Today@Sam Article

Museum Director Reflects On Document Acquisition

Oct. 30, 2023
SHSU Media Contact: Mikah Boyd

By Derrick Birdsall, director of the Sam Houston Museum & Republic of Texas Presidential Library

Sam Houston was inaugurated as the first elected president of the fledgling Republic of Texas on Oct. 22, 1836. The situation was fairly dire. Open conflict with Mexico would continue to be a threat for the bulk of the Republic’s existence. Establishing borders, negotiating peace with the Native American tribes who also called Texas home, creating a currency and establishing diplomatic relations with the United States and European powers all needed to be done promptly – all in addition to the more mundane tasks of running a government.

It never fails to amaze me just how much needed to be done with how little was available to do it. I have read letters from Sam Houston to various functionaries that he was tired of not having paper to write on, ink to write with and wax to seal his letters. Not to mention, Texas even lacked an official seal of the Republic – which kept Texas from being recognized by Andrew Jackson’s State Department.

On Oct. 24, commemorating Sam Houston’s first inauguration, the Sam Houston Memorial Museum & Republic of Texas Presidential Library hosted a gathering at the 1936 Rotunda. In addition to celebrating the anniversary of his election, the museum also shared several original documents with the public for the first time. Earlier this year, museum staff finalized the acquisition of a treasure trove of documents reflecting actions and events that occurred throughout Sam Houston’s life in his own words.

Among those documents are some of the earliest known pieces of history relating to Houston, a handful of them dating back to the early 1800s. Included in the collection are documents related to Houston’s first political appointment as an Indian Agent to the Cherokee Nation; another argues with Secretary of War John C. Calhoun about a late payment; three others relate to Houston’s time in service to the citizens of Tennessee.

My personal favorite is a letter from Sam Houston to President Martin Van Buren, introducing ambassadors from Texas to the United States. Unlike earlier, Houston finally had a seal of the Republic – and even more amazing, Houston signs off as “President, Republic of Texas.”  To date, that is the only signature of Sam’s that I have seen with his presidential title included – the bulk of the time, if Sam included a title, it was “General” or “Gen’l” which is shorthand for general.

All told, the collection of documents is simply amazing, and it sheds new light on a period of Texas history that is often overlooked. Typically, there’s a good bit of information about the Texas Revolution, and then a sentence or two about the 10 years of the Texas Republic, followed with more detail about Sam’s Senatorial and Gubernatorial careers along with the secession crises and the Civil War. As time goes by, each item in the collection, along with the already existing items in the overall collection of the museum will be made available online, through the Presidential Library’s digital portal.

It was a pleasure to have guests from all across Texas join us as we celebrated the University’s namesake – stand by – there’s more to come soon!

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