J. Pinckney Henderson

Template:Short description Template:Infobox officeholder James Pinckney Henderson (March 31, 1808 – June 4, 1858) was an American and Texan lawyer, politician, and soldier who served as the first governor of Texas from 1846 to 1847.

Early years

He was born in Lincolnton, North Carolina, on March 31, 1808, to Lawson Henderson and his wife, Elizabeth Carruth Henderson. His birthplace Woodside, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.<ref name="nris">Template:NRISref</ref><ref name = nrhpinv>Template:Cite web</ref> After graduating from Pleasant Retreat Academy, Henderson enrolled as a law student at the University of North Carolina. Upon his graduation, he studied 18 hours a day to pass his bar examination,<ref name="Bar">Template:Cite book</ref> and was admitted to the North Carolina State Bar in 1829.<ref name="JPHHandbook">Template:Cite web</ref>

Military service and move to Texas

After becoming a lawyer, Henderson served in the North Carolina militia, rising to colonel. In 1835, Colonel Henderson moved to Canton, Mississippi, where he opened a law practice.<ref name="JPHHandbook"/> He enslaved people.<ref>Template:Citation</ref>

His attention soon turned to Texas' struggle against Mexico. Henderson began making speeches to raise money and an army to go to the aid of the Texas cause.<ref name="Bar"/> Henderson and several volunteers traveled to Texas hoping to participate in the fight for independence. By the time the group arrived in June 1836, many major events had already occurred. The Texas Declaration of Independence had already been signed on March 2,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and David G. Burnet was elected interim President of the new Republic of Texas on March 10.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Alamo had fallen on March 6,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Sam Houston had been victorious on April 21 at the Battle of San Jacinto.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On May 14, 1836, Antonio López de Santa Anna has signed the Treaties of Velasco agreeing to withdraw his troops from Texas.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Interim President Burnet commissioned Henderson as a brigadier general in the Texas Army, with orders to return to North Carolina to raise troops to serve in Texas. This Henderson did at his own expense.<ref name="Govs">Template:Cite book</ref>

Government service in the Republic

Sam Houston became President of the Republic of Texas on September 5, 1836, and appointed Henderson the republic's attorney general. In December of that same year, Henderson was named by Houston to replace recently deceased Stephen F. Austin<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> as secretary of state for the republic. In early 1837, Houston decreed Henderson as minister from the Republic of Texas to France at the Tuileries Palace and to England at the Court of St. James's. During his tenure as minister, he was successful in securing the recognition of the independence of the Republic of Texas and negotiated trade agreements with both countries.<ref name="Govs"/>

Governor of Texas, war with Mexico, United States Senator

In 1840, Henderson returned to Texas and set up a private law practice in San Augustine. He was sent to Washington, DC, in 1844 to work in coordination with Isaac Van Zandt to secure the annexation of Texas to the United States. Although the annexation treaty was signed, it was rejected by the United States Senate; Henderson was recalled to Texas.<ref name="Bar" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> An annexation treaty approved the United States Senate was finally passed on December 29, 1845.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In preparation for anticipated statehood, the Texas gubernatorial election, 1845, elected Henderson as its first governor. He took office on February 19, 1846. When the Mexican–American War broke out in April of that year, Henderson took a leave of absence as governor to command a Texas volunteer cavalry division. He served with the rank of major general under Zachary Taylor. He returned home to resume his duties as governor but did not run for a second term. He later served in the United States Senate from November 9, 1857, until his death on June 4, 1858.<ref name="JPHHandbook" />

Personal life and death

File:James Pinckney Henderson's grave.jpg

Henderson's cenotaph at the Congressional Cemetery in Washington, DC

Henderson met his future wife, Frances Cox, when he represented the Republic of Texas as a minister to France and England. Cox was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and educated in Europe. She was a multilingual literary translator.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> On October 30, 1839, they were wed at St George's, Hanover Square. In 1840, the new couple established a residence and law office in San Augustine, Texas. The couple had five children: daughters Martha, Fanny, and Julia lived to adulthood.<ref name="Handbook">Template:Cite web</ref>

Henderson died from tuberculosis in Washington, D.C., in 1858, while serving as a senator for the State of Texas.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He is buried at the Texas State Cemetery.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After his death during the Civil War years, his widow and daughters moved to Europe. Martha died at age 18. Fanny married into the Austrian aristocracy. Julia married an American sugar plantation owner. Frances Cox Henderson died in 1897 and is buried at Rosedale Cemetery in New Jersey, where she lived with daughter Julia and son-in-law Edward White Adams.

Legacy

Henderson County,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> which was established in 1846, and the city of Henderson, founded in 1843 in Rusk County, are named in his honor. James Pinckney Henderson Elementary School, in Houston, is named for him.<ref>Henderson Elementary School, Houston, Texas</ref>

See also

• List of members of the United States Congress who died in office (1790–1899)

External links

• Congressional Biographical Directory
• Handbook of Texas Online