Against the tumultuous backdrop of early Texas history, Williams sketches a vivid portrait of a truly American legend. Map.

In the decades preceding the Civil War, few figures in the United States were as influential or as controversial as Sam Houston. In Sam Houston, James L. Haley explores Houston’s momentous career and the complex man behind it. Haley’s fifteen years of research and writing have produced possibly the most complete, most personal, and most readable Sam Houston biography ever written. Drawn from personal papers never before available as well as the papers of others in Houston’s circle, this biography will delight anyone intrigued by Sam Houston, Texas history, Civil War history, or America’s tradition of rugged individualism.

The biography of the famous Texas governor and patriot.

Provides a brief overview of the life and accomplishments of Texas politician Sam Houston.

The New York Times bestseller now in paperback with a new epilogue. In March 1836, the Mexican army led by General Santa Anna massacred more than two hundred Texians who had been trapped in the Alamo. After thirteen days of fighting, American legends Jim Bowie and Davey Crockett died there, along with other Americans who had moved to Texas looking for a fresh start. It was a crushing blow to Texas’s fight for freedom. But the story doesn’t end there. The defeat galvanized the Texian settlers, and under General Sam Houston’s leadership they rallied. Six weeks after the Alamo, Houston and his band of settlers defeated Santa Anna’s army in a shocking victory, winning the independence for which so many had died. Sam Houston and the Alamo Avengers recaptures this pivotal war that changed America forever, and sheds light on the tightrope all war heroes walk between courage and calculation. Thanks to Kilmeade’s storytelling, a new generation of readers will remember the Alamo—and recognize the lesser known heroes who snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.

Joshua Houston (1822- 1902) was born on the Temple Lea plantation in Marion, Perry County, Alabama. In 1834 Templeton Lea died and willed Joshua to his daughter, Margaret, as her personal slave. In 1840 Margaret Lea married General Sam Houston and moved to Texas. She took Joshua with her. Joshua faithfully served the Houston family during their many political and financial ups and downs. In 1862 Sam Houston freed his slaves. Joshua elected to remain with the Houston family and took Houston as his surname. In 1866 he homesteaded in Huntsville, Texas, near the Houston family. He became a well-known and respected public figure in Huntsville where he served as city alderman and later served as county commissioner of Wlker County. In 188 he was elected as a delegate to the National Republican Convention from Texas. He was the father of seven or eight children by three different women. Descendants live in Texas.