DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Robert Potter. Now that's a name that carries some weight, and if you know your Texas history, you know why.
Born in Granville, North Carolina, in 1800 — a man who, by any measure, lived more lives than most folks get the chance to. He served as a Representative in the Legislature of the State of North Carolina. He went further, rising to the House of Representatives of the United States Congress.
You'd think that might be the whole story right there. It is not. Not even close.
Because Robert Potter wasn't finished. He crossed into Texas and put his name on something that mattered more than any seat in any chamber he'd occupied before — he signed the Texas Declaration of Independence. Let that settle in.
A Signer. And then, as if the Republic of Texas needed to make absolutely sure this man had something to do, they made him their first Secretary of the Navy. First.
Ever. Of the Republic's entire naval enterprise. He also served as a Senator in the Congress of the Republic of Texas.
The man collected roles the way a river collects tributaries. But here's where the story turns quiet, and you listen a little closer. March 3, 1842.
That's when Robert Potter died — out at a place that today carries his name. Potter's Point, in Marion County, Texas. The land remembered him even when everything else moved on.
A Signer of the Declaration. The Republic's first Secretary of the Navy. And a point on a Texas map that still bears his name.
What the marker says
A Signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence First Secretary of the Navy of the Republic of Texas. Born in Granville N. C. in 1800. Died at what is now known as Potter's Point, Marion Co, Texas. March 3, 1842 Erected by the State of Texas [Back of headstone] A Representative in the Legislature of the State of North Carolina Member of the House from North Carolina in the United States Congress Senator in the Congress of the Republic of Texas