James Pinckney Henderson
 

TEXAS’ FIRST GOVERNOR was an aristocrat, bred in the traditions of Virginia and North Carolina. He had served the Republic of Texas ably as a diplomat after arriving too late to fight at the Battle of San Jacinto.
He was James Pinckney Henderson, a native of North Carolina and grandson of the Virginian who had sent Daniel Boone westward over the Smokies to explore the unknown West of Kentucky and Tennessee.
Born at Lincolnton, N.C., March 31, 1808, Henderson attended the University of North Carolina and was admitted to the bar. Threats of tuberculosis sent him to Canton, Miss., in 1835, seeking a milder climate. He soon became interested in the cause of Texans, captained a troop of Mississippians and sailed for Velasco. Al-
though too late to fight in the Texas Revolution, Henderson settled at San Augustine and within six months was attorney general of Texas. By December, 1836, Sam Houston appointed him secretary of state, succeeding Stephen F. Austin.
The polished North Carolinian was chosen to represent Texas as minister to England and France, where he successfully negotiated treaties of trade and credit vitally important to the new nation. Henderson also was sent to Washington to aid Isaac Van Zandt in annexation discussions with the United States. The treaty that was signed April 12, 1844. was rejected in June by the U.S. Senate and Henderson was ordered home by President Houston.
Henderson was associated with other prominent Texans—Thomas J. Rusk and Kenneth J. Anderson, also a North Carolinian—in a law firm. Anderson had been vice-president under Anson Jones, was famed for his eloquence, and was generally expected to be the first governor of Texas. After Anderson’s death in 1845, Henderson became a candidate and was elected governor in November, with 7,853 votes out of 9,578 cast. On Feb. 19, 1846, Gov. Henderson was inaugurated as the Lone Star Flag of the Republic was replaced over the Capitol in Austin by the Stars and Stripes. Texas had become the 28th state.
When the war with Mexico broke out, Gov. Henderson insisted on leading the Texas volunteers and the Texas Legislature granted permission. Lt. Gov. Albert C. Horton acted as governor during his absence and is listed as de facto governor by many historians.
Henderson resumed the office when war ended, but declined to seek a second term. He practiced law for 10 years, but was named U.S. senator from Texas when his friend and former legal associate, Thomas J. Rusk, committed suicide. Ill health ended his life, at the age of 50, in Washington on June 4, 1858. He was buried there, but his body was moved to the State Cemetery in Austin in 1930.
While in Paris and London, Henderson had met 19-year-old Frances Cox of Philadelphia and they were married in London in October, 1839.

Henderson County, TXGenWeb Project