Current Issue

Our first issue, Volume 1, Number 1 (Spring 2003) is now online!

Introduction

The Gaines Junction is named in honor of Matthew Gaines, one of the foremost African-American leaders in Texas during the second half of the 19th century. Born on August 4, 1840, to a slave mother in Louisiana, he became one of the first two African-Americans to serve in the Texas State Senate. He was elected during the period of Reconstruction after the Civil War when whites commonly believed that blacks were inferior subordinates whose absorption into society as free people would lead to the breakdown of civilization.

Mr. Gaines was a self-educated and multilingual Baptist preacher who, after emancipation, quickly rose to prominence as a community leader. In 1869 he won a seat in the state senate, where he represented Washington County in the 12th and 13th Legislatures. During his term of office, Mr. Gaines worked for many progressive measures. As a Republican party leader in the legislature he helped to establish tax-supported free public education and he worked and voted for the successful enabling legislation that made possible the creation of Texas A&M University in 1871 and Prairie View A&M University in 1876.

Dale Baum
Professor of History
Department of History
Texas A&M University

For further information, visit The Matthew Gaines Memorial homepage.

Note to Contributors

Submission

Papers are to be submitted electronically. Send the initial inquiry to the editor-in-chief who will then assign an associate editor to receive the actual submission.

Please ensure that the submission is in Microsoft Word format. WordPerfect may be used if necessary, but MS Word is the preferred application.

Format

Papers should be of sufficient length to convey purposeful research.
Papers should have a title page with the following information:
1. A concise and descriptive title
2. Author(s) first and last name(s) and middle initial (s)
3. Abstract where necessary
4. Footnote containing author(s)'s affiliation, classification and major
5. Footnote giving the acknowledgements of the research advisor (if any)
Papers should: have one-inch margins, be double-spaced, and have the page number centered on the bottom of each page.
Citations must appear as footnotes.
Authors should follow MLA guidelines or another standard research style.

Review

Each submission will be reviewed by the Editorial Board. Additionally, faculty members will be consulted as appropriate. After review, one of the following decisions will be made: