Hardin R. Runnels
Austin, Travis County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Member of the House of Representatives, 1847-1854 Speaker of the House, 1853-1854 Lieutenant Governor Dec. 21, 1855 to Dec 21, 1857 Governor of Texas Dec. 21, 1857 to Dec. 21, 1859 Born in Mississippi August 30, 1820 Died in Bowie County, Texas December 25, 1873 Erected by the State of Texas 1936
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Mississippi-born Hardin R. Runnels rose through Texas politics as a member and then Speaker of the House before serving as lieutenant governor and, from 1857 to 1859, as governor of the state. His single term put him at the head of Texas government in the tense years just before the Civil War. This 1936 Centennial marker honors a leading figure of the young state's antebellum political generation.
Why it matters
Runnels holds the distinction of being the only man ever to defeat Sam Houston in a Texas election, marking him as a central figure in the state's fractious pre-Civil War politics.
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Related people
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Themes & tags
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