Lawyer, Military Leader, and Governor Sam Houston, a key figure in the making of Texas, was born on March 2, 1793, near Lexington Virginia to a middle-class family of farmers.

His father was a revolutionary war veteran, who died when Houston was 14.

While still a teenager, he ran off and lived among the Cherokee for a few years, learning their language and their ways. He took a Cherokee name for himself: Colonneh, which means Raven.

He then followed his father's footsteps and joined the military. When Sam was about 20 years old, he fought in the creek war and was wounded at Horseshoe Bend.

Houston soon established himself as a rising political star. He had allied himself closely to Andrew Jackson, who in turn came to see Houston as a sort of son. Houston ran first for Congress and then for governor of Tennessee.

As a close Jackson ally, he won easily. But, his politics conflicted his personal problems. He was a known drinker, and following the marriage to his first wife, Eliza Allen, rumors went around about his alcoholism and apparent infidelity. His own charisma, charm, and presence also had a great deal to do with his success. It all came crashing down in 1829, however, when his new marriage fell apart. Devastated, Houston resigned as governor and headed west.

1829

In 1832, He moved again, but to Mexican Territory of Texas, where he was soon a lead voice in pushing for succession.. On the 1832 trip,  he challenged anti-Jackson Congressman William Stanberry to a duel. When Stanberry refused to accept the challenge, Houston attacked him with a walking stick. He was eventually censured by Congress for this action.

After the Stanberry affair, Houston was ready for a new adventure, so he went to Texas, where he had purchased some land on speculation: he was also to report to Jackson what was going on there.