John Austin Wharton

Wharton was a soldier, lawyer, and politician. He was born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1806 and orphaned at 10 years old, raised by an uncle. He studied law and opened a practice in New Orleans in 1830. He came to Texas in 1833 and quickly bcame involved in the independence movement, participating in the Consultations in Columbia and San Felipe and serving as a member of the provisional Texas government. When hostilities in Texas broke out, Wharton went to New Orleans as an agent for Texas to recruit volunteers and returned in time to participate in the Battle of San Jacinto. He was imprisoned in Mexico when he went there to secure release of his brother and other sailors from the Invincible. He and his brother escaped and returned to Texas. He served briefly as Secretary of War before being elected to two terms in Congress and partnering with E. M. Pease and John Harris in a Houston law firm. He died in 1838.