DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker says about Ira Hobart Evans — and friend, this one earns every word. April 11, 1844. A boy is born in New Hampshire.
Grows up in Vermont. Nobody looking at young Ira Hobart Evans then could have predicted what was coming — and I'm not sure I'd believe it myself if it weren't carved right here in stone. When the Civil War came, Evans served in the Union Army and rose to the rank of major.
He received the Congressional Medal of Honor. And in 1865 — 1865 — he stood as a member of the Honor Guard for the funeral of President Abraham Lincoln. Let that settle for a moment.
The man stood watch over Lincoln. After the war, the Army stationed him in Texas along the Rio Grande, where he remained until 1866. Then came his discharge in 1867.
Now, some men would have pointed themselves back north and never looked back. Not Evans. He returned to Texas — this time as an agent for the Freedmen's Bureau.
Then things get really interesting. He was elected to the Texas Legislature in 1869. And in 1870, he was chosen Speaker of the House — the first Republican and the youngest person to date to hold that office.
The youngest. The first. Of his party.
Speaker of the Texas House. Of course, the story doesn't stop there. On May 10, 1871, he was removed as Speaker — in a dispute over interpretation of the 1869 state constitution.
There it is. One date, one dispute, one door closing. But Ira Evans was not a man who sat down when a door closed.
In 1872 he began a business career. As President of the New York and Texas Land Company, he became a leader in Texas railroads and land development. He moved to Austin in 1885.
He bought this very house in 1892, and he hired noted architect Alfred Giles to remodel it into what you see today. A man of rank, of the legislature, of business — and now, apparently, of architecture. He wasn't done giving, either.
He served as President of the board of Tillotson College — now known as Huston-Tillotson College — from 1911 to 1920. Nine years of civic service in the city he'd made his home. In 1921, he moved to California.
And on April 19, 1922 — eight days past his seventy-eighth birthday — Ira Hobart Evans died in San Diego. He was buried in Vermont. The state where he'd grown up.
Full circle, after a life that had bent through New Hampshire, Vermont, every theater of the Civil War, the Rio Grande, the Texas Legislature, the Speaker's chair, the boardrooms of railroads and land companies, and the streets of Austin. Some lives you can summarize. This one, you just have to follow.
What the marker says
(April 11, 1844 - April 19, 1922) Born in New Hampshire, Ira H.Evans grew up in Vermont. During the Civil War he served in the Union Army, attaining the rank of major. He received the Congressional Medal of Honor and in 1865 was a member of the Honor Guard for the funeral of President Lincoln. Following the war, Evans was stationed in Texas along the Rio Grande until 1866. After his discharge from the Army in 1867, he returned to the area as an agent for The Freedmen's Bureau. He was elected to the Texas Legislature in 1869 and in 1870 was chosen Speaker of the house, the first Republicna and youngest person to date to hold that office. He was removed as Speaker on May 10,1871, in a dispute over interpretation of the 1869 state constitution. Evans began a business career in 1872 and, as President of the New York & Texas Land Company, became a leader in Texas railroads and land development. He moved to Austin in 1885. Active in civic affairs, he served as President of the board of Tillotson College (now Huston-Tillotson College) from 1911 to 1920. Evans bought this house in 1892 and hired noted architect Alfred Giles to remodel it to its current appearance. He moved to California in 1921 and, after his death in San Diego in 1922, was buried in Vermont. (1991)