Although Edward Clark replaced Sam Houston as Governor of Texas when Houston refused “to take a loyalty oath to the new Confederate States of America, Sam Houston nevertheless remained a force to be reckoned with in Texas politics.” The article, "Sam Houston Returns? Two Letters from Texas Secessionists in 1863,” provides evidence that after two years of fighting, secessionist leaders feared the possibility of a growing rise of Unionism from its war-weary citizens. Secessionist leaders feared the growing creation of more secret loyalist societies following the actions of secessionist who conducted a mass hanging of suspected secret “Union League” members at Gainesville. That these hangings could heighten the public interest to side with the Unionist and rally around Houston’s banner if he reentered the political arena to become the States’ governor. Evidence supporting these fears comes from two letters written by William Richardson the editor of the Galveston News and Harris A. Hamner the co-editor of the White Man. These letters demonstrate Richardson and Hamner wanted to marginalize Houston’s popularity and possible bid to reenter politics. They collaborated with Senator Louis T. Wigfall to devise ways to undercut Houston’s efforts. They believed that “if well-respected newspapers outside Texas revived tales of Houston’s past Union sentiments and paraded them before the public, then pro-Confederate forces within the state could reprint them and escape the charge
In “Apostles of Disunion: Southern Secession Commissioners and the Causes of the Civil War,” Charles B. Dew analyzes the public letters and speeches of white, southern commissioners in order to prove that the Civil War was fought over slavery. By analyzing the public letters and speeches of the commissioners, Dew offers a compelling argument proving that slavery along with the ideology of white supremacy were primary causes of the Civil War. Dew is not only the Ephraim Williams Professor of American History at Williams College, but he is also a successful author who has received various awards including the Elloit Rudwick Prize and the Fletcher Pratt Award. In fact, two of Dew’s books, Tredegar Iron Works and Apostles of Disunion and Ironmaker to the Confederacy: Joseph R. Anderson, received the Fletcher Pratt Award for the best nonfiction book regarding the American Civil War. In his analysis, Dew argues that the fear of eliminating slavery along with the fear of racial equality were both crucial factors regarding the outbreak of the Civil War. By tracing the speeches and public letters of state-appointed commissioners, Dew effectively argues that the white, southern commissioners led the southern states into a Civil War in order to preserve the institution of slavery as well as the ideology of white supremacy.
The American Civil War has become a point of controversy and argument when discussing key events in shaping America. The arguments that arise when discussing the war tend to focus on whether the Confederate was constitutionally justified in seceding, or whether the North had the right to prevent the secession. However, when discussing the America Civil War and the idea of separation, it is important to be mindful that separation did not simply end at the state level. Letters written by Jesse Rolston, Jr. and Jedediah Hotchkiss portray two significantly different attitudes toward the war, despite the fact that the writers both fought for the Confederate States and give accounts of the same battle, one of which ended in the Confederate’s favor. When examining the documents, both writers express different viewpoints on life on and off the battlefield. This significant difference represents a division amongst the Confederate army.
This book titled Sam Houston and the American Southwest was written by Randolph B. Campbell from the University of North Texas in Denton. In any case, Sam Houston and the American Southwest is an intriguing book about a youngster who is persistent and insubordinate. Besides, the writer clarifies that the kid was lacking formal education, however he adored perusing. The book clarifies about the voyage that this character took in the wake of being burnt out on Tennessee, in which he relocated to live among Cherokee Indians. Plus, the book clarifies that when he lived with the Indians, Sam Houston learned important lessons that later ended up being helpful in his life. Subsequently, he lived among the whites and Indians for this timeframe.
Sam Houston was one of the founding fathers of Texas known as a soldier, statesman and man of integrity. Spending most of his youth in Tennessee, he was impatient and reckless with a sense of adventure which lead him to the Cherokee country. His time spent with family and the Cherokee Indians is where he developed his practical, level-headed and grounded character. Houston’s passion for peace and support for the Cherokee’s came from having seen the effects of war and strife on the Indians. The values instilled from these early experiences are prevalent in Houston’s political and personal viewpoints throughout his life and career.
Throughout the Civil War period, Texas existed as a state in the Confederate States of America, its status confirmed by the elected representatives of the Texas citizens. (Sam Houston, although accepting the decision of the electorate to secede, protested the Convention's decision to join the Confederacy since the matter was not submitted to popular vote. His opposition was insufficient to cause either the voters or the members of the state legislature to put aside the actions of the Convention.) John H. Reagan, a Texan, was the Postmaster General of the C.S.A., and other Texans held prominent government posts throughout
In August 1859, the citizens of Texas elected Sam Houston as their governor. The result of this election placed the Unionists in control of the state, but in just eighteen months’ individual events or circumstances allowed the secessionists to regain power. Following the 1859 Gubernatorial election, the secessionists sought to restore political and social power in Texas over the Unionists. Texas’ one party system continued to support the other Southern states ideologically in dealing with slavery despite cultural and economic differences between the Upper and Lower South. Sam Houston’s continued popularity among Texas citizens temporarily outweighed his support for Unionist views, but the Southern Democratic propaganda machine eventually led to his defeat. Texas became the only state to bring a vote of secession to the people of the state and historians continue to debate the voting returns from the referendum on the Ordinance of Secession, 1861. The secession movement in Texas became a hotly debated topic as past, and present historians determined how the secessionists obtained enough power to overcome the Unionist-controlled government.
The romanticized version of the Civil War creates a picture of the North versus the South with the North imposing on the South. However, after reading “The Making of a Confederate” by William L. Barney, one can see that subdivisions existed before the war was declared. The documents analyzed by Barney primarily focus on the experiences of Walter Lenoir, a southern confederate and a member of the planter elite. His experiences tell a vivid story of a passionate and strongly opinioned participant of the Civil War as well as demonstrate a noticeably different view involving his reasoning when choosing a side. Between analyzing this fantastic piece of literature and other resourceful documents from “Voices of Freedom” by Eric Foner, one
This research assignment goes through the idea of Texas seceding from the United States. The introduction goes through a thorough explanation of the history of Texas and the many difficult challenges the territory had to face in becoming a state. The first idea implemented is how many times Texas has seceded and the reasons for seceding. The next follows information on why Texas would be better off seceding from the United States and why it should have stayed as a Republic. In contrast, the similar idea develops advantages and disadvantages of having Texas seceded from the Union. As a result, it then transitions into another idea, is Texas better off with staying with the United States after all. In that slide it also talks about how the Texas
Reading this book also helps characters learn on how strong the Confederate Army was. Throughout Booth’s manhunt, the reader encounters many different Confederate supporters, and they discover how many people were actually loyal. As the book reads on pg. 23, “...Booth came into contact with sympathetic secret agents in Canada, New York City, Washington, D.C, Maryland, and Virginia.” Across the United States, so many people felt sympathetic towards the Confederates. It is a common misconception that the North and South were quite split on slavery, and that almost all of the North wanted slavery abolished while the South didn’t. Through reading this book, I, as well as anyone else who reads it, will discover the truth on how split the country
After South Carolina seceded, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, and Louisiana were soon to follow (Moss 1580). Texas's economy relied heavily on slave labor, wanting to secede from the union, but their current governor Sam Houston was a strong Unionist. Governor Houston attempted to stop the secession of Texas but eventually failed, although he did delay Texas from seceding. Pro-secessionists, through series of barbecues, rallied support. One notable barbecue that was held at this time was in Port Sullivan, Texas. The Austin gazette called it "one of the best barbecues I have ever had the pleasure of partaking of" (moss 1592). During this barbecue women were asked to rise to their feet if they supported secession. Girls as young as ten were also standing (Moss
In efforts to better understand the Civil War most historians examine the Sectional Crisis and the Compromise of 1850 in the decades leading up to the worst years in American History. Some historians prefer to focus on the underlying theme of the war, others tightly examine individual leaders, events, and political parties, connecting them all together like puzzle pieces to define the years prior to the war. Despite the contrasting views, it is clear to realize the constant prevailing issues of the Antebellum Period, the Sectional Crisis and the Compromise of 1850. In particular, the Compromise of 1850 is deceivingly taught as only establishing 3 pivotal elements: the status of slavery in future territories (popular sovereignty), California statehood, and the fugitive slave law. Granted these elements of the compromise provide a great amount of controversy long after their birth, but one element of the compromise perceives to fail in obtaining recognition. The Texas-New Mexico boundary resolution seems to find itself fading away from its relevancy to the civil war, shadowed by more prominent issues regarding the stability of the Union. Abandoning the traditional teaching of the compromise, the Texas-New Mexico border decision figuratively and literally changed the identity of Texas. This was the long awaited result caused by deep rooted social and political issues dating back to the Texas Revolution.
HOUSTON, SAMUEL (1793–1863). Sam Houston, one of the most illustrious political figures of Texas, was born on March 2, 1793, the fifth child (and fifth son) of Samuel and Elizabeth (Paxton) Houston, on their plantation in sight of Timber Ridge Church, Rockbridge County, Virginia. He was of Scots-Irish ancestry and reared Presbyterian. He acquired rudimentary education during his boyhood by attending a local school for no more than six months. When he was thirteen years old, his father died; some months later, in the spring of 1807, he emigrated with his mother, five brothers, and three sisters to Blount County in Eastern Tennessee, where the family established a farm near Maryville on a tributary of Baker's Creek. Houston went to a nearby academy
The Columbian University journalism professor Nicholas Lemann’s aim of writing this book is to look at the brutal campaign of fraud and violence during the mid-1870s that ultimately led to the restoration of conservative, white governments in some southern states. The author focuses on the reconstruction of Mississippi. He stirs memories of the murderous Southern resistance and to civil rights movements 90 years later. Lemann writes at an era when neo-Confederate sympathies have cropped up again in southern politics, and amid several reports of the suppression of the minority voting throughout the country. Mr. Lemann presents the last battle of the Civil War.
In James Tiptree Jr’s short science fiction story “Houston, Houston, Do You Read?”, three men aboard their spaceship accidentally travel into a future solely inhabited by women. From their various interactions with the women on board the Gloria spacecraft, the men quickly discover that they have no place in this futuristic environment and are denied access back to Earth. While this rejection appears tyrannical on the women’s part, it is justifiable as the utopian nature of the female society thrives on the lack of a male population. Specifically, the women’s self-sustainability, along with the dominant behaviour and inherent aggression of a man’s masculinity justifies their denial of the men’s access to Earth.
There had been many misunderstandings between the North and the South in the years that led up to the Civil War, but the most tragic misunderstanding of all was that neither side realized, until it was too late, that the other side was desperate. Not until the war had actually begun would men see that their rivals really meant to fight? By that time it was too late to do anything but go on fighting. Southerners had been talking secession for many years, and most people in the North had come to look on such talk as a counter in the game of politics.