The Texas career of John Marshall

Although John Marshall lived in Texas for only seven years, he had an intense interest in the activities taking place in the state in the 1850's. In 1854, he abandoned a career as an editor and political writer in Mississippi when he purchased an interest in the Austin State Gazette. Marshall controlled the Gazette until the outbreak of the Civil War, and he developed the newspaper into a journal which discussed many of the controversial events of the period while it served as a major spokesman for the Democratic Party in Texas. Marshall desired to see Texas become the most powerful state in the South, and in his concept of progress, he spoke of progress within the slave system. He wrote extensively about the need for creating a good educational system in Texas, the necessity for the development of railroads in the state, and the possibilities of expanding slavery--three subjects he believed to be of great importance to the future of Texas. Also, he considered other issues when they arose. Local differences led to the defeat of many of his constructive ideas in the 1850's while the sectional emotional arguments he presented found many enemies in a period of growing antislavery feeling. In Mississippi, Marshall became known as a forceful writer in behalf of the Democratic Party. Soon after reaching Texas, he supported the Democratic ticket in state elections and urged unification and organization within the party. When he endorsed the Democratic candidates, he compromised some of his goals by defending people with other views. The partisan attacks he delivered against the American Party and his energetic support for the Democrats led the 1856 state Democratic convention to select him as Chairman of the Central Committee. As leader of the Democratic Party, he helped direct several successful campaigns with only one defeat. He did not consider the causes he had advocated as the principal issues in his campaigning. Instead, he centered his arguments on slavery, personal charges against Sam Houston, and other emotional issues. Ironically, the party he had worked to unify split during his leadership, thus allowing an opposition victory in 1859.