Seal, State of Texas

STATE OF TEXAS SEAL -  The Seal of the State of Texas was adopted through the 1845 Texas Constitution, and was based on the seal of the Republic of Texas, which dates from January 25, 1839.  The seal of Texas has changed 5 times since independence from Mexico in 1836.  The original Great Seal of the Republic was created on December 10, 1836, by the Congress, with a bill providing that "for the future the national seal of this republic shall consist of a single star, with the letters 'Republic of Texas', circular on said seal, which seal shall also be circular".   After initial hopes for the quick annexation of Texas into the United States grew dim, the Third Congress modified the seal and created a national arms in 1839.  The bill stated, "The national arms of the Republic of Texas be, and the same is hereby declared to be a white star of five points, on an azure ground, encircled by an olive and live oak branches", as well as that "The national great seal of this Republic shall, from and after the passage of this act, bear the arms of this nation..., and the letters 'Republic of Texas'".  When Texas joined the Union in 1845, the new state constitution retained the seal, changing only the word "Republic" to "State", and removed the background from the arms.  It was not until 1992 that the seal and arms were standardized.