Site of the First White House of the Republic of Texas
Houston, Harris County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Here dwelt President Sam Houston from November, 1837 to December, 1838 and President Mirabeau B. Lamar, from December, 1838 to October, 1839. Erected by the State of Texas 1936.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
On this Houston ground once stood the executive residence of the young Republic of Texas. Sam Houston, the republic's first elected president, lived here from November 1837 to December 1838, followed by his successor Mirabeau B. Lamar through October 1839. The state marked the site in 1936 during the Texas Centennial.
Why it matters
Here the leaders of an independent Texas governed a sovereign nation before it joined the United States, a brief but pivotal chapter in the country's westward story.
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Related people
- · Sam Houston
- · Mirabeau B. Lamar
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Christ Church Cathedral
Houston, TX
On March 16, 1839, thirty-nine men — led by a missionary priest and the Houstonian Colonel William Fairfax Gray — gathered to organize what became the second Episcopal parish in the Republic of Texas, with some early services held in the Republic's Capitol. A succession of wooden and brick churches rose on this site, the present building dating to 1893, and in 1949 the parish became the cathedral of the Diocese of Texas.
Harris County
Houston, TX
Home to the Karankawa and Orcoquiza peoples and once eyed by Spain for a presidio, this region was permanently settled in 1822 by Stephen F. Austin's colonists. John R. Harris founded a village he named for his family and for Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and it grew into one of the most influential colonial municipalities, playing a major role in the Texas War for Independence. The county was created in 1836, briefly held the Republic's capital, served as a Confederate command and ordnance center, and eventually grew into the world-commerce hub of Houston.
Houston City, Republic of Texas
Houston, TX
On November 30, 1836, the Congress of the new Republic of Texas chose this raw townsite at the head of Buffalo Bayou as its temporary capital. Into a "Houston City" of mud, tents, and cabins came President Sam Houston and his government in April 1837, meeting in a two-story plantation-style capitol that hosted Indian treaties, diplomacy, legislation, and even church services. The city held its first great social event that spring—a San Jacinto anniversary ball—before the capital moved on, and Mirabeau B. Lamar succeeded Houston here in 1838.
San Felipe Cottage
Houston, TX
Raised in 1837 — the very year Houston was incorporated as capital of the young Republic of Texas — this cottage stood on land belonging to early settler Mrs. Obedience Smith. It survives as the oldest known house in the city.