History

THE FRENCH LEGATION IN TEXAS

On March 2, 1836, Texas declared independence from Mexico. David G. Burnet immediately served as interim president of the newly established Republic of Texas. That fall, Sam Houston became the first official President of The Republic of Texas, setting up his government’s capital in Houston. In 1839 the government of King Louis Philippe, constitutional monarch of France, sent a representative to this new nation to determine whether it should be officially recognized as a sovereign nation through treaties with France. The representative was a young man named Jean Pierre Isador Alphonse Dubois de Saligny, a secretary at the French Legation in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States.

Dubois quickly recognized that The Republic of Texas could be a source for France's sparse cotton supply and that a future relationship with the Texians would provide “a glorious opportunity” for France. A Treaty of Amity, Navigation, and Commerce was signed on September 25, 1839, officially recognizing The Republic of Texas as an independent nation and declaring the two countries to be allies. For his part in the process, Dubois was promoted to “chargé d’affaires” to The Republic of Texas.

Dubois claimed to have visited both San Antonio and Nacogdoches during his first visit while also visiting New Orleans, Louisiana. He soon returned to The Republic of Texas to establish a Légation de la Republique Française, or French diplomatic post, in the Capital City. By the time he reached the new capital in September, 1840, Mirabeau Lamar had become the second elected President of The Republic of Texas. President Lamar created a new city at Waterloo to serve as the seat of government. This Capital City, renamed Austin, was a new frontier for the Texians and for Dubois.

Austin in 1840 was a town of unpaved streets, tents, and log cabins. Dubois tried to live and work in European style, seeking to inspire the Texians and encourage other European nations to become allies. Dubois successfully negotiated new terms of trade between France and Texas while in Austin. He also campaigned to push through the acceptance of the Franco-Texian Bill of 1841, which would create a corporation to explore and settle West Texas, importing more than 5,000 French colonists within eight years. Despite his efforts, the bill was never passed. Most of his diplomatic work was completed while living in a rented cabin near the intersection of Guadalupe and Pecan (6th) Streets. During this time, he purchased 22 acres just east of downtown and began construction of a fine, wood-framed, pine structure to serve as his Legation and home.

Construction was slow and the French Legation remained a work-in-progress for some time. In the spring of 1841 the structure and outbuildings were completed, however, due to the political and diplomatic issues, Dubois left Austin before settling in. Within nine months, Sam Houston was re-elected President of The Republic of Texas and soon reinstated Houston as the Capital City. Dubois restablished his Legation in Houston,  sharing rented space with the English chargé d’affaires. In December 1842, Houston’s agents attempted to retrieve all governmental records from Austin, an incident known as the Texas Archive War. Two years later Anson Jones, original owner of the French Legation property (Outlot One), became the final President of The Republic of Texas. He negotiated the annexation of The Republic of Texas by the United States of America in December 1845. In February 1846 all power was transferred to the State of Texas and the United States of America. As a state in the union, Texas was no longer the host for foreign diplomats. Dubois returned to France until his next assignment without ever returning to Austin.

The French Legation structure remained standing in central-east Austin. The home served as headquarters and residence to Father Jean-Marie Odin while he worked to regain Texian missions for the Catholic Church in the 1840s. Other private owners inhabited the home until 1940, including the Robertson family who owned the home for over one-hundred years. Miss Lillie Robertson kept the home open for curious visitors and hosted many meetings, including those for The Daughters of The Republic of Texas, within the walls of the former French Legation. In 1949, the State of Texas purchased the French Legation from the Robertson heirs and, under the custodianship of The Daughters of The Republic of Texas, the French Legation Museum opened to the public in 1956.

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THE PIG WAR

Alphonse Dubois de Saligny was involved in a skirmish in town as he was diligently fundraising and advocating for the Franco-Texian Bill and other diplomatic matters. Austin’s downtown innkeeper Richard Bullock, who lived a few blocks from the Frenchman's rented quarters at Guadalupe and Pecan Streets (now Sixth Street), kept several pigs which roamed freely, unpinned, through the town. The pigs soon discovered a store of tasty corn in Dubois’ stables and his Parisian chef’s culinary gardens. The pigs often broke down the fence surrounding Dubois’ cabin to enjoy the outdoor buffet. Dubois and his entourage were left making costly daily repairs to the fence and gardens. The pack of pigs also frightened his horses, creating dangerous stampedes within his stables.

Bullock’s trespassing pigs also discovered an entry point to Dubois’ cabin home. The pigs destroyed fine French linens, diplomatic paperwork, and other belongings. To stop the destruction of his property Dubois ordered his servant, M. Pluyette, to kill any pigs that entered his yard. The exact number of animals that were destroyed is uncertain. Dubois and Pluyette admitted to killing five or six pigs; Bullock claimed that the count was between fifteen and twenty-five. In his letters to the government, Dubois noted that the trespassing swine did not “wear the name of their master on their backs,” proving that he had not singled out Bullock’s property; he was simply defending his own. While Dubois continued to battle through diplomatic routes and letter-writing campaigns, Bullock had other intentions. On February 19, 1841, the "Pig War" broke out as Bullock and Pluyette came to blows on the street. Dubois wrote an angry letter to James Mayfield, The Republic of Texas Secretary of State, demanding government protection for Pluyette and claiming Bullock had threatened the diplomat with death by gun.

Although Mayfield regretted Bullock's actions, he insisted that the matter belonged in a court of law. The matter came to trial on February 22, 1841. Dubois refused to allow Pluyette to testify, claiming that, in accordance with the September 25 Treaty and Laws of Nations, a foreign national should not be subject to a Texas court. Bullock was released on bail until the next session of the District Court, to be held in November.

Dubois wrote more letters to Secretary Mayfield, protesting Bullock's release. Matters came to a head on March 24, 1841, when Dubos attempted to pay a visit to his American counterpart, the chargé d'affaires of the United States government in Texas. The representative of the United States lived in Bullock’s Inn, and Bullock refused to let Dubois enter the building. After a public argument, the Frenchman retreated.

Eventually, due to unrest, allegations, and domestic strife, Secretary Mayfield was moved to write a letter to George McIntosh, The Republic of Texas chargé d'affaires in Paris, ordering him to ask for the recall of Dubois. The letter was written on April 8, 1841 but had not been approved or endorsed by Republic of Texas President Mirabeau Lamar. By April 29, 1841, Alphonse Dubois de Saligny, frustrated with the legal and social climate in the Capital City, left Austin and his newly completed French Legation, never to return.

ROBERTSON HILL

Alphonse Dubois de Saligny may never have lived in the house that we know as the French Legation but it served as his Legation for a time. Dubois purchased the property (Outlot 1) from Anson Jones in September 1840, began construction in December of that year, and had completed the project in the spring of 1841. Dubois left Austin in April 1841, never to return. It is unknown whether or not Dubois settled into his fine new home before leaving. His belongings, archives, and entourage remained in Austin and served the Legaiton in Dubois' absence. The unique house was built according to his orders and was designed to provide an appropriate setting for European diplomatic duties, dinner parties and entertainment. The structure was surrounded by more than 22 acres, stretching from today's 7th Street to 11th Street and from San Marcos Street to East Avenue (the southbound frontage road of IH-35).

Father Jean-Maire Odin, a French priest, purchased the property and its buildings from Dubois. By 1842, the house was the home and headquarters for Fathers Odin and Father Timon, who were working to reclaim Texian Missions for the Catholic Church. Though the city of Austin was nearly abandoned by this time, the French Legation remained one of the few permanent structures in town.

In 1847, after the annexation of Texas to the United States, the French Legation property was sold to Moseley Baker, a hero of the Texas Revolution. He quickly sold the home and property to Dr. Joseph W. Robertson in 1848. Dr. Robertson envisioned the site as the location of a school for girls, to be run by his friends C.W. and Maria Howell. However, the school never came into fruition and Dr. Robertson moved his family into the house.

Dr. Joseph and Lydia Lee Robertson raised eleven children, including Dr. Robertson's son from his first marriage, in the house on "Robertson Hill." Sarah, the fifth child of Dr. and Mrs. Robertson, was the first to be born in the house in 1850, and the last to die there in 1940. Sarah's older sister, Julia Robertson, painted a charming picture of the home as it existed in 1858. The painting created by twelve-year-old Julia still hangs in the girls' bedroom at the French Legation Museum. It was their sister, Miss Lillie Robertson, who tirelessly kept the memory of the old French Legation alive. She lived in the home for nearly 84 years and offered tours to guests daily, which she and many other Austinites called "The French Embassy." As an early member of The Daughters of The Republic of Texas, she was active in maintaining the nearby State Cemetery as well as working with other women’s and civic organizations.

In addition to the thirteen members of the Robertson family, there were other residents living on Robertson Hill during their time. The French Legation Museum is currently researching these people and their lives to complete the story of the site.

It is known that Dr. Robertson was a slave owner before the Emancipation Proclamation of 1865. In the 1850 and 1860 Census Slave Schedules, nine individuals were listed as "slaves" under his name. The names of these enslaved people are not written and remain largely unknown. Within the 1850 deed records for Travis County, one man is named Manuel in a bill of sale between Wm. B. Burditt and Dr. Joseph Robertson. Manuel was sold, guaranteed to be a "Slave for life," for $850.00.

By 1870 and 1880, freed African-American people were listed on the Census Records for the Robertson household, including Eliza Bell and her family and Polly & Grant Jarrett. In 1910, Nancy Jarrett was interviewed by the Dallas Morning News Magazine during a visit to the "French Embassy." Over time, the Robertson family would sell many parcels of land to free African-Americans in East Austin. These communities were called Pleasant Hill and Robertson Hill. Robertson Hill would eventually absorb the area known as Pleasant Hill and would become a very diverse neighborhood.

Parcels of the original 22-acre tract were sold to the Robertson children, in-laws, and other Austinites. Some of the first people who purchased pieces of Outlot 1 were:
Wm & Jane Oliphant
Bernhard Lindemann
D. W. Doom
L.S. Simpson
J.S. Simpson

Stay tuned as this important research continues.

THE FRENCH LEGATION MUSEUM

After the deaths of Miss Lillie Robertson in 1939 and Sarah Robertson Smith in 1940, Robertson family heirs decided to honor their Aunt Lillie by turning the home into a historic house museum. Miss Lillie protected the home and interpreted its history for the public for most of her 84 years. She treated the French Legation not only as her residence, but as a structure that, in her words, belonged to the public. Visitors were invited into the home and she hosted many meetings for local patriotic, genealogic, and philanthropic groups.

In this spirit, the Robertsons agreed to sell the French Legation site to the State of Texas in 1949. Under the auspices of Mrs. Walter Prescott Webb, the property was placed under the custodianship of The Daughters of The Republic of Texas, who have operated the site as the French Legation Museum since 1956. From 1952 onward, The Daughters of The Republic of Texas and other local organizations have worked tirelessly to preserve, protect, and restore this priceless historic site. Original restoration included conservation of the historic home by architect Raiford Stripling and the creation of a French-inspired landscape plan designed by C. Coatsworth Pinckney.

The French Legation Museum today represents a conscientious effort to return to details authentic to the Dubois and Robertson eras. Many pieces remain from the Robertson family's ownership of the home in addition to items from Dubois’ Legation. The reconstructed French country kitchen, designed by architect Raiford Stripling, is notable for its extensive eighteenth and nineteenth-century equipment. Further archeological study also provided the location of the privy/outhouse site; there is now a recreation of this outbuilding on site.

The staff and governing committee of the French Legation Museum are devoted to sharing the site’s past and the rich cultural history of Texas with visitors. Since 1956 the French Legation Museum has been open to the public and continues to be a living part of Texas history.

ARCHITECTURE

The French Legation was a unique structure in early Austin. While most Austinites resided in tents and cabins, Alphonse Dubois de Saligny would build a framed structure with milled lumber, using rough, hand-hewn local timber for the unseen foundation. All framing and finishes would be completed with milled loblolly pine ("the lost pines"). While the exterior design is Louisiana-Bayou influenced, the interior floorplan follows the dog-trot style with a large central hallway running through the entire living space.

The Legation’s beams, floors, and other pine lumber may have been milled at the Austin City Steam Saw Mill in Bastrop. According to the 29 July 1840 Austin City Gazette, Yates & Company was operating this mill in Bastrop and was willing to send materials into Austin. Additionally, his finished pine lumber could have been ordered from the Copperas Creek Steam Saw Mill three miles below Bastrop; this mill was advertising its operation in the 24 October 1840 edition of the Texas Sentinel. Below the home, Dubois dug a full wine cellar through the hard clay and rock. The home included an unfinished attic that allowed hot air to be vented up and out of the home through the upper dormer windows but may not have been intended for daily use.

Dubois left Austin in 1841, never to return. According to the diary of William Bollaert, by 1843 the French Legation was “empty, its doors and windows open, palings broken down and appearing as if it would soon be in ruins.” Within four years the Legation was sold to Mosley Baker and later Dr. Joseph W. Robertson. Dr. Robertson’s brother-in-law, D. Abram Lee, drew the earliest known image of the house, a simple sketch of the south façade, in 1850. The drawing highlights the new six-over-six sash windows installed by the Robertsons as well as Dubois’ original 9-light dormer windows and French doors as well as the impressive main entrance. In this image the grounds are enclosed with a lattice gated fence. The roof is shown to be wood shingles, supported by the front porch’s double columns. Eight years later, young Julia Robertson would paint the house in a similar state.

The Austin Sanborn Fire Insurance Map of 1900 shows a different structure. By this time, the Legation had a one-story kitchen/dining addition on the north side of the home. The roofs were described as “non-combustible,” metal instead of wood, and the outbuildings included the privy and stables north-west of the home. Soon photographs included another addition, an enclosed toilet, on the north-east corner of the home. As time went on, the inhabitants made small adjustments to make the home more comfortable but never disturbed the principal features of the house.

By 1934, the house was documented by the Historic American Building Survey (HABS). Available through the Library of Congress, this file of history, descriptions, photographs, and construction documents clearly showed the home and its additions. After the home was sold to the State of Texas in 1949, The Daughters of The Republic of Texas (DRT) began restoration and rehabilitation of the oldest home in Austin.

In 1950, the Legation had remained closed since the deaths of Miss Lillie and Sarah Robertson. Mr. Carl Stautz, architect, donated the first restoration services and used the 1934 HABS survey as a primary resource. The next year, the attic was “cleaned,” the home was treated for pests, and new cedar posts were installed to reinforce the building’s foundation. Additionally, the DRT renovated the gardens, restored and repaired the interiors, replaced the roof, painted, and gained support from the Violet Crown Garden Club, National Society of the Colonial Dames of America, and other organizations. In 1954 the Robertson additions were removed due to their dilapidated condition and a caretakers’ house was constructed with the salvaged material. Architect Raiford Stripling joined the project in 1955, the same year the Pittsburg Paint Company sampled the home’s interior paint and finishes. By 1956 the home was ready to be opened to the public as the French Legation Museum.

The study and appreciation of this Louisiana-Bayou-style Texian home continues today. The French Legation was a Recorded Texas Landmark in 1967, was published in the National Register of Historic Places in November 1969, and was designated a City of Austin Historic Landmark in 1974. The site was then designated as a Texas State Archeological Landmark in 1981. Members of the Texas Historical Commission developed the French Legation’s State Archeological Landmark Architectural and Archeological Preservation Plan in October 1985 and a Historic Structures Report was completed by Volz & Associates in August 1997. A recent structural and architectural assesment project has provided groundwork for upcoming structural restoration. Ongoing planning and preservation continue to support and preserve this unique structure and the collections it houses.