Samuel Augustus Maverick Jr. (1837–1936) was a

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

soldier and businessman, born May 14, 1837, at Montpelier Plantation, near

Pendleton, South Carolina Pendleton is a town in Anderson County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 3,489 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is a sister city of Stornoway in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The town is located southeast of Cl ...

, the first-born of Samuel Augustus Maverick and Mary Ann Adams. His parents brought him to Texas in June 1838 and he grew up in

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

during the

Republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

. In two volumes of memoirs, he recounted his memories of the

Council House Fight The Council House Fight, often referred to as the Council House Massacre, was a fight between soldiers and officials of the Republic of Texas and a delegation of Comanche chiefs during a peace conference in San Antonio on March 19, 1840. About 3 ...

in 1840 (in which the family's cook saved his life), the evacuation of the city during the incursion by Gen. Rafael Vásquez in 1842, and his father's return from the prison at

Perote, Veracruz Perote is a city and municipality in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city serves as the seat of government for the surrounding municipality of the same name, with a population 42,451 inhabitants as 2020, while the municipality population is o ...

, in 1843. Maverick's early education was provided by tutors, and he later attended several local private schools. In 1856, he traveled to

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

to attend the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

,Frontier Times magazine, ''Samuel Augustus Maverick, Texas Patriot'', Volume 5, Number 7, April 1928
/ref> from which he graduated, probably in 1859. At the outbreak of the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

in 1861, Maverick enlisted in Company B of the First Texas Mounted Rifles under Col.

Henry E. McCulloch Henry Eustace McCulloch (December 6, 1816 – March 12, 1895) was a soldier in the Texas Revolution, a Texas Ranger Division, Texas Ranger, and a Brigadier general (United States), brigadier general in the army of the Confederate States of Amer ...

, but the unit saw insufficient action to satisfy him. In May 1862, he joined Company G of the 8th Texas Infantry, commanded by Col. Benjamin F. Terry and known as

Terry's Texas Rangers The 8th Texas Cavalry Regiment (1861–1865), popularly known as Terry's Texas Rangers, was a light cavalry regiment of Texas volunteers for the Confederate States Army assembled by Colonel Benjamin Franklin Terry in August 1861. Although lesser ...

, with whom he saw action throughout the South. At

Fort Donelson Fort Donelson was a fortress built early in 1862 by the Confederacy during the American Civil War to control the Cumberland River, which led to the heart of Tennessee, and thereby the Confederacy. The fort was named after Confederate general Da ...

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

, he swam the

Cumberland River The Cumberland River is a major waterway of the Southern United States. The U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 8, 2011 river drains almost of southern Kentucky and ...

and set fire to a Union

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

, for which feat he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant. After the war, Maverick returned to San Antonio, where he farmed on the land that now makes up Brackenridge Park, north of downtown. In 1867, he passed the state bar examination. He subsequently ran a series of businesses, including a lumberyard and several stores. In 1884 he built the Maverick Bank at the corner of East Houston Street and Alamo Plaza, but the bank failed in 1892. He retired from active business in 1906. He was long involved in preservation efforts at 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 Alam ...

, and in 1888, he contributed $10,000 toward the construction of the Alamo Monument. In 1889, he escorted the Belknap Rifles, a local volunteer military company, to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

to participate in the centennial of the founding of

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

. He also donated land to San Antonio which was named Maverick Park in his honor.Google Books, ''A Marmac Guide to San Antonio'', Sights And Attractions, page 273
/ref> Samuel Maverick married Sallie Frost on May 14, 1871 in San Antonio and they had several children. He died in

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 ...

February 27, 1936, at the age of ninety-eight, the last survivor of

, and was buried at Mission Burial Park in

References

* Maverick family papers, Barker Texas History Center, University of Texas at Austin. * Maverick, Mary A., ''Memoirs'' (San Antonio: Alamo Printing, 1921) everal reprint editions * "Terry's Texas Rangers", ''Confederate Veteran'' (May 1902), p. 208. *

External links

Samuel Maverick, Jr.
in the

Texas State Historical Association 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 ...

's ''Handbook of Texas Online'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Maverick, Samuel Jr. 1837 births 1936 deaths Businesspeople from San Antonio People of Texas in the American Civil War