Colquitt, Oscar Branch, Gov., Homesite of

(1861-1940) (This block is the former homesite of) Twenty-fourth Governor of Texas (1911-1915). Known as "The Napoleon of Texas Politics" and "Little Oscar" because of his short stature, Colquitt was a strong and independent chief executive. His stump speeches were among the most effective of his times. A descendant of American Revolution and Civil War fighters, Colquitt was born in Georgia. He worked as a tenant farmer and newspaperman before serving as a Texas Senator. He was railroad commissioner, 1903-1911, and his efforts in office for Galveston gained him the title "Daddy of the Causeway". In his second race for the office, he was elected Governor on an anti-Prohibition ticket. His legal residence was in Terrell during both terms and he had owned the Terrell "Times-Star" in the 1890s. While in office, Colquitt achieved prison reforms. (He campaigned with a bullwhip in hand to publicize prison brutality.) He helped preserve the Alamo as a Texas shrine. Homes for the insane and retarded were improved under him, and he also spearheaded advancements in education and backed labor bills. In 1885 he had married Alice F. Murrell, by whom he had five children. After 1915 he entered private business and worked as a U.S. government official.

Colquitt, Oscar Branch, Gov., Homesite of is a historical marker in Terrell, Kaufman County, dedicated in 1969. It is one of 90 historical markers documented in Kaufman County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 178 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.7377, -96.2784 near Terrell. The nearest cataloged historic site is Carnegie Library Building (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Terrell Carnegie Library, Carnegie Public Library, and American National Bank of Terrell.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5257008498. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.