DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Margaret Moffette Lea Houston — and friends, this one deserves every word. She was born April 11, 1819, on her family's farm in Pleasant Valley, near Marion, Alabama. A farm girl with a sharp mind — sharp enough to graduate from Judson Female Institute in Marion in 1837.
And then, two years later, her life took a turn that would weave her name into the very fabric of Texas. In 1839, she met General Sam Houston. Now, Houston had just completed his term as the first President of the Republic of Texas and was passing through Alabama on business ventures.
He was twenty-six years her senior. Twenty-six years. And yet, in 1840, the two of them married.
Here's the thing about Margaret Houston that history doesn't always give its proper due. She was not simply standing in the shadow of a famous man. She was, by most accounts, shaping him.
During their marriage, she was successful in curbing the General's use of alcohol and in encouraging him to become a dedicated church member. That is no small feat for any era. In 1841, General Houston was elected to his second term as President of the Republic of Texas.
And for the first time — the very first time — Texas had a First Lady. Margaret joined her husband at the temporary capital of Washington-on-the-Brazos, and during that presidency, the couple welcomed the first of what would become eight children. Eight.
After that term ended, the family moved to a plantation they named Raven Hill, fourteen miles to the east. While the General went on to serve as a United States Senator, it was Margaret who managed that plantation. She participated in church, social, and literary activities — and somewhere in all of that, she also underwent surgery and treatment for breast cancer.
The marker states it plainly, and it deserves to be said plainly. That is a woman of extraordinary endurance. The family later lived in Huntsville at their Woodland home, and in Independence as well.
When General Houston became Governor, Margaret stepped into the role of First Lady once more. The couple eventually moved to the Steamboat House in Huntsville, and it was there that the General died, in 1863. After his death, Margaret Houston returned to Independence.
She kept going. She provided for her children — all eight of them — until December 3, 1867, when she died of yellow fever. She was forty-eight years old.
Today, Margaret Moffette Lea Houston is remembered as a First Lady and the matriarch of one of the most significant families in Texas history. And if you ask me, that marker doesn't overstate it one bit. The General gets the statues.
But Margaret? Margaret held the whole thing together.
What the marker says
(April 11, 1819 - December 3, 1867)Margaret Moffette Lea was born on her family's farm in Pleasant Valley, near Marion, Alabama. She graduated from Judson Female Institute in Marion in 1837, and in 1839 she met General Sam Houston. Houston, who had completed his term as the first President of the Republic of Texas, was visiting Alabama for business ventures. Despite their 26-year age difference, the two married in 1840. During their marriage, Margaret was successful in curbing the General's use of alcohol and in encouranging him to become a dedicated church member.The Houstons owned residences in Houston City and in Cedar Point. In 1841, Gen. Houston was elected to his second term as President of the Republic of Texas. For the first time, Texas had a First Lady, as Margaret joined her husband at the temporary capital of Washington-on-the-Brazos. During the presidency, the couple had the first of their eight children. After the term, the Houston family moved to a plantation they named Raven Hill (14 mi. E). While her husband later served a s a U.S Senator, Margaret Houston managed the plantation and participated in church, social and literary activities. She also underwent surgery and treatment for breast cancer.The family later lived in Huntsville at their Woodland home and in Independence. Margaret Houston continued to raise her family and, when General Houston became Governor, again served as First Lady. The couple later moved to the Steamboat House in Huntsville. After her husband died in 1863, Margaret Houston returned to Independence, where she provided for her children until her death from yellow fever in 1867. Today, Margaret Moffette Lea Houston is remembered as a First Lady and the matriarch of one of the most significant families in Texas history. (2008)