page_title: Telegraph and Texas Register
section_title: Texas Revolution
hierarchical_section_title: Telegraph and Texas Register / Texas Revolution
caption_attribution_description: English: This is a partial scan of the list of Texans killed at the Battle of the Alamo, as published in the Telegraph and Texas Register on Thursday, March 24, 1836 in San Felipe, Texas. Vol. 1, No. 21, Ed. 1. At the time, Texas had declared its independence from Mexico but was in the process of fighting to have that independence recognized; Mexico still claimed the area.
context_page_description: Telegraph and Texas Register was the second permanent newspaper in Texas. Originally conceived as the Telegraph and Texas Planter, the newspaper was renamed shortly before it began publication, to reflect its new mission to be "a faithful register of passing events". Owners Gail Borden, John Pettit Borden, and Joseph Baker founded the paper in San Felipe de Austin, a community long at the center of Texas politics.
  The first issue was printed on October 10, 1835, days after the outbreak of the Texas Revolution. The Telegraph continued to report news of the war and the formation of the new Republic of Texas through the end of March 1836. As the Mexican Army approached the colonies in eastern Texas, most residents fled eastward. The owners of the Telegraph and their printing press evacuated on March 30 with the rear guard of the Texian Army. The press was quickly reestablished in Harrisburg. On April 14, Mexican soldiers captured the printing press and threw it into Buffalo Bayou.
  The newspaper was reestablished in August 1836 in Columbia. When the 1st Texas Congress named Houston the new capital of the Republic, the Telegraph was relocated to Houston.
context_section_description: The small skirmish known as the Battle of Gonzales had occurred on October 2.  Over the next few weeks, men began gathering at Gonzales to form an army.  John Borden joined them, and his brother Thomas took his place in the newspaper partnership.  Gail Borden wrote to Austin on October 10 that both his brother Thomas and Joseph Baker also wanted to join the army.  All were worried that they would be castigated for not joining, and Gail explained that he thought the newspaper was "of more importance than their services can be in the camp."  Thomas Borden joined the Siege of Bexar and on November 5, Gail Borden again refused to allow Baker to join the army because he was their only translator.
  The paper's first issue was late, despite long hours worked by the printers.  By the time the second issue was printed, the printers did not know where to deliver many of the subscriptions, as the subscribers had left their homes to join the army.  The papers' expenses were approximately $250 each month, while it collected about $75 in its first month of operations.  Borden contracted with the Consultation to print items for the interim government.  By November 24, they had incurred $593.75 in costs, but the cash-strapped government was unable to provide reimbursement.  The frequent public document printings caused the press to run low on newsprint, and by mid-December the Telegraph consisted of only four pages rather than eight.  Gail asked his brother Thomas to travel to New Orleans to purchase more supplies, but Thomas refused to leave the army.  The paper missed an edition in mid-December due to lack of paper.  New supplies towards the end of 1836 allowed the Telegraph to resume service, but by February newsprint again ran low.  Borden attributed this to a larger-than-expected subscriber list and frequent opportunities to publish other documents.
  According to historian James Lee, the Telegraph was the most important newspaper in Texas during the Texas Revolution and was "one of the foremost papers devoted to the revolutionary cause".  Historian Eugene C. Barker describes the paper as "an invaluable repository of public documents during this critical period of the state's history".
  Editorials in the newspaper often compared the fighting in Texas to the American Revolution, even publishing extracts from United States documents of that era. Stephen F. Austin, leader of the Texian Army until December 1835, sent news directly from the Siege to the Telegraph's editors.  Borden received news directly from 
  other military leaders, including Jim Bowie and James Fannin, and political heavyweights such as Sam Houston and Lorenzo de Zavala.
  From early December 1835 until early March 1836, there was little political stability in Texas.  The Telegraph, along with the other major newspaper in the region, the Texas Republican, began printing more circumspect stories about the war after a January report in the Telegraph on a rumored counterinvasion by Mexican General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna sparked a panic among Texas settlers.  For the next few weeks, the paper primarily featured official documents and letters, with little editorial comment.
  The paper at first stopped short of endorsing a full split from Mexico.  The editorial in the February 20, 1836 issue stated that: "To have advocated a declaration of independence, before understanding the true situation of the Mexican government, and without any assurance of assistance from the United States, would have been a rashness to which others as well as ourselves might have fallen victim."  Borden further noted that "It has never been the objective of this paper to forestall public opinion and to crowd upon the people our own views in a matter so important as that touching a change in government." Nine days later, Baker joined the army.  Gail Borden, Jr and two other printers were drafted for the army on February 29 but were excused from service so that the press could continue to operate.
  In February 1836, Borden seriously considered moving the press to Washington-on-the-Brazos, where the Conv
caption: A partial scan of the March 24, 1836 edition of the Telegraph which contained the first list of defenders killed at the Battle of the Alamo
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