Jacob Raphael De Cordova

De Cordova was a Texas land agent. He was born in Jamaica in 1808 and raised in England. He joined his father in Philadelphia and learned the printing trade, returning to Jamaica to run a newspaper with his brother Joshua. They started the Kingston Daily Gleaner, which is still published today. He went to New Orleans in 1836 to help with the Texas Revolution and moved to Galveston in 1839. He partnered with his brother Phineas on a land agency, and Jacob traveled around Texas learning about the new country and buying land to sell to settlers. He then traveled across the US and Europe giving speeches to attract immigrants. Jacob and Phineas published numerous books extolling the virtues of Texas, and Jacob partnered with Robert Creuzbaur to create the Map of the State of Texas, considered by many as one of the most important maps of Texas. He died in 1868.