DUANE
Duane's take
Here's what the official marker has to say, and I'm going to tell it the way it deserves to be told. Three miles east of where you're rolling right now, there is a homesite and a grave. And the man buried there — Lorenzo de Zavala — was the kind of figure history barely seems able to hold in one hand.
He was born in 1789, in Mexico, and from the very start he seemed to understand that the world he'd arrived in needed changin'. De Zavala was an ardent liberal, an earnest advocate of democratic reforms, and he did not sit on those convictions. He served his native country as a representative in the Spanish Cortes in Madrid.
He served as minister of the treasury, as president of the Chamber of Deputies, as governor of the State of Mexico, and as ambassador to France. One man. All of that.
But then came Santa Anna, and the tyranny that came with him. De Zavala, a constant lover of liberty — that phrase comes straight from the record — tired of it. He resigned his ambassadorship.
And in 1835, he moved here. Now, when Mexican officials learned he was takin' refuge in Texas, they ordered his arrest. That is the kind of moment that clarifies a man's position.
And de Zavala's position became crystal clear. He became a strong leader in the cause of Texas independence. The voters of Harrisburg sent him in 1835 to the Consultation at San Felipe de Austin, and later to the Independence Convention at Washington-on-the-Brazos — where he signed the Texas Declaration of Independence.
He became the first vice-president of the Republic of Texas. Two nations. One man.
Signer of a declaration. First vice-president. Let that settle.
His home was a plank-covered log house, sittin' right across from the San Jacinto battleground. After the battle, that house became a hospital — for both sides. The fighting was over, and the walls of de Zavala's home held the wounded from either line.
An observer on the scene — someone who was there, who saw him — described Lorenzo de Zavala as, quote, "the most interesting man in Texas." And the marker backs it up. Leading author. Learned publicist.
Philosopher. Historian. Economist.
And that constant lover of liberty. He was born in 1789. He died in 1836.
In the span between those two years, he managed to leave a mark on two nations and sign his name to one of the most consequential documents in Texas history. The grave marker has since been moved to the San Jacinto Battleground. There's a 1936 granite Centennial marker at the homesite, sixteen miles east.
This marker itself was moved from the Channelview community. But the man? He was here.
And that spot three miles east remembers it.
What the marker says
(1789-1836) Three miles east is homesite and grave of a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence and first vice-president of the republic of texas-- an illustrious statesman of two nations. He was born in Mexico. De Zavala, an ardent liberal and earnest advocate of democratic reforms served his native country as representative in the Spanish cortes, Madrid; minister of the treasury; president of Chamber of Deputies; governor of State of Mexico and ambassador to France. De Zavala tired of Santa Anna's tyranny, resigned his ambassadorship and moved here in 1835. When Mexican officials learned of his taking refuge in Texas and ordered his arrest, he became a strong leader in cause of Texas independence. Voters in Harrisburg sent him in 1835 to the Consultation at San Felipe de Austin and later to the Independence Convention at Washington-on-the-Brazos. The de Zavala home, a plank-covered log house across from San Jacinto battleground, served as a hospital for both sides after the battle. An observer on the scene described de Zavala as "the most interesting man in Texas"-- he was a leading author, learned publicist, philosopher, historian, economist and constant lover of liberty. SUPPLEMENTAL PLAQUE INSCRIPTION: Marker moved from Channelview community. Grave marker moved to San Jacinto Battleground. 1936 granite Centennial marker at homesite, 16 miles east.