The first duly elected Congress of the Republic of Texas met at Columbia, the new capital, October 3, 1836. The provisional government had been forced to move many times after the Texians declared their independence from Mexico on March 2, 1836 at Washington on the Brazos. the temporary capital was first established at Harrisburg on March 22, but in less than a month the officials were forced leave to escape Santa Anna's troops. The government fled to Galveston just one day before Santa Anna arrived at Harrisburg to burn it down, and in a few weeks moved again, this time to Velasco. Facilities in both places were inadequate, so in July, ad interim
President David G. Burnett called for a general election and ratification of the constitution, and decreed that the first duly elected legislature of the Republic of Texas would convene at Columbia on the first Monday in October, 1836.
Columbia was chosen as the capital for two principal reasons - there were greater facilities available than in any other town at that time and the early newspaper the Telegraph and Texas Register
was there. Columbia had served as a seat of justice for the municipality of Columbia under Mexico, and boasted a number of permanent buildings built while it was the seat of the courts, including a large hotel, offices and a few dwelling houses and log cabins.
Two buildings served to house Congress and the principal offices of the government, and some officials and committees used adjacent log cabins. One of the buildings used by Congress was built by Capt. Henry S. Brown in 1832, serving as his family residence until his death in 1834. The other building used by Congress was a store built by Leman Kelsey in about 1833. The Kelsey building was destroyed by a storm in 1900. A state marker was placed near the original site by the Texas Centennial Committee in 1936. A replica of this Kelsey building was constructed in 1977.