1-1 By: Leedom S.C.R. No. 27
1-2 (In the Senate - Filed January 18, 1995; January 19, 1995,
1-3 read first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs;
1-4 January 30, 1995, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas
1-5 13, Nays 0; January 30, 1995, sent to printer.)
1-6 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
1-7 WHEREAS, Thomas Jefferson Rusk contributed significantly to
1-8 the history of this state as a leader in the war for Texas
1-9 independence, a member of Congress and chief justice of the Supreme
1-10 Court of the Republic of Texas, an important voice for statehood,
1-11 and a member of the United States Senate for 11 years; and
1-12 WHEREAS, He was born on December 5, 1803, in the Pendleton
1-13 District of western South Carolina near the modern site of Clemson
1-14 University, the son of an Irish immigrant and stonemason who built
1-15 the historic Old Stone Presbyterian Church not far from the
1-16 school's present campus; and
1-17 WHEREAS, His mother was descended from an early pioneer
1-18 family and nurtured his education, which was fostered also by his
1-19 parents' landlord, John C. Calhoun, the renowned South Carolina
1-20 senator and vice president of the United States, who encouraged the
1-21 young Rusk to pursue the study of law; and
1-22 WHEREAS, Following admission to the bar, he moved to
1-23 Clarksville, Georgia, in 1825 and there met and married Mary F.
1-24 Cleveland, his lifelong love and devoted companion, whom he
1-25 addressed affectionately throughout their years together as
1-26 "Polly"; and
1-27 WHEREAS, A successful attorney and businessman in an area
1-28 that became a gold rush region, Rusk invested in a bogus mining
1-29 venture whose organizer absconded to Texas, bringing Rusk financial
1-30 ruin and prompting him to track the swindler, an effort that
1-31 resulted in his arrival in Nacogdoches in 1834 and his initial
1-32 experience in an attractive newfound land; and
1-33 WHEREAS, In Nacogdoches, where he obtained residency approval
1-34 from the Mexican government, Rusk made the acquaintance of Sam
1-35 Houston and attended political meetings where the discussion
1-36 focused on grievances against the Santa Anna government and the
1-37 alternatives of peace or war; and
1-38 WHEREAS, Reticent initially in taking a stand, he organized a
1-39 military company following the outbreak of skirmishes and saw
1-40 combat near San Antonio, then became an aide-de-camp to Stephen F.
1-41 Austin who was temporarily in command of the Texas army; and
1-42 WHEREAS, Before the Texans captured the city, Rusk was sent
1-43 back to East Texas to recruit reinforcements and acquire munitions
1-44 and supplies and, during that lull in the fighting, was reunited
1-45 with his wife and family, who traveled overland from Georgia to
1-46 join him in Nacogdoches; and
1-47 WHEREAS, Elected under the provisional government to the
1-48 convention that met in March, 1836, in Washington-on-the-Brazos,
1-49 Rusk signed the Texas Declaration of Independence and was named to
1-50 a cabinet position as secretary of war under President David G.
1-51 Burnet; and
1-52 WHEREAS, Dispatched by President Burnet to assess the
1-53 disturbing retreat by Sam Houston after the fall of the Alamo and
1-54 the massacre at Goliad, the secretary followed the Texas army to
1-55 its ultimate victory at San Jacinto, playing an important role en
1-56 route by asserting the powers of his office to direct the army
1-57 toward the field where the decisive battle would be fought; and
1-58 WHEREAS, Following the achievement of independence, Rusk
1-59 served a term in the Second Congress of the Republic of Texas, held
1-60 intermittent military positions, spent 18 months as chief justice
1-61 of the supreme court, and assumed a law practice in partnership
1-62 with James Pinckney Henderson, who later became the first governor
1-63 of the State of Texas; and
1-64 WHEREAS, Rusk was influential in the decision to seek
1-65 annexation and statehood, serving as president of the annexation
1-66 convention in 1845, and when Texas entered the United States he
1-67 became, along with Sam Houston, one of Texas' first two members of
1-68 the United States Senate, a position he held until his death on
2-1 July 29, 1857; and
2-2 WHEREAS, Mentioned as a potential presidential candidate
2-3 during the life of the republic and again while serving in
2-4 Washington, he discouraged such speculation and denied all
2-5 presidential aspirations, yet earned the lasting esteem of his
2-6 colleagues for his skills at deliberation, persuasion, and
2-7 compromise; and
2-8 WHEREAS, Texans will remember Thomas Jefferson Rusk for his
2-9 great statesmanship and his achievements in shaping the history of
2-10 this state, and it is fitting that a state building in the Capitol
2-11 vicinity be named in his honor so that he may take his rightful
2-12 place alongside other legendary Texas leaders who enjoy like
2-13 distinction; now, therefore, be it
2-14 RESOLVED, That the 74th Legislature of the State of Texas
2-15 hereby direct that the present State Treasury Building, located at
2-16 200 East 10th Street, be named the Thomas Jefferson Rusk State
2-17 Office Building in honor of one of the state's most illustrious
2-18 forefathers; and, be it further
2-19 RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward an official
2-20 copy of this resolution to the executive director of the General
2-21 Services Commission.
2-22 * * * * *