Margaret Lea Houston Research Paper

Margaret Lea Houston was merely 17 when she met her future sweetheart Sam Houston. Their marriage was a strong one, and Margaret’s life had many peaks and valleys.

Margaret Lea was born April 11, 1819 in Alabama. After her father's death in 1834 she moved with her mother to her older brothers home. Her father's death took quite a toll on her and she fell into a depression. Libraries were her favorite hideaway in these times. Margaret had a love of writing and books which led her to write poetry. After she moved in with her brother she got an education at Pleasant Valley Academy, and when she was 19 she started her bible studies at Judson Female Institute. Her bible study helped her come some to peace with her father's death.

In May of 1839

Shortly after they moved to Texas. This happened to be Houston’s third marriage, but he would stay with Margaret until he died from pneumonia. Margaret changed Houston’s life in many ways. Houston had a known history of drinking, and that bothered her to no end due to her religion. When Houston realized that he quit drinking cold turkey. Margaret also convinced Houston to be baptized and to be part of the Baptist Church. Although Sam traveled a lot Margaret never went with him because of her asthma and the fact that she liked to keep things in order at home. Sam and Margaret gave birth to 8 children. Four of them were girls, and the other four were boys. While Houston was away for business he had a great longing for his beautiful wife and children. Margaret and Sam exchanged many letters, in which they expressed their love and yearning for one another. Some of these letters included paragraphs going into depths about religion and some of her unassurance surrounding it. Margaret and Sam exchanged these letters until 1861 when Sam’s political career was over, and he came home. In the following two years Houston’s health was decreasing. In 1863 Sam Houston passed away on July 26 because of