it difficult to protect them. Not only that but the province also acted merely as a buffer zone between the French colonies to east and the wealthier Spanish colonies.

Another thing that many people note about Sam is that he can take insults and criticism quite well. This is due to many times in his life after the Anglo settlers came to his land being frequented by discrimination and stereotypical remarks. As a result when something is said to him that may easily offend others, he just tends to laugh it off or just doesn't give much thought to it.

Despite these endearing traits, Sam does have some hindering qualities that can make him a hard individual to get along with at times. He is that he is rather loud with some of his beliefs for one. Sometimes when something is said that he doesn't completely agree with, he'll get into an argument with the person who said it. When this happens an outside hand is usually needed to calm the feud as he is not too keen in admitting he's wrong, even if he knows it. One fact people have to note with him, is that Sam can be reckless to no end. At times it just seems like he completely lacks common sense, not giving much though to actions others may deem as simply being plain stupid. This along with him being quite a hyperactive man isn't exactly the best combo. Another thing is that he can be a little too prideful of himself. He will sometimes start bragging about the things his people have accomplished in the past, much to the annoyance of others. He'll often think he's the best state in the Union, which stems from the large amounts pride most Texans have for their state. Even with all of these faults he tries his best not to act too big headed, as it has many times put him on the wrong foot with others.

➤ Appearance

Sam has the physical appearance of an average twenty-three or twenty-four year old with eyes that are light amber in color, sometimes even appearing to be golden or yellowish. He has a tanned complexion partially due to his mixed Spanish and indigenous heritage and also due to him being out in the sun a lot during the late 1800s. Sam's hair is dark brown in color and will get almost black when it's wet. This signifies the importance of Texas' oil industry. The hair at the right side of his head always sticks upward no matter how many times he brushes it; it represents the Panhandle.

His overall build is quite large. Usually the first thing people notice is that he's a very tall individual. This being because of his Karankawa ancestry, since the men of this tribe were known for being over six feet tall. His arm and legs are quite muscular due to him playing sports such as football quite often along with him taking his horse for a ride a few times each week. This doesn't mean he's completely buff though. He has a bit of belly fat since his eating habits are not the best. You will often see him with food from Whataburger or a bowl full of Blue Bell ice cream. He's also prone to gaining weight very easily due to the state's obesity rate being quite high at about thirty percent.

Like most personifications, Sam has gained multiple marks from the past. He has one scar that runs horizontally across the right side of his collar bone and almost reaching his shoulder blade from the Texas Revolution. This scar started to develop even before the first battle, representing the rising tensions between the Texans and the central Mexican government. However, as the war progressed it started becoming larger and more noticeable due to the five battles lost, the deaths, and the casualties the Texian Army experienced. He also has multiple small scars around his body from the many hurricanes that have made landfall in his state, although most have faded as to where they are difficult to spot unless they are recent. The only one that has become permanent is the curved scar on the lower left side of his back that he received from the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 due to not only the major loss of life it caused, but also due to the severely negative impact it had on the city economically.

Clothing wise Sam usually wears a green unbuttoned shirt with a black undershirt, as this is versatile for the state's unpredictable weather. He also often wears a pair of blue denim jeans. If it gets too cold however he'll just put on a regular t-shirt, usually depicting one of his state's football teams, and a thicker jacket. If it gets extremely hot he'll most likely wear a light t-shirt or a sleeveless shirt with shorts. Most of the time Sam is seen wearing a pair of cowboy boots, which represent King Ranch in the southern portion of the state. However if wants to go walking or to the city he'll put on some tennis shoes.

Headcanons

➤ Physical
○ The hair on one side of his head always sticks up in a messy fashion no matter how much he tries to comb it. It represents the Texas Panhandle. It started getting like that when he became independent from Mexico in which they claimed to own that land, but due to the Panhandle actually having been disputed territory in reality. His hair got to what it is now when he gained statehood which is when Texas officially received that land.

○ Sam's dark brown hair represents Texas' oil. It was first discovered at Spindletop on January 10, 1901. This helped Texas' economy go from its rural and agricultural roots into the petroleum and industrial age. It has been said that the discovery of oil in Texas sparked the beginning of the modern oil era. Even today, over a hundred years later, the petroleum produced there is very important for the state's economy.

○ Sam's eyes are a light hazel, sometimes appearing to be an almost striking golden or yellow in appearance due to the light. They don't really represent anything specifically, but he was born with them due to him being of half European descent.

○ He has gained quite a lot of scars over the years, although most do tend to disappear over time. However, a few permanent ones have stayed and can still be seen. He has a scar that runs horizontally across the right side of his collarbone, almost reaching his shoulder blade, from the Texas Revolution. Another thing is that every time a hurricane makes landfall in his state, he usually ends up gaining either a bruise or a scar depending on its intensity. They usually end up fading over time, but the one scar that has become permanent is the one on the lower left side of his back which he received because of the Galveston Hurricane of 1900.

○ Most people note that Sam is quite a tall individual, standing at six feet and two inches. There are three major reasons for this. First of all Texas' economy is one of the fastest growing in the country. It's only behind North Dakota as the fastest growing state. And it accounts for almost 10% of the US' total GDP. Second of course is its land mass. For those of you who don't know it's the second largest state, with a total area of 268,820 square miles. Thirdly, and this is the most important reason, is that it's in his genes. Something that many of the early explorers to Texas noticed was the Karankawas' height. The men were said to be over 6 feet tall, so this was bound to make Sam pretty tall.

➤ Speech
○ Here's how his speech has changed over the years: when he was still with the natives, he only spoke the language of his tribe as well as the languages of the tribes close to his mother, the Karankawa tribe. When the Spanish came he did have a native accent, but eventually he lost it when they stopped letting him see them. When the Old Three Hundred came to Texas he started learning English. He had a Spanish accent at first but quickly lost it due to how the settlers immediately became a majority of his population, with them outnumbering the Tejanos 30,000 to 7,000. He actually did have a typical Southern drawl for some time, but with the recent wave of immigrants from Latin America, California, and the Northeast, it has started to fade. He still has a type of a Southern accent, but it's not the same as the one found in the states of the Deep South. He does say y'all and drops the g on the end of words a lot, but the twang is not as easily noticeable since he doesn't heavily emphasize the words. His accent can be described as a mix between the Midwestern and Southern accents.
○ Sam talks really fast due to the fact that he frequently combines and drops of words and letters when he talks. So some people who aren't as fluent in English may have a hard time really understanding him due to this.

○ Out of old habit Sam does occasionally uses Southern slang, saying phrases like 'tan my hide' and 'that dog won't hunt.' Something that is very common of him to say is 'fixin' to' which means that you're about to do something.

○ Whenever Sam gets really angry he starts talking even faster than he usually does, thus his Southern accent starts showing even more. It can get so bad that sometimes the person he's yelling at may end up not being able to understand what he's saying. Luckily though, this rarely happens.

○ In the past he was completely fluent in the Karankawa language since it was his first language. Not only this, but due to how the Karankawa were known to occasionally share camp sites and/or trade with other tribes, specifically the Tonkawa, Caddo, and Coahuiltecans, Sam picked up on some of these languages as a kid as well. Nowadays all of these languages have faded from his memory due to him not using or being exposed to them at all for centuries. ○ He actually knows quite a few of languages. As expected, Spanish and English are his two main languages and he is equally fluent in both. He used to be fluent in German when many German immigrants came to Texas in the late 1800s, although it doesn't come as easily to him anymore since he hasn't been practicing it as much ever since WWII. He is however able to read it and understand it when being spoken to almost perfectly.

○ When Sam speaks German, it's in a dialect only found to be spoken by the descendants of Germans who immigrated to Texas back in the mid-19th century. This particular dialect is a mixture of English and 19th century German.

○ There was a time when Sam was actually very bad at speaking Spanish. This started happening around in the late 1800s. Since his government was taken over by the Anglo-Americans after the Texas Revolution, he was surrounded basically 24/7 by people who only spoke English. As a result he barely used Spanish so it began getting very rusty for him. It wasn't around the mid to late 1900s that he started getting better at it as there was a resurgence of Spanish-speaking immigrants to Texas and more took on roles in government as well. Nowadays he's once again fluent in Spanish.

○ Sam can speak mainly two different dialects of Spanish. He mainly speaks Standard Mexican Spanish with most people he comes across. However, with some that speak this same dialect, he speaks Chicano Spanish which is the dialect many of Mexican descent in Texas and the other the Southwestern states of New Mexico, Arizona, and California speak in.

➤ Behavior/Personality
○ Sam does not like hurricanes at all, although it's not extreme enough to be considered a phobia. This is due to the previously mentioned Galveston Hurricane of 1900 which killed between 6,000 to 12,000 people. It is still considered the worst natural disaster in US history. Whenever a hurricane comes to the Gulf of Mexico expect him to be far away from the area where it's expected to make landfall.

○ He gets slightly moody during early spring and late autumn and sometimes even winter as well, especially in the recent years. This represents Texas' infamous unstable weather.

○ When Sam is personally insulted by someone, he usually does not take it to heart and just tends to laugh it off. He's just learned to not let it faze him. This is due to hardships such as racism he's faced in the past.

○ Like mentioned above Sam is not easily offended now, but that does not mean it's a skill he's always had. After the war with Mexico the Anglo settlers did become suspicious of the Tejanos despite how much they contributed to the newly founded country, and this discrimination lasted for quite a long time after. As a result Sam was what some would say a grouch for a rather long time due to being treated like this by his own citizens. He become what we know him as now after things like the Civil Rights Act were passed.

○ Whenever Sam sleeps he doesn't snore, but he breathes really loud. Not only that, he can also suffer from shortness of breath whenever he overexerts himself. This represents how Texas is the leader in CO2 emissions among the US states. If it were it's own country it would be the world's 8th largest emitter of carbon dioxide, right behind Canada.

○ He is a really big dog lover. Sam has loved them ever since he was a kid due to the Karankawa valuing the animal. The tribe name is even believed to have meant 'dog-lovers' or 'dog-helpers.'

○ For some reason Sam calls every soda Coke, be it Sprite, Mountain Dew, or Orange Crush. It's just something most Texans do. Except for Dr Pepper of course. That deserves to be called for what it is.

○ Sam honestly has no idea what the fuck he's doing when he's drunk. To expand a little on this he's basically a clumsy drunk. It's like he loses control of his limbs when he's drunk and he just ends up falling down, a lot. Most of the time he ends up falling down flat on his face, much to the distress of his girlfriend.

○ He is a very lighthearted and good humored person. Sam's laughter is usually loud and incredibly contagious, being the type that no matter the situation, once you hear it you will more than likely start laughing along with him.

➤ Past
○ Sam was raised by the Karankawa tribe until the Spanish actually became serious about building missions in Texas. When they did, around the early 1700s, he was taken to and resided in a mission named San Jose. A few years after however he was taken to the newly founded Spanish settlement of San Antonio.

○ Sam was given the name Doowal by the Karankawa when he was born, which means 'sun' in their language. This was because of his golden eyes. Since they had never seen anything like it they compared them to the brightness and color of the sun.

○ Sam's father was actually a Spanish human. He was one of the men who got shipwrecked off the coast of Galveston Island from the Narváez expedition in 1528. He inherited quite a lot of traits from him, such as his brown hair and light hazel eyes.

○ During his time as a republic Sam got sick a lot due to his government's huge debt.

○ For a few decades in the late 1800s and early 1900s Sam was in fact Protestant, Baptist to be exact. The reason for this is pretty much the same as to why he wasn't very fluent in Spanish for a while. Even though one of the compromises for the Anglo-Americans settling in Mexican Texas was to convert to Roman Catholicism, most didn't, so as a result for a long time Protestantism was practiced by many more people. He converted mostly because of his first president, Sam Houston. The thing is Houston was a member of the Know-Nothing Party, which had nativist ideals where they wanted to end the influence of immigrants and Catholics in American politics. Because of this, Houston managed to convince our Sam to convert. It didn't last too long though, and he converted back to Roman Catholicism around in the 1940s.

○ Okay here is the story about Sam's first real love. She was this human girl around in the mid 1800s. She was the daughter of one of the first Anglo settlers that came to Texas. Sam had befriended her mother in those early years so he was able to watch her grow up and such which in turn made them pretty close. Now just saying, those years were really turbulent and unstable for Sam so he was able to find comfort with her and he eventually developed romantic feelings for her as she grew to become close to his physical age at the time. Now one thing that kinda kept them from not really getting together was that her dad hated him so yeah not to mention they knew he was a personification also. So they were together in secret even though I know that’s cliche af ok no need to tell me. The sad thing is towards the end of the 1860s they ended up moving away to some other state so after that Sam never saw her again lol I know it's angsty but angst is my life. Her name was Genevieve btw. ○ Sam got the horse he has now, Rubí, from his first president, whom Sam viewed as a father figure to him, around in the late 1840s. He got her when she was still a foal as a gift for his birthday.

➤ Misc.
○ Sam can play the acoustic guitar. Really well actually. He likes to play multiple musical genres.  Sometimes he'll even go out and perform on the streets of places like the San Antonio River Walk. It's not for money, he just really likes playing for other people. You'll usually find him doing this when he's especially stressed out because it relieves him. He can also sing pretty well too. One reason for this is because many famous musicians have come from Texas such, as Beyoncé. Also because Texas is one of the states with the most songs written about it. Texas' capital, Austin, is also known as the live music capital of the world.
○ Currently Sam lives in San Antonio. This is because when he first came to the Spanish he was taken to a Catholic mission in the area, so he feels very much at home there since he's basically seen the city build up since it was founded.

○ Every time he attends a university, he makes sure to join the school's Collegiate FFA chapter. He finds that it reminds him a lot of the past, and it also helps him get to know the people there. Sam feels like it connects him with many of his people due to how the Texas' FFA association is the largest in the country.

○ Even though he receives money from the government, Sam prefers to be able to earn money for himself since it makes him feel like he is contributing something to his people. At one point or another Sam has held multiple jobs as a vet tech, Texas history teacher, and a job in the petroleum industry. He absolutely loves animals such as dogs, cats, and horses, enjoys teaching his young citizens about his history, and due to oil playing such a large part in his state's economy, he also has an interest in that. He has also had more low key jobs such as a ranch hand and a worker at pet stores. Currently, he works as an animal care technician at the San Antonio Humane Society because of his love for animals. He usually tends to help take care, play, train and feed the shelter's dogs, but he'll still often work with other animals as well.

○ Sam does not consider America as a father figure in any way. In my interpretation Sam is actually older than the U.S. personification by many years, so he views them as more of a little brother.

○ He also views Arizona, New Mexico, and California as his siblings, and Mexico as his adoptive mother.

○ Sam actually owns some property out in Texas' hill country, which is also near Frio River. He goes over there sometimes to relax and just to have a get away.

○ He owns a dark blue 2012 Ford F-150 truck.

Historical/Foreign Relations

➤ Spain | The land that is nowadays referred to as Texas was first discovered by the Spanish explorer Alonso Álvarez de Pineda, who mapped its coastline and claimed the new land for Spain. Sam's time under Spanish rule was not really a pleasant one in the slightest. It's safe to say that he was basically ignored due to the lack of useable resources Texas had at the time, and to top off the nearly endless raids by the natives on the missions and presidios made an even less desirable place to colonize. To be honest it never got any better for him, and Texas was freed from Spanish rule on August 24, 1821 when Mexico gained its independence.

➤ France | Like I mentioned before, Spain barely paid any attention to Texas so this let other countries be able to sneakily try to take over, even if they didn't intend to in the first place. France comes into the picture in when French explorer René-Robert Cavalier, Sieur de La Salle arrives and establishes a colony, Fort St. Louis, in Matagorda Bay. Needless to say he originally had wanted to establish his colony in the mouth of the Mississippi River but instead ended up there. They were very ill equipped and after heading off to search for the Mississippi River, La Salle was killed by his own men. To top it all off they had stolen one of the Karankawa's canoes and, not ones to forgive theft, they completely destroyed the colony and it's inhabitants, sparing only a few children. That ended France's role in the region for a while up until Texas gained its independence from Mexico. You see, Texas wanted foreign recognition because they hoped it would that if other countries recognized the Republic of Texas as an independent nation, then there would be a chance that Mexico might eventually recognize Texas' independence, or really just pressure them into doing so, and that this would prevent another war (that never happened though :c). Many European countries wanted Texas independence to be recognized due to how it would help prevent further U.S. expansion. France was the first European nation to recognize Texas' status as a country. The two countries traded goods Texas set up an embassy in 1842 in Paris in what is now the Hôtel de Vendôme and France opened up a legation—a form of embassy—which still stands in Austin.

➤ Mexico | When Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821, Texas became one of its states. Since Texas' population was extremely low—just about 4,000 Tejanos lived there at the time— the Mexican government was desperate to populate the area. It wasn't long at all before Stephen F. Austin, with permission from the Mexican government, came with 300 Anglo-American families and settled in the region near the Brazos River in 1823. Let me just say the new immigrants did not follow the requirements they were supposed to have done before coming there. These three requirements were: 1) they had to learn the Spanish language, 2) convert to Roman Catholicism, and 3) be loyal to the Mexican government. Obviously very few settlers obeyed the three compromises and most brought over slaves even though slavery was against the law in Mexico. Now, the relations between the Mexican government were very poor and the desire for secession reached its peak when the government tried to enforce the ban on slavery. As you all already know, the Texans did end up seceding, went into a war which lasted from 1835-1836, and then gained its independence. It didn't end there though. Most Texans wanted annexation by the U.S. and this was granted in 1845. Texas' annexation of course angered Mexico, especially since it never recognized Texas' independence and instead viewed it as a rebellious territory. The U.S. and Mexico went into war because of this in 1846 and it ended in 1848 with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

➤ United States of America | Texas' first relations with the U.S. of course were already mentioned right above this so there isn't much else to add other than what happened during the time Texas was independent. Due to how the Mexican government was in chaos at the time and that there was "an immense disparity of the physical force on the side of Mexico", U.S. representatives believed that it would not be able to threaten the U.S. or Texas much so on March 3rd, 1837, the U.S. became the first nation to recognize the Republic of Texas as an independent country and in fact even recognized it as a "sister state". In 1841 the U.S opened a legation in Austin and Texas set up an embassy in Washington, DC. Just saying, Texas' primary goal had always been to be annexed by the U.S. The thing is the U.S. was very reluctant to do so for two reasons: 1) Texas would become a slave state, and this would upset the balance between slave and free states and 2) due to Mexico still considering Texas as part of its land, it would be a sure way of starting a war. Eventually though the U.S. did annex the Republic of Texas on December 29, 1845. This of course led to the Mexican-American War when Mexican troops attacked American troops at the Rio Grande, a territory they both claimed and on May 13, 1846, the U.S. Congress declared war, a war that Mexico ended up losing. One last significant event happened before Texas became the state we all know it to be. Due to its status as a slave state, Texas became one of 11 states to secede from the Union to form the Confederate States of America despite the then governor, Sam Houston's, protests. Not much happened on Texas' lands during the Civil War and it mostly served to send troops and supplies to the warfront. It wasn't until March 30, 1870 that Texas was readmitted to Congress.

➤ Great Britain | Britain was always rather reluctant to officially recognize Texas' independence because of its friendly relations with Mexico. Even though they did secretly trade goods, it wasn't until the 1840s when Texas showed intentions of joining the U.S. that Britain ended up encouraging them to remain independent out of fear of U.S. expansion. In 1842 they even ended up allowing Texas to set up a legation in a building at Pickering Place. St. Jame's Street. Although of course the legation was disbanded when Texas was annexed by the U.S. in 1845.

➤ Belgium | Due to the closeness of the dates when they each gained their independence, with the European nation claiming independence in 1830 and Texas in 1835, Belgium showed interest in giving recognition to the fledgling nation. Belgium set up a legation in Austin and Texas had an embassy in Brussels. They also did mutual trade, with Texas exporting corn, cotton, and other raw materials and Belgium exporting iron, tea, beer, and other products.

➤ Netherlands | In mimicry of Belgium's actions, the Netherlands also took steps in recognizing the Republic of Texas' independence. The Netherlands set up an embassy in Austin and Texas set up an embassy in Amsterdam. Like the other European nations, the two were engaged in trade with Texas exporting the usual corn, cotton, and other raw materials and the Netherlands exporting textiles, chocolate, beer, and other products.

➤ Germany | While there have been many different cultures that have left their mark on Texas, the Germans have arguably left one of the greatest besides that of Mexican-Americans, Anglo-Americans, and African-Americans. The first Germans came to Texas in 1831, when Johann Friedrick Ernst gained land in present day Austin County and eventually convinced many other German families—most of whom were from districts in Oldenburg, Westphalia, and Holstein—came to join him through a series of letters, some of whom were published as well. Immigration to Texas was eventually widely publicized in Germany due to the wide tracts of cheap and fertile land along with its abundant game and fish. German nobles hoped to bring themselves wealth and power, as well as alleviate rural Germany's overpopulation and thus created the Adelsverein to colonize German peasants in Texas. The greatest wave of German immigration came in the 1840s, when the Adelsverein helped more than 7,000 Germans reach Texas. The Adelsverein also helped found multiple towns such as New Braunfels and Fredericksburg. The German language was widely used in many areas, mostly those in Central Texas, and only began to fade in the late 1970s. Along with this, a unique type of German dialect was eventually developed solely in Texas.

➤ Coahuila | As early as 1689, the Spanish governor at the time of the province of Coahuila, Alonso de León, extended his authority over the province of Texas. However in 1963, the Catholic missions in East Texas were withdrawn. It wasn't until 1716 when the governor of Coahuila, Martín de Alarcón, reestablished control once again over Texas. The two provinces were split again and governed separately with Alarcón's successor in 1726. It wasn't until Mexico gained its independence and the Constitution of 1824 was passed until the two were once again united due to their sparse population. It wasn't only Coahuila and Texas that were merged however. Nuevo León was combined with them as well, but was quickly detached on May 7, 1824. Coahuila y Texas was finally disestablished once and for all when the president of Mexico, Antonio López de Santa Anna, revoked the Constitution of 1824 and replaced the state governments with administrative divisions from Mexico City, and Texas declared its independence shortly after.

➤ New Mexico | For much of their history together, Texas and New Mexico have not been the nicest to each other. This is because of the Santa Fe Expedition back in 1841. Basically the Republic of Texas’ president, Mirabeau Lamar, sent an expedition into New Mexico, without the approval of the Congress of the Republic, in an attempt to secure their control of the Santa Fe Trail for it’s trade as well as to try to get the New Mexicans in the Santa Fe area to become part of Texas. Let’s just say it was a complete flop. Not only were they ill-equipped and had hard time finding a suitable route, but when they finally did make it to Santa Fe they were captured by and imprisoned by the New Mexican Governor Manuel Armijo who still had close ties with Mexico. So yeah Sam himself and New Mexico's personification are not always on the best terms, although over the years they have managed to forget about what happened and now annoy each other in a more friendly way.

Please do not trace my art or steal/copy any of my headcanons, ideas, designs, etc. Do not use him in any way without my permission as he is for my use only.
If you do wish to draw him or use him for any of your works, you may as long as you credit me for him. This OC has been independently worked on since September 2014.
If you need any help with your OC, just ask!

Samuel Navarro Acosta | Texas (2014-2017) © withwingsthatfly