Happy Mother’s Day — a tribute to one of Texas’s most remarkable women.
Long before Texas was a state — or even a republic — a young woman from Maryland was already fighting for it.
Jane Herbert Wilkinson Long (July 23, 1798 – December 30, 1880) would come to be known as the “Mother of Texas,” a title earned not through politics or proclamation, but through sheer, unrelenting courage.
Born the tenth child of a Maryland plantation family, Jane moved to Mississippi as a girl after her father’s death. In 1815, at just 17, she married Dr. James Long in Natchez. When James became consumed by the cause of liberating Texas from Spanish rule, Jane followed him — not reluctantly, but with full conviction. She accompanied him on his filibustering expeditions into Spanish Texas in 1819 and 1820, settling briefly in Nacogdoches before the couple established Fort Las Casas on the wild Bolivar Peninsula near present-day Galveston.
In September 1821, James departed to rally more support, leaving a pregnant Jane behind with her young daughter Ann and their enslaved companion, Kian. What followed was a test of survival that would define her legend. The other settlers drifted away. A brutal winter — the worst on record — descended on the peninsula. Food grew scarce. Karankawa Indians approached the fort. Jane responded by firing a cannon each day and hoisting a red petticoat on the flagpole to give the impression the fort was still garrisoned. And on December 21, 1821, alone but for Kian’s help, she gave birth to her daughter Mary James Long — long believed to be the first child born in Texas to an English-speaking woman.
Though later historians found census records showing earlier Anglo births in Texas, the title of “Mother of Texas” endured — and with good reason.
Jane’s story didn’t end on that frozen peninsula. After learning of her husband’s death in a Mexican prison in 1822, she rebuilt her life as one of Stephen F. Austin‘s original “Old Three Hundred” colonists. She received land grants in Fort Bend and Waller Counties, opened a boarding house in San Felipe where Texas independence rallies were held, and reportedly stored arms for Texas fighters. After the Texas Revolution, she developed a prosperous plantation near Richmond, where the town itself was built partly on land she sold.
Jane Long lived to 82, dying on December 30, 1880, in Fort Bend County. She is buried at Morton Cemetery in Richmond.
Schools across Texas bear her name. On this Mother’s Day, she stands as a reminder that the mothers who shape history often do so quietly — through endurance, resourcefulness, and an unbreakable will to hold on.
Sources:
- Wikipedia: Jane Herbert Wilkinson Long
- Texas State Historical Association, Handbook of Texas: Long, Jane Herbert Wilkinson — by Margaret S. Henson
- RV Texas Yall: The Story of Jane Long, The Mother of Texas
- Land.com: Jane Long, “Mother of Texas”
- Visit Galveston: Mother of Texas: Jane Long’s Bolivar Peninsula Survival
- History’s Women: Jane Wilkinson Long
- Galveston Monthly: Great Women of Galveston – Jane Long
Austin police were on the scene of a barricaded subject in the 3400 block of Kay Street in east Austin on Saturday.
Just before 8:00 p.m., APD said it cleared the home, and no suspect was found.
A shooting early Wednesday morning at a restaurant in northern Travis County left one person dead and four others injured. And now, supporters of Down South CaJJun Eats on FM 1825 say the business needs customers to return.
FOLLOW @AustinJustice on X
The SAFE Alliance, Austin’s largest provider of services for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and related abuse, is facing a severe funding shortfall that is forcing the closure of multiple critical programs.
An Austin-area high school community is rallying around a senior detained by ICE just weeks before graduation.
A San Marcos police officer has been placed on administrative leave after an internal investigation found Jaciel Cortina committed potential police misconduct in the unnecessary arrest of a father who was then transferred to ICE – not even 24 hours after being made aware of a local newspaper’s claim that Cortina lied in his sworn statement.
The City of New Braunfels said it is “deeply sorry” after officials prematurely declared the winner of its May 2 mayoral election.
The early declaration elicited backlash from the top two candidates and the community.
“The City is aware that the oversight in not recognizing a conflict between the City Charter and the Texas Constitution has caused significant frustration and distress in the community, and for that we are deeply sorry. While this failure is unacceptable and extremely regrettable, it is not a result of deceit or dishonesty. It is a significant mistake that is being felt by the community, candidates, the City Council, and the entire organization.” — City of New Braunfels
April brought steady progress on major transportation projects for TxDOT in Central Texas.
In Austin, TxDOT broke ground on a $68 million project along Loop 360 near RM 2222 and Courtyard Drive—one of the city’s most congested corridors. The project will replace traffic signals with an underpass at Courtyard Drive and construct a diverging diamond interchange at RM 2222 to improve traffic flow and safety. Additional pedestrian and bicycle paths are also included, with construction expected to continue through 2029. (TxDOT)
WEATHER
SATURDAY’S HIGH /LOW TEMPERATURES
AUSTIN-BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
CAMP MABRY
5-DAY FORECAST / AUSTIN, TEXAS
A strong thunderstorm rolled through the city just after 3:00 p.m. Saturday. A waterspout was seen in southern Williamson County.
Lake Pflugerville has officially reopened for use after a long issue with concerning water levels.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick warned the Republican Senate showdown could fracture the Texas GOP. Weeks later, Sen. John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton are escalating personal attacks as polling suggests Republicans remain divided behind both candidates. (Austin American-Statesman)
Cornyn launched a new digital ad Thursday targeting Paxton for offering “a sweetheart plea deal to a man who sexually abused a minor for three years,” according to a campaign news release.
Violent offenses, murder in particular, may have dropped in Dallas, but gun violence involving juveniles has not. There are many causes, but few solutions. In this episode of Y’all-itics, the Jasons are joined by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Joe Sexton who worked for months on a story focused on a Dallas mother who survived unimaginable loss and whose story is a real-life personification of this crime conundrum.
GUEST: Joe Sexton, Journalist
The guys run through a jam-packed slate of topics, including the Railroad Commission brawl, Chip Roy on the trail, BlackRock’s redemption with Texas Republicans, and a half-resolution on the summer camp quandary.
(Episode from May 9, 2026)
There are thousands of rental homes Texans will never own—because corporations do. And a new $4 billion deal is set to add even more to their portfolios.
(Episode from May 7, 2026)
Saturday was Graduation Day at the University of Texas and an estimated 8,000 graduates heard former Longhorns QB Colt McCoy deliver the keynote address.
SPORTS
COLLEGE BASEBALL: In the land of Rocky Top, things have been, well, rocky for the Texas Longhorns.
The fourth-ranked University of Texas baseball team (36-12, 15-10 SEC) fell to Tennessee, 14-9, at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville on Saturday evening. The Volunteers (34-17, 13-13 SEC) scored in all eight of their trips to the plate, overcoming an early Longhorns’ lead. (Texas Longhorns)
SERIES FINALE TODAY
MLB: A quick scoreboard from Saturday saw the Rangers get a win and the Astros take the L.
ON THE SCHEDULE
AL WEST STANDINGS
NBA PLAYOFFS: The San Antonio Spurs take a 2-1 Western Conference Semifinals lead into tonight’s Game 4 at Minnesota.
MLS: Austin FC heads north this evening for a meeting with Minnesota United FC at Allianz Field. The match will kick off at 6:00 p.m. CT. (Austin FC)
The great horned owl Athena is popular worldwide due a live webcam installed three years ago at her nest at Austin’s Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center. This year, Athena lost one of her two newly hatched owlets, but the second owlet – originally thought to have died – survived and is on the road to recovery.
