Auction Name: 2026 February 26 Historical Manuscripts & Texana Signature® Auction

Lot Number: 47031

Shortcut to Lot: HA.com/6328*47031

Mirabeau Lamar Signed Land Grant. One partially printed page of vellum, 15 x 13 inches, Austin; December 1, 1840. Grants "Levi Jones and Edward Hall assignees their heirs or assigns Forever one and seventy hundredths acres of Land...being that small island in West Bay (part of Galveston Bay) known as the middle one of three islands called 'Deer Islands.'" Signed, "Mirabeau B. Lamar" as President of the Republic of Texas. Countersigned by John P. Borden as Commissioner of the General Land Office. On the verso, an illustration of Galveston's Deer Islands.

In 1837, the Texas government surveyed the western portion of Galveston Island into ten-acre lots and put them up for auction. Land speculators Levi Jones and Edward Hall purchased most of this land for development, even though several homesteaders already claimed ownership through earlier land grants. The dispute led to a lawsuit, but the court ultimately recognized Jones and Hall as the rightful owners. The area described in this grant, Middle Deer Island, has since disappeared, eroded away by dredging operations in the bay.

Condition: Lightly toned with smoothed folds and a few light stains. Minor edgewear, including a touch of loss at the top left corner. Docketing and light pencil annotations on the verso.

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