Huntsville in Walker County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
The Death of Sam Houston
Photographed by Don Morfe, June 3, 1998
1. Death of Sam Houston Marker
Inscription.
The Death of Sam Houston. . Sam Houston died of pneumonia on July 26, 1863, at the age of 70. His funeral was held on July 27, 1863, in the upstairs parlor of his home, the Steamboat House, then located one-fourth mile to the east. At the service the minister read a poem that had been written during the night by Mrs. Houston. The wood coffin was made at the Huntsville Penitentiary by Union prisoners of war, for whom General Houston had shown concern. Masonic rites were conducted at the burial site, which was chosen because of its proximity to that of Houstons close friend and attorney, Henderson Yoakum. Joshua Houston, the Generals trusted body servant, built a picket fence to enclose the grave. The original simple white marble tombstone is now at the Sam Houston Memorial Museum.
Sam Houston died of pneumonia on July 26, 1863, at the age of 70. His funeral was held on July 27, 1863, in the upstairs parlor of his home, the Steamboat House, then located one-fourth mile to the east. At the service the minister read a poem that had been written during the night by Mrs. Houston. The wood coffin was made at the Huntsville Penitentiary by Union prisoners of war, for whom General Houston had shown concern. Masonic rites were conducted at the burial site, which was chosen because of its proximity to that of Houstons close friend and attorney, Henderson Yoakum. Joshua Houston, the Generals trusted body servant, built a picket fence to enclose the grave. The original simple white marble tombstone is now at the Sam Houston Memorial Museum.
Erected 1993 by the Citizens of Huntsville in recognition of the Sam Houston Bicentennial.
Location. 30° 43.595′ N, 95° 32.838′ W. Marker is in Huntsville, Texas, in Walker County. It can be reached
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from the intersection of Avenue I and 9th Street, on the right when traveling north. Sam Houston's grave and monument are located in Oakwood Cemetery. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Huntsville TX 77320, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the American South and on the Gulf Coast. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the Republic of Texas, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 8, 2019. It was originally submitted on April 9, 2015, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. This page has been viewed 1,673 times since then and 136 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on April 9, 2015, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
