Grady Early will present a Texas history program to the Rotary Club of San Marcos at noon on April 15 titled, “Edward Burleson: Soldier and Statesman.” Burleson had a significant impact on the nation, on Texas, and on San Marcos, according to Early. “Burleson was a force to be reckoned with,” he said.
Burleson was the Vice President of the Republic of Texas when Sam Houston served as President. He was also involved in projects to promote settlement in Central Texas, including surveying San Marcos and donating the land for the Hays County Courthouse.
Burleson ran for President of the Republic of Texas but was defeated by Anson Jones, who enjoyed the support of Sam Houston.
“Ed’s feud with Sam Houston doomed his chance to be President of the Republic of Texas,” Early said. He will detail other interesting aspects of Burleson’s life, from his arrival in Texas in 1830 to his death in 1851.
Early is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Texas State University, where he taught math and computer science for 29 years. He served briefly as Chair of the Computer Science Department.
After retirement, Early began researching his family history and gained familiarity with various history and genealogy research tools, which led to a series of stories for the San Marcos Daily Record about the Southwest Texas State Normal School in San Marcos and more recently, stories about interesting people in San Marcos history.
Rotary meets Wednesdays at noon at the VFW Hall, located at 1701 Hunter Road. Visitors are always welcome at meetings. The San Marcos Rotary Club is 104 years old.
Rotary is nonprofit, nonpolitical and nonreligious.
