Charles Bellinger Tate Stewart (February 6, 1806 – July 1, 1885) was an American-born pharmacist, doctor, and political leader in the

Republic of Texas The Republic of Texas (), or simply Texas, was a country in North America that existed for close to 10 years, from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846. Texas shared borders with Centralist Republic of Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande, an ...

. He died in 1885 at 79 years old.

Early life

He was born in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...

, but moved to Texas in 1830. Stewart was a delegate from the Municipality of

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

to the

Convention of 1836 The Convention of 1836 was the meeting of elected delegates in Washington-on-the-Brazos, Texas in March 1836. The Texas Revolution had begun five months previously, and the interim government, known as the Consultation, had wavered over whether t ...

where he signed the

Texas Declaration of Independence The Texas Declaration of Independence was the formal declaration of independence of the Republic of Texas from Mexico in the Texas Revolution. It was adopted at the Convention of 1836 at Washington-on-the-Brazos on March 2, 1836, and was form ...

from Mexico. He was a member of the committee that drafted the

Constitution of the Republic of Texas The Constitution of the Republic of Texas was the supreme law of Texas from 1836 to 1845. On March 2, 1836, Texas declared itself an independent republic because of a lack of support in the United States for the Texas Revolution. The declaratio ...

. On March 8, 1836, two days after

The Alamo The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) was a pivotal event and military engagement in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo ...

fell, Stewart absented himself from the Convention for a few days to get married. On March 11, 1836, he married Julia Shepperd in the Lake Creek Settlement. Stewart returned to the Convention on March 16, 1836, and signed the Constitution of the Republic of Texas on March 17, 1836. He moved to

Montgomery, Texas Montgomery is a city located in Montgomery County, Texas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a total population of 1,948. History The town of Montgomery was founded in the middle of the Lake Creek Settl ...

, in 1837 and later attended the state constitutional convention of 1845. He represented

Montgomery County Montgomery County may refer to: Australia * The former name of Montgomery Land District, Tasmania United Kingdom * The historic county of Montgomeryshire, Wales, also called County of Montgomery United States * Montgomery County, Alabama * Montg ...

in the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...

Texas State Flag and Seal

Some have claimed that Stewart is either the designer of the Texas flag or drew the image used by the Third Congress when enacting the legislation adopting the flag. "Accompanying the original Act ... is a drawing by Peter Krag of the national flag and seal ... although in the original President Lamar's approval and signature are at the top and upside down Charles A. Spain, Jr.
The Flags and Seals of Texas.
''"'' South Tex. Law Rev. 33(1992): 215-259. However, Stewart's drawing "looks suspiciously like a tracing of the Peter Krag art, including the upside down signature of President Lamar." On April 21, 2011, a bust of Charles B. Stewart was unveiled at the ceremony dedicating the Lone Star Monument and Historical Flag Park in Conroe,

, Texas.

References

External links

Charles B. Stewart
in the

Handbook of Texas The Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) is an American nonprofit educational and research organization dedicated to documenting the history of Texas. It was founded in Austin, Texas, United States, on March 2, 1897. In November 2008, the ...

*
''Charles B. Stewart Bust''
1806 births 1885 deaths American emigrants to Mexico Members of the Texas House of Representatives People from Montgomery, Texas Signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence 19th-century members of the Texas Legislature {{Texas-politician-stub