Semester Writing Assignment�
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Develop the topic into a well-organized essay, following the guidelines below. Correct spelling and
grammar will be considered during grading. Part of your grade will depend upon including the required
block quotes. If you do not include the 3 required block quotes to support your position, your paper will
lose one letter grade. Be sure to answer all parts of the question, noting the relative weight among the
three sections. Three pages is the minimum, but you may go a page or two beyond that, if needed.�
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Students will generally compose the essay inside their word processor and then COPY and PASTE
(using CONTROL V) the text into the space provided below. The essay should be a minimum of three
double-spaced pages long.�
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IMPORTANT! Be sure to SAVE your answer before SUBMITTING it. If you do not SAVE it, it will show up
“blank,” with no text.�
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Late papers or papers not submitted in the proper area will lose one letter grade (10 points). Finally, do
not use material from any source other than Sam Houston and the American Southwest. DO NOT copy
material from another source and paste it into this essay response box, representing it as your own work.
Doing this will get you a grade of 0, and it is not difficult for instructors to detect.
Sam Houston 2
Sam Houston Biography
Name
Course
Instructor
Date
Sam Houston Biography
Samuel Houston was the first president of the independent Republic of Texas. Samuel Houston
was born on the second of March 1793, in an area near Lexington, Virginia. He was a key figure
in the establishment of the state of Texas. Samuel Houston was a governor, military leader, and a
lawyer. Houston joined the military just like his father, and he served under Andrew Jackson in
Sam Houston 3
the War of 1812. His bravery in that war enabled him gain Jackson’s approval and praise. Most
of his contemporaries loved Samuel Houston for a number of reasons, but one of the most
striking reason was his policy towards Native Americans. Throughout his life, Sam Houston had
a special bond with Native Americans, mostly the Cherokees. After abandoning the military in
1818, Houston studied a law course and ventured into politics. He first became the district
attorney in Nashville, and during his tenure as a district attorney he made vital political
connections (Williams, 1994, 121).
Then he became the governor of Tennessee, but in 1829 when his wife abandoned him he
resigned the governorship and moved to Arkansas, where he lived with the Cherokee Indians.
Sam Houston Indians policy was interested in recognizing Native Americans such as Cherokees
to go on living on their lands and conserving their lifestyle, and with securing a long lasting
peace between the Native Americans and the Anglo settlers. One of the main reason Houston
treated the Native Americans kindly was because he lived with the Cherokees as a teenager. At
the age of sixteen in 1809, Houston ran away from his home and went to live with the Cherokees
for several years. It was during this time that Houston developed a special bond with the Native
Americans. While he lived with the Native Americans, the Cherokees greatly influenced
Houston, he became sympathetic to their predicament and learned to respect them. Houston also
sought refuge with the Cherokees in 1829 when his first wife abandoned him, and lived with
them for three years. He also had a good relationship with the leader of a group of Native
Americans known as the Cherokees. He considered Chief Oolooteka as his adopted father since
his father died in the war while he was still young at the age of 14. It is thought that the early
Sam Houston 4
good relationship between the Cherokees and Houston greatly affected Houston’s thereafter
policy regarding Native Americans (James, 2004, 122).
Houston had a commitment to creating a friendship of cooperation and lasting peace between the
Native Americans and Texas’s Anglo population. In 1936, Houston launched a mission that was
purposed to ensure impartiality among the Cherokees and neighboring tribes. Houston did sign a
treaty with the Cherokees leaders (such as Chief Bowl) that contained a declaration of peace and
also acknowledged the Native American’s claims to their land in northern Texas. “After being
elected as the first president of the Republic of Texas in 1836, Houston again pledged his
commitment to carrying out a policy of peaceful neutrality towards Native American groups
inhabiting the new republic. In his inaugural address, Houston called for a policy of cooperation
and peace toward the Indians of Texas. He submitted the treaty he had previously negotiated
with the Cherokees during the revolution to the newly formed Texas Senate in late 1836, but it
was rejected” (WILLIAMS P. 124).
Attempts by Houston to achieve peace were faced with a lot of challenges, which made it very
difficult to achieve his goal. For example in 1838, a number of Indian tribes took part in a
rebellion that was organized by Vincent Cordova against the new republic. Despite this back
sets, Houston did not give up on his attempt to achieve peace. “According to Sam Houston
biography, he issued a blanket pardon to all Native American groups for any involvement they
may have had in the rebellion, although the public supported the destruction of the Indians now
more than ever. Despite being opposed by many in the government and the majority of the
Sam Houston 5
citizenry, Houston was undaunted by the criticism and continued his efforts for peace with the
Indians for the rest of his term as president.” (WILLIAMS P. 135).
Mirabeau B. Lamar, who took office after Houston first term as president, had a police that was
in contrary to Houston’s policy. Lamar’s policy greatly differed from Houston’s; Lamar made it
clear that he had no plans create peace with the Indians; instead his plans were to exterminate
them. The intention of Lamar was made clear by stating that during his reign that it was time for
“an exterminating war on Texas Indian Warriors” (Seale, 1992, 123).
Sam Houston met his wife Margret Lea in 1839 at a garden party held by her sister when he went
to Alabama for a business trip. And on 9th May 1840, Sam Houston got married to Margret Lea
despite Margret’s kin opposing the marriage. Margret kin was opposed to the marriage because
of Houston’s well-known difficult with drinking and the age difference of twenty-six years.
Being deeply religious Margret Lea significantly contribute Houston stopping drinking. “Being
deeply religious, she could not stand his drinking. Rather than nag him, she made him realize
that his drinking hurt her and profaned the sanctity of their home; in this way she led Houston to
declare total abstinence, which, with some difficulty, he kept to for the rest of his life” (SEALE
P. 124).
References
John Hoyt Williams. (1994). Sam Houston: Life and Times of Liberator of Texas an Authentic
American Hero. United States: Simon and Schuster.
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William Seale. (1992). Sam Houston’s Wife: A Biography of Margaret Lea Houston.
Oklahoma:University of Oklahoma Press.
Marquis James. (2004). The Raven: A Biography Of Sam Houston. United States: Kessinger
Publishing.
