Independence was the final home of Margaret Moffette Lea (Mrs. Sam) Houston and it is her final resting place.

She had returned here after her husband's death in 1863 to the community they had both found so enlightened and to the congregation they found so caring.  "Sweet village! thou loveliest spot of earth to me," Mrs. Houston wrote of Independence.  (4)
Her home still stands there just a few blocks off Highway 50.

Another 15 miles due east on horseback is Washington on the Brazos, site of the drafting and signing of Texas' Declaration of Independence from Mexico on March 2, 1836  (5)

This breathtakingly beautiful place in Texas' history is now a state park. Thousands of visitors each year tour its fascination Star of the Republic Museum.

Washington on the Brazos is on State Highway 105, about 15 miles northeast of Brenham, or only a few minutes southwest of Navasota, Texas.

In the early days, "Texians" were grappling with other fronts beside the struggle for independence.

Indian alarms and depredations were common during the time "Texians" gained independence.  Small companies of men banded together to protect their settlements from the Indians.

Stephen F. Austin first designated them as "rangers," now known as the Texas Rangers.  They were fearless men who could ride great distances and who endured innumerable hardships. They were indispensable in the protection of Texas' frontier during the days of the Republic. (6)

John Echols was one of those early "Texians."
Born in Virginia, he came to Texas, joined the army at Nacogdoches and served under Captain John Quitman.

Echols' reward for serving the the Armies of the Republic of Texas was a bounty land grant in Providence Community and included a spot known today as Tunis, Texas.

Echols established a general store, traded horses and farmed cotton in the area for many years.
Legend has it that one day while John was sitting on the porch of his store a stranger rode up on his horse and asked the name of the place.

John sat up, spit, and answered that "the name of this place is 'Dogtown,' and I'm the big dog here."
To this day, Tunis is still referred to by area residents as "Dogtown."