January 26, 2016 - Mirabeau B Lamar is honored as the Father of Texas Education. He was born in Louisville, Georgia on August 16, 1798, the son of John and Rebecca Lamar. When he was ten years old, the family moved to the new capitol of Georgia, Milledgeville. His parents wanted him to have the best education possible and it was here that he attended the academies available. His formal education was small, but he nurtured his interest in history and literature by private study.
In 1823 he assumed the position of private secretary to Georgia's new governor, George M. Troup. On January 1, 1826,he married Tabitha Jordan and in 1838 their only child, Rebecca was born. He was an avid reader of newspapers from all over the country and he noticed their were more and more stories being written about a place called Texas. He became interested in writing the history of Texas so, in 1835, he made a trip to Texas to gather facts. When he reached Texas he liked what he saw and went to San Felipe and became a Texas citizen. From that moment on, he considered himself a Texan.
He joined General Sam Houston's rag-tag army as a private. When General Houston was forming his line for the Battle of Sam Jacinto, he put Lamar in charge of the Calvary. Ten days after the Battle of San Jacinto, President David Burnett amed him Secretary of War.
On December 10, 1838, he became the second president of the Republic of Texas, with David Burnet as his vice-president. He brought a different style of government to the Republic. He was a visionary, a dreamer, if you wish. He felt that Texas was in competition with the United States to see who could control North America. He thought Mexico could be forced accept Texas' independence. He foresaw a Texas empire that would control all the territory to the Pacific Ocean and much of northern Mexico.
The principal thing for which he is remembered is his policy on Texas schools. When he took office in 1838, he told the congress: "The cultivated mind is the guardian genius of democracy." In the two year term of his presidency, he set aside land in each county for public schools and fifty leagues of land were set aside for two state universities. He really was the Father of Texas Education.
While friends and relatives gathered at his home in Richmond for the holidays, he suffered a massive heart attack and died on December 19, 1859. He is buried in Richmond, Texas.
January 26 is Mirabeau B. Lamar Day. Fly your Texas flag to honor this man.
