When Sam Houston crossed the Red River for the first time in 1832, he termed Texas the "finest portion of the Globe that has ever blessed my vision." He soon made it his "abiding place" and became a lifelong traveller in his adopted country. By carriage and muleback his diplomatic, military, political, and personal activities took him over what is now the eastern half of the state—and he fell in love with every foot of it. With panoramic vision and broad descriptive power, he expressed his lasting affection for the country in everything he said and wrote.

Sue Flanagan, having read every available word by and about Houston and having followed the trail of every trip he made in Texas, here presents the Texas which Houston knew—through his picturesque language and through the camera's carefully focused lens. Her story provides continuity for Houston's activities and perspective for her photographs; it also provides an expression of Houston's views in his own forthright and emphatic manner.

But the essence of this book is its 113 photographs. The face of Texas east of San Antonio is pictured in all its varied features. With great patience and discernment, Sue Flanagan brought to bear all the skills of her artistic photography to capture the landscapes, buildings, and objects in the most revealing light and in the best atmospheric conditions for catching the appropriate mood. These spots in nature which Houston saw, these objects which he knew, these houses where he was entertained and where he lived—all are tangible reminders of "this colorful, cagey, and controversial man," this Texas hero whose life was a tragedy in divided loyalties.

Sue Flanagan (1926–1993) was an author, photographer, and journalist.

• Foreword
• Acknowledgments
• Permissions To Quote
• 1832: “I am about to enter Texas.”
• 1833: “I may make Texas my abiding place.”
• 1834: “The course that I may pursue … shall be for the true interests of Texas.”
• 1835: “Our actions are to become a part of the history of mankind.”
• 1836: “It will be fame enough to say, ‘I was a member of the Army of San Jacinto’.”
• 1837: “Texas … will not escape the eye of statesmen.”
• 1838: “My career … I am aware … must pass … the scrutiny of after time.”
• 1839: “I might have been happy … had I not known the full extent of Lamar’s stupidity.”
• 1840: “There is rottenness at the core!”
• 1841: “Our motto ought to be, ‘Fewer officers, and more cornfields’.”
• 1842: “Fools only pursue phantoms & children will chase butterflies.”
• 1843: “That my motives should be understood was not to be expected.”
• 1844: “If we remain an independent nation, our territory will be extensive—unlimited.”
• 1845: “The great object of Texian statesmen has been achieved.”
• 1846: “The Sabine may be connected with the Rio Grande.”
• 1847: “This was placed before the eyes of Texas.”
• 1848: “We marked out our boundary by our life’s blood.”
• 1849: “Mad fanaticism at the north, and mad ambition at the south … provoke assaults upon me.”
• 1850: “For a nation divided against itself cannot stand.”
• 1851: “Centralism is the danger against which the States have to guard.”
• 1852: “Insist upon the right of the South to the nominee, be who he may.”
• 1853: “Texas must now decide … to be a mere cow pen and sheep ranch, or a great Empire State.”
• 1854: “The most unpopular vote I ever gave, … the wisest and most patriotic.”
• 1855: “The South … only asks what the North demands—Let us alone.”
• 1856: “The times are out of joint.”
• 1857: “They make the issue as they declare ‘Houston, and anti-Houston’.”
• 1858: “There is no dissension in my party … I am a unit.”
• 1859: “You never hear me talk of ‘southern rights’…. All the States have equal rights.”
• 1860: “I saw the storm gathering … and strove to arrest it.”
• 1861: “The severest pang is that the blow comes in the name of the State of Texas.”
• 1862: “Remote as I am from all the bustle … enough reaches me to disquiet my heart.”
• 1863: “Texas may cast me off, but … I shall leave my blessings on her.”
• Notes to Captions for Illustrations
• Sources
  • Manuscripts
  • Published Materials
  • Interviews
• Index