A town born from Austin’s vision and Mexico’s need

Before Texas was Texas, before revolution stirred the frontier or cattle became king, there was Matagorda — a settlement built on the muddy banks of the Colorado River, where ambition, opportunity, and political necessity converged. Founded in 1827 through the efforts of Stephen F. Austin and his trusted surveyor Elias R. Wightman, Matagorda holds its place as the third-oldest town in Texas—and one of the most historically significant.

Located near the mouth of the Colorado River and where the Gulf of Mexico meets East Matagorda and Matagorda Bays, Matagorda was not born out of accident but by design. Mexico, fearing encroachment from European powers and hostile Indigenous resistance, enlisted Austin to populate the coastal frontier with loyal colonists. The plan was simple: offer generous land grants to settlers who agreed to become Mexican citizens and Catholics.

With Mexican approval in hand, Austin authorized the creation of a port town to protect and welcome incoming colonists. Elias R. Wightman, along with partners Hosea H. League, James E. B. Austin, Thomas M. Duke, and William Selkirk, each took a one-quarter interest in the townsite. The group laid out the town grid in 1827 and gave it a Spanish name: Matagorda—a term that some interpret as “fat kill” (referring to rich game) or “fat mott,” a cluster of trees.

Wightman returned to New York in 1828 to recruit settlers. Within a year, he led a group of roughly 60 immigrants — 50 from New York and 10 from New Orleans — back to the Texas coast. The fledgling town quickly grew. By 1832, Matagorda boasted 1,400 residents and served as a major port of entry for Austin’s colony, second only to Galveston in maritime importance.

A cotton gin was already in operation by 1825, hinting at the agricultural promise of the region. By the 1830s, cotton and cattle flowed out of the port, while settlers and supplies arrived from New Orleans and beyond. Freight moved upriver despite the massive “raft” of debris that blocked sections of the Colorado. Though the raft wasn’t removed until 1929, the waters behind it provided crucial irrigation and facilitated commerce.

Matagorda quickly evolved from a rugged frontier outpost into a vital commercial hub. In 1831, a Mexican customhouse was established, and by 1840, the town had its own chamber of commerce. The first newspaper, the Matagorda Bulletin, began publication as early as 1837, and theaters and hotels followed soon after.

But Matagorda’s significance was not limited to economics. It played a political and military role during the Texas Revolution. Residents of the town signed the Goliad Declaration of Independence in 1835, and the community was deserted during the Runaway Scrape, only to be reinhabited after independence was secured. In 1836, Matagorda County was formed, and by 1837, Matagorda was named its county seat.

With the return of peace, the town became a seasonal retreat for plantation families from the Caney Creek and Colorado River valleys. The sea breeze provided respite from inland heat and illness. Education flourished early on, with schools such as Matagorda Academy (opened by 1839), Lafayette Academy, and a Young Ladies School serving the community’s youth. The county’s first public schools were established after the 1854 Education Act.

Matagorda also gave rise to some of Texas’s most compelling stories. In 1844, Samuel Maverick — a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence —  settled at Tiltona on the Matagorda Peninsula. His failure to brand his livestock led to the term “maverick” entering the American lexicon, meaning an independent-minded individual or unbranded stray.

The peninsula itself was a land of opportunity and tragedy. Settlements along its length were vulnerable to hurricanes, and many—including those founded by German immigrants in the 1840s—were ultimately abandoned. One of the worst storms in 1875 destroyed homes and took lives, permanently altering the human landscape of the region.

Despite natural disasters, Matagorda endured. It was home to one of the state’s earliest schools, one of the oldest cemeteries, and the first Episcopal Church in Texas — Christ Church, founded by Rev. Caleb Ives in 1838, which still is open to this day.

Kavan Van Hal has a history degree and put this article together with the help of the Matagorda County Museum.