Price Daniel

Duane's take

The way the marker in Liberty County tells it, here's the story of Price Daniel. Now, some men leave a mark on one chapter of Texas history. Price Daniel wrote the whole book.

Born in nearby Dayton in 1910, the son of M.P. and Nannie Partlow Daniel, this man's career in state and national politics would stretch across six decades and touch all three branches of state government. Let that sink in for a moment. All three branches.

Six decades. One man. After graduating from Baylor Law School, Daniel set up his law practice right here in Liberty, and it wasn't long before the people took notice.

He took his first public office in the Texas House of Representatives in 1939. His record there was strong enough that by 1943, his colleagues had made him Speaker of the Texas House. Then came World War II, and Daniel went off to serve.

When he came back, he came back ready. From 1947 until 1953, Price Daniel served as Attorney General of Texas, and he did not hold that office quietly. There was a fight brewing over the tidelands, the question of whether Texas owned the coastal submerged lands or whether the federal government could reach in and claim them.

Daniel defended Texas' ownership vigorously, holding back federal encroachment with everything the law would allow. And when he won election to the United States Senate in 1952, he carried that fight right on up to Washington with him. He didn't let it go either.

He sponsored legislation that confirmed Texas ownership of the tidelands, and then, in 1956, the people of Texas elected him Governor. They liked what they saw, because they re-elected him in 1958, and then again in 1960. As Governor, Daniel championed the preservation of historic state documents.

He pushed for the construction of the Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library building in Austin, making sure that Texas history would have a proper home. But even after three terms as Governor, Price Daniel was not finished. Not even close.

Over the next three decades he served as head of the Office of Emergency Preparedness under President Johnson. He served as an associate Justice of the Texas Supreme Court. He served as a member of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

On and on it went, office after office, branch after branch, one public trust after another. When Price Daniel died on August 25, 1988, the historical record was already sealed on this point: he had held more offices of public trust than any other individual in Texas history. Born in Dayton.

Practiced law in Liberty. And built a record that the whole state of Texas couldn't contain.

What the marker says

Texas statesman Price Daniel (1910-1988) was born in nearby Dayton, the son of M.P. and Nannie Partlow Daniel. His career in state and national politics spanned six decades and included service in all three branches of state government. After graduating from Baylor Law School, Price Daniel established his law practice in Liberty before taking his first public office in the Texas House of Representatives in 1939. His strong record led to his election as Speaker of the Texas House in 1943. Returning to public life after service in World War II, Daniel was Attorney General of Texas from 1947 until 1953. The young attorney general vigorously defended Texas' ownership of its tidelands against federal encroachment, an issue he took with him to the United States Senate upon his election to that body in 1952. Successful in sponsoring legislation to confirm Texas ownership of the tidelands, Daniel was elected Governor of Texas in 1956 and was re-elected in 1958 and 1960. Among his many accomplishments as Governor, he championed the preservation of historic state documents and construction of the Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library building in Austin. During the next three decades, Price Daniel served as head of the Office of Emergency Preparedness under President Johnson, as an associate Justice of the Texas Supreme Court and as a member of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission. At the time of his death on August 25, 1988, Daniel had held more offices of public trust than any other individual in Texas history. (2002)