<P> Much of the politics of the remainder of the century centered on land use . Guided by the federal Morill Act , Texas sold public lands to gain funds to invest in higher education . In 1876 , the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas opened , and seven years later the University of Texas at Austin began conducting classes . New land use policies drafted during the administration of Governor John Ireland enabled individuals to accumulate land , leading to the formation of large cattle ranches . Many ranchers ran barbed wire around public lands , to protect their access to water and free grazing . This caused several range wars . Governor Lawrence Sullivan Ross guided the Texan legislature to reform the land use policies . </P>
<P> Much of the politics of the remainder of the century centered on land use . Guided by the federal Morill Act , Texas sold public lands to gain funds to invest in higher education . In 1876 , the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas opened , and seven years later the University of Texas at Austin began conducting classes . New land use policies drafted during the administration of Governor John Ireland enabled individuals to accumulate land , leading to the formation of large cattle ranches . Many ranchers ran barbed wire around public lands , to protect their access to water and free grazing . This caused several range wars . Governor Lawrence Sullivan Ross guided the Texan legislature to reform the land use policies . </P>
-- -- -- -- opened its doors in 1876 as the first publicly supported college in texas
-- -- -- -- opened its doors in 1876 as the first publicly supported college in texas
the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas
the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas