"Lord, Help The Fish!"

We have all heard of Sam Houston and his part in the Alamo. But did you know he ran away from home in Tennessee when he was a teenager? He lived with the Cherokee and was named Raven. He served under General Andrew Jackson in the War of 182. He was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1823, and he was elected as the governor of Tennessee in 1827.

He was the first and third president of the Republic of Texas and represented Texas in the United States Senate. He was the sixth governor of Tennessee and the seventh governor of Texas. He is the only person to be elected governor of two different US states.

He married Eliza Allen in 1829, but after 11 weeks, they divorced as she was in love with another man. However, some dispute that. They separated, as she was Catholic.

In 1830, he entered the US House of Representatives and beat William Stanbery with a cane over accusations of fraud. The House convicted Houston, and the Speaker, Andrew Stenson, reprimanded him, and a federal court ordered Houston to pay $500 in damages.

He went to live with the Cherokees and married Dianna Rogers, the daughter of a Cherokee chief and a Scots-Irish trader. They lived together for many years. When Sam moved back to Texas, she went back to her people and later remarried.

Houston, now 47, married for the third time. Margaret Moffette Lea was 21. They had eight children. She was a Baptist and influenced Sam to stop drinking and "acting out." (I was able to find a definition for acting out.)

In 1850, he agreed to be baptized. It was set for November 19, 1854. His friends thought it was a joke, and they filled the area for the baptism with tree limbs and debris. Houston had made up his mind, and he was immersed in Little Rocky Creek. When coming out, he said, "Reverend, you've baptized my pocketbook." The reverend replied, "Thank God, I wish it could have happened to the pocketbook of every Baptist.

Later, Houston met a friend who said, "Well, General, I hear your sins were washed away the other day." Houston said, "Yes, that's true. Lord help the fish."

Sam, age 70, died on July 26, 1863. The inscription on his tomb reads:

A Brave Soldier. A Fearless Statesman.

A Great Orator—A Pure Patriot.

A Faithful Friend, A Loyal Citizen.

A Devoted Husband and Father.

A Consistent Christian—An Honest Man.

If you want to know how Sam Houston, with his ragtag army of about 200, defeated Santa Anna with his thousand, read my book Wild River. He did it with the help of Emily Morgan, a mulatto woman. (Also known as the Yellow Rose of Texas). (Sh-sh-sh, don't tell the Daughters of the Texas Revolution, as they are not happy about Emily's contribution.) It is on Amazon and my website, https://www.writingwater. It should come up on the menu as Home- Writing Water