He was born in New York state and settled in Texas in 1829 (then part of Mexico), where he worked as a land surveyor, newspaper publisher, and food company entrepreneur.

Borden stayed in Liberty for seven years, working as the county surveyor and as a schoolteacher in Bates and Zion Hill.

[3] His mother died at age 48 from yellow fever in Nashville, Tennessee, perhaps while visiting a grown child and family.

[4][5] After initially landing in Texas at Galveston Island at the end of 1829, Borden settled in what is currently Fort Bend County, where he surveyed and raised stock.

In February 1835, Gail and his brother John entered into partnership with Joseph Baker to publish one of the first newspapers in Texas.

Although none of the three had any previous printing experience,[6] Baker was considered "one of the best informed men in the Texian colony on the Texas-Mexican situation".

[7] The men based their newspaper in San Felipe de Austin, which was centrally located among the colonies in eastern Texas.

[10] Historian Eugene C. Barker describes the Borden newspaper as "an invaluable repository of public documents during this critical period of the state's history".

The Telegraph printed official documents and announcements, editorials, local news, reprints of articles from other newspapers, poetry, and advertisements.

[11] On March 27, the Texas Army reached San Felipe, carrying word that the Mexican advance guard was approaching.

Lacking funds to replace his equipment, Borden mortgaged his land to buy a new printing press in Cincinnati.

[1] President Sam Houston appointed Borden as the Republic of Texas Collector of Customs at Galveston in June 1837.

Houston's successor to the presidency, Mirabeau B. Lamar, removed Borden from office in December 1838, replacing him in the patronage position with a lifelong friend from Mobile, Alabama, Dr. Willis Roberts, newly arrived in Texas.

When a shortage of funds came to light, Roberts offered to put up several personal houses and nine slaves as collateral until the matter could be settled.

Streets running the length of the island, from west to east, were named as avenues, according to the alphabet and in ascending order.

He developed a dehydrated beef product known as the "meat biscuit", which was loosely based upon a traditional Native American processed dried food known as pemmican.

Pioneers seeking gold in California needed a readily transportable food that could endure harsh conditions, and Borden sold some of his meat biscuits to miners.

The product won Borden the Great Council Medal at the 1851 London World's Fair,[22] and the same year he set up a meat-biscuit factory in Galveston.

[31] With his third factory, built with new partner Jeremiah Milbank[32] in Wassaic, New York, Borden finally produced a usable milk derivative that was long-lasting and needed no refrigeration.

He offered Thomas Green three-eighths of his patent rights and gave James Bridge a quarter interest on his investment; together, the three men built a condensery in Wolcottville, Connecticut (within modern-day Torrington), which opened in 1856.

To ensure against disease, Borden established strict sanitary requirements (the "Dairyman's Ten Commandments") for farmers who wanted to sell him raw milk; they were required to wash the cows' udders before milking, keep barns swept clean, and scald and dry their strainers morning and night.

[25] By 1858, Borden's condensed milk, sold as Eagle Brand, had gained a reputation for purity, durability, and economy.

The following year, Borden's fortunes began to change after he met Jeremiah Milbank, a financier from New York, on a train.

As a railroad magnate and banker, Milbank understood large-scale finance, which was critical to development of the business and Borden's success.

Over 200 dairy farmers supplied 20,000 gallons (76,000 liters) of milk daily to the Brewster plant as demand increased driven by the American Civil War.

As the Civil War continued, he expanded his New York Condensed Milk Company quickly to meet the growing demand.

While this rapid growth was occurring, Borden continued to experiment with condensing meat, tea, coffee, and cocoa.

He published reports filled with testimonials of "impartial" scientists who observed and tested his inventions, including the meat biscuit and condensed milk.

It dealt with more varied products, ranging from fresh and condensed milk, casein, animal feeds, pharmaceuticals, and vitamins, to soybean creations.

1640), the son of Richard from Headcorn, Kent, who immigrated to the United States aboard the ship Elizabeth and Anne in 1635.