James Webb Throckmorton, 1825-1894. (original) (raw)

James Webb Throckmorton
Photo courtesy Library of Congress

1. Born in 1825, in Sparta, Tennessee, the Thockmorton family arrived in Texas when James was 11 years old., Throckmorton�s physician father died soon thereafter and the boy left Texas to study medicine with his uncle in Princeton, Kentucky.
2. He volunteered for military service when the war with Mexico broke out but shortly thereafter developed a kidney disease that would plague him for the remainder of his life. He received a medical discharge on June 8, 1847.
3. The following year he married Annie Rattan and the pair made their home near McKinney where Throckmorton started practicing medicine. Despite his success as a physician, Throckmorton didn�t enjoy doctoring and after closing up shop, he joined a McKinney law firm.
4. In 1851 he was elected as the state representative for Collin and Denton counties. He served until 1857 when he was elected to the Texas Senate and was reelected in 1859. He was one of the few who stood with Sam Houston against Texas� secession.
5. During the Civil War Throckmorton organized the Company of Mounted Riflemen from Collin County who defended the frontier forts of Wichita and Arbuckle in present day Oklahoma. He then joined the Sixth Texas Cavalry. After seeing combat in several battles, Throckmorton was discharged in September of 1863, for his nagging kidney problem.
6. He served in the state senate in 1864 and was commissioned as brigadier-general of the state's First Frontier District in December of 1864.
7. In 1865 he was appointed Confederate Commissioner to the Indians where he negotiated successful treaties. Throckmorton was given the Indian nickname of "Old Leathercoat."
8. In 1866 Throckmorton ran for governor and defeated candidate, E. M. Pease. Governor Throckmorton was sworn in as Governor on August 9, 1866 but was removed by order of Union Maj. Gen. Philip H. Sheridan in July of 1867.
9. Throckmorton returned to McKinney and resumed his law practice. He was an attorney for the Texas and Pacific Railroad and lobbied for railroad expansion.
10. Throckmorton returned to Congress in 1882 and was reelected for the next two terms before his kidney disease forced him to sit out the 1888 election. He died in 1894.

Statue inscription
Photo courtesy Mike Price, December 2007