Texas lawyer and legislator Thomas Stalworth Henderson (1849-1937) was born to Thomas S. and Harriet (Red) Henderson on the family farm near Washington-on-the-Brazos. After attending Washington Academy until the age of 14, Henderson became the youngest student to enroll at Waco University and its 1877 valedictorian. Before entering St. Louis Law School, he studied at the law office of his brothers Samuel and John in Bryan. In 1879, Henderson became licensed in Missouri and Texas and moved to Cameron, Texas, where he was appointed attorney of Milam County at the age of 20. Henderson practiced law there for the next 58 years. In December 1884, he married Minne Agnes Burnes (1863-1938), with whom he had six children.
Henderson participated in Texas political campaigns for 50 years, attended all state Democratic conventions during that time, and was a delegate at the national Democratic convention that nominated Woodrow Wilson. He served as district attorney for the Twentieth Judicial District (1882-1886) and as a member of the 1893 Texas legislature and Texas Board of Control and Water Erosion and Water Conservation. Henderson also belonged to the State Bar of Texas, the National Council for Defense, the National League to Enforce Peace, and the Texas State Historical Convention. A member of the University of Texas Board of Regents from 1895-1911, Henderson became its chair in 1910.
Source:
Culpepper, Mrs. John C. “
Including correspondence, financial papers, deeds, legal documents, literary productions, notes, photographs, and printed material, the Thomas Stalworth Henderson Papers, 1852-1941, 1967, document Henderson’s life and work as a Texas lawyer and legislator, as well as his activities in various organizations, such as the Democratic party. Political material concerns Henderson’s political career, including his campaigns for state senate (1890) and United States Congress (1906); local, state and national Democratic party business, particularly Henderson’s attendance of the 1912 National Convention in Baltimore; and the elections and work of other Texas Democratic politicians including James Stephen Hogg, Roger Quarles Mills, Charles Allen Culberson, Joseph Draper Sayers, Morris Sheppard, and Tom Connally, among others. The collection also relates to Henderson’s legal career as well as his civic and philanthropic activities, including his tenure on the University of Texas Board of Regents (1895-1911) and relationship with Baylor University. Additionally, the papers pertain to Henderson’s personal and familial affairs. Photographs portray Cameron, Texas, the University of Texas, and Henderson and his associates.
This collection is open for research use.
Thomas Stalworth Henderson Papers, 1852-1941, 1967, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.
See also Thomas Stalworth Henderson Scrapbook in the UT Fleming (Richard T.) University Writings Collection.
This collection processed by archives staff, ca. 1940. Subsequent revision made by W. H. Richter, 1968, and Frances Rodgers, 1973.
Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s