The story of how a frontier outpost called Waterloo became the Capital of Texas often begins with the tale of a hunting trip. In the fall of 1838, the Republic’s soon-to-be President Mirabeau B. Lamar is said to have shot a magnificent buffalo at the corner of what is today’s Congress Avenue and 8th Street.

At the time, Houston was the new Republic’s Capital City and Sam Houston - its President. But the city’s muggy climate was unpopular with legislators, particularly Lamar who preferred Waterloo’s streams, wildlife and more central location.

So in January 1839, newly-elected President Lamar appointed a special commission to select a new site for the capital, stipulating it be located somewhere between the Trinity and Colorado Rivers and named "Austin" after Stephen F. Austin -- the "Father of Texas." Not surprisingly, the commissioners chose Waterloo.

But the story doesn’t end here. Legislators saw Austin as "the end of the road" and attempted, unsuccessfully over the next few years, to relocate their government. Although the city was designated the new "State Capital" in 1845, legislators still grumbled. A statewide election in 1850 and 1872 finally put the matter to rest. Lamar’s choice had proved the best.