Photos by Lisa Saleme
Actually, our great state can boast four such institutions, if we consider the fact that our very own General Sam Houston was the President of the Republic of Texas twice during its existence from March 2, 1836 through February 19, 1846. He led the Republic of Texas, an independent and sovereign country, from 1836-1838, and again from 1841-1844.
Former Huntsville Mayor Mac Woodward, who has been with the Museum for 21 years and currently serves as its director, has a great passion and appreciation for the man, Sam Houston. As Mac states, “Sam was a statesman and politician, a U.S. Senator for 13 years, Governor of both Texas and Tennessee, President of the Republic of Texas twice, Major General in the Texas army, a lawyer, a friend of the Cherokees, and a husband and father. He lived during the 1800s, when the United States was experiencing growing pains during the difficult years of formation, including the period of the Civil War. General Sam knew or served under every American President from John Adams to Abraham Lincoln. He was a man who brought his enormous personality to bear upon all of his history-making endeavors.”
Sam and his wife Margaret, their 7 children (their eighth child would be born in Austin), and extended family members and servants, numbering up to 30 at times, originally lived on 200 acres of land in Huntsville. When the family relocated to Austin where Sam would serve as Governor, the land was sold in order to pay campaign debts. Later, when he refused to sign the oath to the Confederacy and left the Governorship, they moved back to Huntsville, but were unable to purchase the homestead back. Sam and Margaret then rented the Steamboat House, where Sam died in 1863. His funeral took place in the upstairs parlor.
Since its beginning, the Museum has undergone several phases of renovation with three objectives:
- To tell the life of Sam Houston
- To relate how Sam Houston fit into Texas and American history
- To stimulate interest in Sam Houston
Reservations are required for guided tours and are set up through the Education Department. Self- guided tours of the Memorial Museum and grounds are available Tuesday through Saturday 9:00am to 4:30pm and Sunday noon to 4:30pm.
The summer program also includes Bear Bend Wednesdays. This is a free activity for kids (and adults) on Wednesday mornings from 10:00am – Noon during the months of June and July, and kids love it! Hands-on activities such as flower pounding, doll making, gardening, embroidery and needlepoint, and leaf etchings bring to our kids a better understanding of what life was like for the eight Houston kids.
For current information regarding all exhibits, tours and activities, be sure to check the Museum’s website at www.samhoustonmemorialmuseum.com and their Facebook page. This will showcase all upcoming events, including the General Sam Houston Folk Festival (a crowd pleaser each spring), when the fifteen-acre grounds will be transformed from a peaceful setting into a bustling frontier settlement. Experience life like Sam did! If he were still alive, he would be soaking up the fun and games, telling stories, and strolling all of his 6’2,” 225 pound figure about in his leopard vest and big green velvet hat.
This brings us back to General Sam Houston, a man who had to make tough decisions that impacted thousands of lives, and stand by those decisions, popular or not, without wavering. This is part of the integrity which defines Sam Houston. Leadership does not come without a price, and Sam Houston, although not flawless, stood tall under the pressures placed upon him. A trip to the Museum will attest to his skills as a leader, and even though the word “Presidential” is not contained within its name, the Sam Houston Memorial Museum serves as the lasting memoirs of a great man, a victorious General and a President of the Republic of Texas.