Politics in the Republic of Texas was not a pretty affair. Campaigns at this time often ended up focusing on personal issues much more than they did on platforms or serious debate. Horrible accusations were thrown out about candidates, their wives and families, some with kernels of truth and others completely fiction. Campaigns were often not conducted by the candidates themselves but rather by their friends and political associates. In the 1838 and 1840 elections, the campaign came down to the friends of Mirabeau Lamar versus the friends of Sam Houston. In addition to differences of personality, their policy preferences contrasted greatly.

Differences between Lamar and Houston began during the Texas Revolution as Lamar argued that Santa Anna be executed though Houston chose to treat him well in order to get preferable negotiations to end the hostilities. Houston worked to prevent Lamar from taking command of the army after San Jacinto. The first election of the Republic of Texas resulted in Sam Houston voted President and Mirabeau Lamar Vice President. In 1838, Houston couldn’t run for reelection and Lamar was elected the second President of Texas. Their rivalry only grew during Lamar’s presidency.

Sam Houston chose to leave the Mexicans alone and seek peace and conciliation with the Indians. He was trying to secure recognition of Texas independence from Mexico and he was friendly with the Indians and trusting of them due in part to his time living with the Cherokee. Most importantly, Houston’s goal was the annexation of Texas by the United States. Lamar took opposing positions. He looked at Texas as the beginning of an independent empire that could stretch from the Sabine River to the Pacific Ocean. He was distrustful of Indians and sought to push them out of Texas. Lamar’s policy towards Mexico was more aggressive that Houston’s. He tried to court Santa Fe as an ally in hopes of gaining their trade and annexing what would become New Mexico. Lamar sent an expedition to Santa Fe which backfired when most of the men were captured and sent to Mexico City.

Lamar’s policies cost money, of which Texas had little. New treasury notes were printed to finance his administration and loans were sought from foreign governments. Sam Houston thought Texas should live within its means and during his stint in the Texas Congress amid Lamar’s presidency he fought the efforts to increase spending. Lamar could never complete an agreement to borrow money and his presidency ended with Texas in great debt.

Texas also had to decide where its capital when be located. It was temporarily located in Houston, a new city along Buffalo Bayou. Lamar preferred that it be located to the west to help control Texas’ frontier and secure trade with Santa Fe in order to further his dreams of Texan empire. Again, he conflicted with Sam Houston who argued that the capital should be in the east and closer to the Republic’s population centers where it would also be easier to protect against invasion. Here, Lamar won out and the capital was placed in the small town of Waterloo whose name was changed to Austin shortly thereafter.

These differences in thought about the future of Texas and how it should be governed fractured Texas politics. Both Lamar and Houston wanted Texas to prosper but they had different plans for making it happen. Houston’s vision won out though Lamar’s political thinking remained a force in a Texas politics for decades. Lamar’s efforts to found an educational system in Texas resound to this day.

Bibliography:

Brown, John Henry. “History of Texas from 1685 to 1892.” vol. 2. St. Louis: L. E. Daniell, 1893.

Christian, A. K. “Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar.” The Southwestern Historical Quarterly Vol. 23, No. 4 (April, 1920): 153-170.

Graham, Philip. “The Life and Poems of Mirabeau B. Lamar.” Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1938.

Finn, Loretta Tobe. “Mirabeau B. Lamar – Southern Crusader in Texas.” Thesis, The University of Texas at Austin, 1972.

James, Marquis. “The Raven: A Biography of Sam Houston.” New York: Blue Ribbon Books, Inc., 1929.

Wortham, Louis J. “A History of Texas” vol. 4. Fort Worth: Wortham-Molyneaux Company, 1924.

Historical facts and photos courtesy of the

Fort Bend County Museum Association, Richmond, TX