Haden Edwards arrives in Nacogdoches in August…
August 1825 CE
Mistakenly believing that he has the authority to determine the validity of existing land claims, Edwards, demands written proof of ownership in September, or the land will be forfeited and sold at auction.
His action is at least partially driven by prejudice; Edwards scorns those who were poorer or of a different race.
By removing less-prosperous settlers, he can assign their lands to wealthy planters, like himself, from the Southern United States.
Very few of the English-speaking residents have valid titles.
Those who have not arrived as filibusters have been duped by fraudulent land speculators.
Most of the Spanish-speaking landowners have lived on grants made to their families seventy or more years previously and are unable to produce any paperwork.
Anticipating the potential conflict between the new empresario and the long-time residents of the area, the acting alcalde of the municipality, Luis Procela, and the municipality clerk, Jose Antonio Sepulveda, begin validating old Spanish and Mexican land titles, a function legally assigned to the state land commissioner.
In response, Edwards accuses the men of forging deeds, further angering the residents.