S. W. T. Lanham

Samuel Willis Tucker Lanham (July 4, 1846 – July 29, 1908) was the 23rd governor of Texas from 1903 to 1907. He was a conservative Democrat. Prior to winning election as governor, he served two periods in the US House of Representatives. He served five terms from the 11th district (which covered a vast area of West Texas) then ran for governor, losing in his first attempt. When he returned to Congress, it was in the eighth district, where he served 4 terms.

Early years Samuel Willis Tucker Lanham was born in 1846 in South Carolina to James Madison and Louisa de Aubrey (Tucker) Lanham in Spartanburg District (now County), South Carolina, and named for his maternal grandfather, Samuel Willis Tucker. When the Civil War began, Lanham volunteered for the Confederate States Army, despite the fact that he was only fifteen years old. He fought primarily in Virginia, was wounded at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, and after hostilities ended he married. He and his wife settled in Weatherford, Texas, where he worked and studied law.

Shortly after he was admitted to the bar in 1869, Lanham was appointed district attorney. His most famous case was the prosecution of Satanta and Big Tree, Kiowa chiefs who had led the Warren Wagon Train Raid in 1871.

The Texas Constitution prohibited a state banking system, and in 1904 voters approved a constitutional amendment to revoke that clause. The following year the legislature passed a bill creating the state insurance and banking commission, and Lanham appointed Thomas B. Love as its first director. Over the next five years, over 500 banks were created.

Lanham did not enjoy his time as governor, often wishing that he had remained in Congress. He said that "'office seekers, pardon seekers, and concession seekers overwhelmed me. They broke my health'".

After leaving office, Lanham retired to Weatherford, Texas, where he died in 1908.

Other Samuel W.T. Lanham was a Freemason. His masonic membership was of Phoenix Lodge #275 of the Grand Lodge of Texas in Weatherford, Texas.

He was considered an eloquent speaker and writer, and often made speeches at Confederate veterans' camps throughout Texas. In 1868, he joined the Masons. He received an honorary doctorate from Baylor University in June 1905. Governor Thomas M. Campbell appointed him a regent of the University of Texas in 1907.

Lanham's son Fritz Garland Lanham was also a member of the US House of Representatives, serving 14 terms from 1919 to 1947. His grandson, Edwin Lanham, was a successful novelist.