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Henry Smith, First American Governor of Texas ANS, 

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Historical Memorabilia Start Price:1,500.00 USD Estimated At:1,500.00 - 2,500.00 USD
Henry Smith, First American Governor of Texas ANS, 

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Auction Date:2009 Jun 24 @ 10:00 (UTC-04:00 : AST/EDT)
Location:6270 Este Ave., Cincinnati, Ohio, 45232, United States
approx. 2" x 6", part of a legal document (In Testimony Whereof the said parties of the first part have hereunto set their hands and seals...). Little bit of seal still clinging to lower right.

Henry Smith (1788-1851) was born in Kentucky, raised in Missouri, spent his early adulthood as a merchant in Tennessee, but ultimately accepted a land grant offered by the Mexican government and settled in Brazoria County, Texas in 1827. He became involved in politics, he was wounded in the Battle of Velasco, an early salvo fired in the bid for Texan independence. He was subsequently elected alcalde of Brazoria, and chosen as a delegate to the Convention of 1833. He helped draft the provisional constitution and was named governor of the provisional state. He became embroiled in conflicts with others seeking power in the new republic. He dissolved the council, which retaliated by impeaching him, although he never relinquished the office to the council's choice.

It all became irrelevant in 1836 when the Convention met and drafted the Texas Declaration of Independence and later the Constitution, and Sam Houston was elected governor. Smith is generally considered the first American-born governor of Texas, and although he apparently still had enough support to be elected to the presidency of the republic after independence, he supported Sam Houston, who then became the first elected executive, with Smith as Secretary of the Treasury. Smith retired after serving one term in the Republican Congress, but headed for California when gold was discovered in 1849. He was planning to return to his beloved state (after annexation in 1845), but died suddenly in Los Angeles County in 1851. 

Condition: Lower right corner torn where seal was affixed, moderately toned.