*On this date in 1836, the Mexican army began attacking the Alamo. This saga of the American story is an important piece of African American history.

Most of the men and women who moved to the Texas territory were colonizers who came in search of wealth and adventure, eager to grab up the land Mexico was handing out by the acre. In doing so, they agreed to convert to Catholicism and become Mexican citizens. Few did either. Once in Texas, they also realized there was much money to be made in Mexico’s cotton industry.