Andrew Jackson Hamilton
Austin, Travis County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(January 28, 1815 - April 11, 1875) A native of Alabama, Andrew Jackson Hamilton moved his family to Texas in the 1840s. He served as state attorney general and as a member of the state legislature before being elected to the U. S. Congress in 1859. An opponent of secession, he left Texas during the Civil War but in 1865 was appointed provisional governor by President Andrew Johnson. He was an associate justice on the Texas Supreme Court from 1867 to 1869, and was an unsuccessful candidate for governor in 1866 and 1869. He continued to practice law in Austin until his death in 1875. (1994)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Alabama-born Andrew Jackson Hamilton moved to Texas in the 1840s and rose through its politics, serving as state attorney general, legislator, and U.S. congressman by 1859. A staunch opponent of secession, he left Texas during the Civil War, then returned when President Andrew Johnson named him provisional governor in 1865. He later sat on the Texas Supreme Court and ran twice, unsuccessfully, for governor before his death in 1875.
Why it matters
Hamilton represents the embattled Southern Unionists whose loyalties and postwar leadership shaped the turbulent politics of Reconstruction Texas.
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Related people
- · Andrew Jackson Hamilton
- · Andrew Johnson
Themes & tags
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