TexasCHLforum.com

Oh, and while I think the OC should be the state of affairs, given the history of Texas and the struggle to even get concealed carry going, I am not particularly in favor of making OC THE top political priority. I think there is still progress that needs to be made in cementing and normalizing what is already legal, like CHL carry in buildings owned by the state or local government but leased by private entities...and carry of rifles in all legal venues... and reducing the list of prohibited (to CHL) places to zero.

I too came from elsewhere (several elsewheres), and have been surprised at how restrictive Texas weapons laws (not just open carry) are, given its cowboy reputation. Granted better than Cali or NY, but still, nothing like other western states. The CHL statute in the 90s was a big change and welcome change, but even that took more than one try -- and booting out the previously dominant political party as well.

As far as I can see, Texas has had very restrictive weapons laws since the aftermath of the civil war which is, I suspect, why seamus pointed you to that guncite link. It is a long article, but it details how the laws evolved rather quickly from open arms carrying to zero legal arms carry (especially for handguns and knives) -- and then stayed static for over 100 years. One thing the article at guncite doesn't seem to mention much is that there was quite a bit of violent crime in Texas just after the Civil War -- gangs of ex-soldiers and others preying on citizens and each other, and the newly freed blacks. The governments of the time did what governments usually do -- tried to concentrate hoard power, especially force, to itself. This also turned out be a convenient way to wield the power of the law against freed blacks and political opponents.

It has been popular for years for the southern states to blame "carpetbaggers" for all their troubles, including 2A troubles, but a closer look seems to tell me that if anything, the North fought to impose individual rights (most notably liberty, i.e. anti-slavery), and the South fought to preserve the State government's rights to be as oppressive as they wished, without interference from the Feds. Although the Reconstruction legislature passed some of the first gun control laws (a poor idea indeed), in response to the violent crime of that period. the succeeding Democratic legislatures had many opportunities to fix this, but did not. The language was wordsmithed at various conventions and subsquent legislative sessions to re-recognize the "right" to have arms -- but that right could be regulated by the legislature so closely as to render it void. Hence, you can have an "illegal knife" such as a Bowie, or have a pistol, but you generally can't carry either one, concealed or not, off of your own property. As I said, it took another 100+ years and a major political shift to even get concealed carry and the MPA, never mind open carry.

And you still can't generally carry a bowie knife off of your own property.

And I don't know the answer to seamus's question. It is too late at night to study all those foot notes!