The Fearless Fifty-Nine, Edwin Waller

Edwin Waller was the 35 year old Brazoria representative. Waller moved to Texas from Missouri in 1831 and owned/operated the Sabine, a vessel used to transport cotton from Velasco to New Orleans. In 1832 he was wounded in the battle of Velasco. At the Convention, he served on the committee that framed the Constitution. Afterward, Waller returned to his plantation in Brazoria and in 1838 he served as the president of the board of land commissioners for Brazoria County. He played a huge role in the building of the new capital at Austin by supervising the surveying and sale of town lots and the construction of public buildings. He was also elected the first Mayor of Austin in 1840. As well in 1840, he participated in the battle of Plum Creek. After the battle, he moved to Austin County and engaged in farming and merchandising. He served as chief justice of Austin County from 1844 to 1856. Once the Civil War came around, he attended the Secession Convention as the only delegate there that had signed the Declaration. In 1873, the legislature honored Waller by forming a new county from Austin and Grimes and named it after him. Also in 1873, he was elected the first president of the Texas Veterans Association. He worked on submitting names from the Texas Revolution veterans entitled to special recognition by the state.