Wm. B. Middleton
Leona, Leon County, Texas
Marker Inscription
A participant of the Mier Expedition, 1842, first sheriff of Leon County. Born in Illinois August 4, 1819; died March 17, 1877. His first wife Mary J. Potts Middleton, born Sept. 9, 1823; died May 5, 1874. In memory of Beoni Middleton who died in prison in Mexico while a prisoner of the Mier Expedition.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Illinois-born William B. Middleton took part in the ill-fated Mier Expedition of 1842, a Republic of Texas raid across the Rio Grande that ended in capture and imprisonment in Mexico, and later became the first sheriff of Leon County. The marker also remembers Beoni Middleton, who died in a Mexican prison as a captive of that same expedition.
Why it matters
Middleton's life links the raw, dangerous years of the Republic of Texas — with its cross-border expeditions and frontier justice — to the settling of the county he first served as sheriff.
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Related people
- · William B. Middleton
- · Beoni Middleton
- · Mary J. Potts Middleton
Related events
- · Mier Expedition
Themes & tags
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