Colonel John Ireland
Seguin, Guadalupe County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Home Town of Texas Confederate Colonel John Ireland. Delegate to Secession Convention 1861. Joined army as private. Won laurels in that most brilliant wartime effort - the defense of the 800-mile Texas coast in September 1862, repulse of Federals at Corpus Christi. Ireland captured fleet Captain Kittredge, his flag and arms. Though Ireland was an infantry officer he once plunged waist-deep to capture a Federal vessel off Padre Island. At war's end he was in command of the 8th Texas Regiment defending Galveston. A memorial to Texans who served the Confederacy. Erected by the State of Texas 1964. (Reverse) Governor John Ireland 1827-1896 Kentucky-born, came to Texas 1853. Mayor of Seguin 1858. Member Constitutional Conventions 1866, 1875. District judge 1866-67, removed by Reconstruction authorities. Legislator 1872-75. Called "Oxcart John" for opposing land grants subsidies to railroads. Supervised plans to oust Governor E. J. Davis in bloodless conflict marking political end of Texas reconstruction. Judge state supreme court 1875-76. Governor of Texas 1882-86. Fence-cutting wars brought on when certain landowners began fencing the open range prompted him to call special Legislature which made fence-cutting a felony. He ruled that state capitol be of Texas stone. Urged stricter enforcement of criminal laws, economy in government, reducing public land sales. Term was marked by opening of University of Texas and first labor disturbances Texas had known. Buried State Cemetery, Austin. Delegate to Secession Convention 1861. Joined army as private. Won laurels in that most brilliant wartime effort - the defense of the 800-mile Texas Coast. In September, 1862, repulse of Federals at Corpus Christi, Ireland captured Fleet Captain Kittredge, his flag and arms. Though Ireland was an infantry officer he once plunged waist-deep to capture a Federal vessel off Padre Island. At war's end he was in command of the 8th Texas Regiment defending Galveston. BACK: Kentucky-born. Came to Texas 1853. Mayor of Seguin 1858. Member Consititutional Conventions 1866, 1875. District Judge 1866-67, removed by Reconstruction authorities. Legislator 1872-75. Called "Ox-cart John" for opposing land grants, subsidies to railroads. Supervised plans to oust Governor E. J. Davis in bloodless conflict marking political end of Texas' Reconstruction. Judge State Supreme Court 1875-76. Governor of Texas 1882-86. Fence-cutting wars, brought on when certain landowners began fencing the open range prompted him to call special Legislature which made fence-cutting a felony. He ruled that State Capitol be of Texas stone. Urged strict enforcement of criminal laws, economy in government, reducing public land sales. Term was marked by opening of University of Texas and first labor disturbances Texas had known. Buried State Cemetery, Austin.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
John Ireland came to Texas from Kentucky in 1853, served as a delegate to the 1861 Secession Convention, and rose from private to colonel in the Confederate defense of the long Texas coast, once wading waist-deep to help capture a Federal vessel. After the war he re-entered public life, earning the nickname 'Oxcart John' for opposing railroad land subsidies, and served as Governor of Texas from 1882 to 1886. His term saw the University of Texas open and the fence-cutting wars answered with new law.
Why it matters
Ireland's path from Confederate officer to postwar governor embodies how the men who fought for the South shaped Texas politics through Reconstruction and the Gilded Age.
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Related people
- · John Ireland
- · E. J. Davis
- · Captain Kittredge
Related events
- · Battle of Corpus Christi (1862)
- · Texas Secession Convention (1861)
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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