Robert Potter | |
|---|---|
 Robert Potter, US Representative from North Carolina | |
| Born | June 1800 (1800-06) |
| Died | March 2, 1842(1842-03-02) (aged 41) |
| Occupation | Politician |
Robert Potter (June 1800 – March 2, 1842) was an American politician andTexas independence activist. He was aU.S. Representative fromNorth Carolina, and later a signer of theTexas Declaration of Independence andTexas Secretary of the Navy.
Potter was born in 1800[1] inGranville County, North Carolina near Williamsboro (now part ofVance County, North Carolina). His early education was in thecommon schools. He served as amidshipman in theUnited States Navy from 1815 to 1821.
Potter subsequently studied law, wasadmitted to the bar, and practiced inHalifax, North Carolina andOxford, North Carolina.
Potter was a member of theNorth Carolina House of Commons in 1826 and 1828. He was elected as aJacksonian to theTwenty-first Congress and theTwenty-second Congress. He served from March 4, 1829, until his resignation in November 1831, after he attacked and castrated two men, whom he believed to be having adulterous relationships with his wife; however, in truth, he was attempting to obtain “grounds” for divorce from his wife, as he wanted to marry into a higher class. He was convicted of attacking the two men and served time in jail for his actions.[2][3]
He again served as a member of thestate House of Commons from 1834 until his expulsion in January 1835 either for "cheating at cards" or "for brandishing a gun and knife during a fight over a card game".[4]
Potter moved toHarrison County, Texas, in 1835 and settled on a farm overlookingCaddo Lake, nearMarshall, Texas. In Texas, he continued his political career, becoming a member of theConvention of 1836 which issued theTexas Declaration of Independence on March 2, 1836. During theTexas Revolution Potter wasSecretary of the Navy in the cabinet of interim PresidentDavid G. Burnet. He represented theRed River District in the Texas Congress in 1837–1841.[5][6]
He participated in theRegulator-Moderator War inEast Texas as a leader of the Harrison County Moderators.
On March 2, 1842, Potter's home was surrounded by a band of Regulators led byWilliam Pinckney Rose. He ran to the edge of Lake Soda (Caddo Lake) and dove in, his body sinking to the bottom after being shot.[7][8] He was interred at "Potter’s Point," abluff near his home; reinterred in theTexas State Cemetery, atAustin, Texas, in 1931.[7]Potter County, Texas is named for him.
The historical novelLove is a Wild Assault, byElithe Hamilton Kirkland is the story of his Texas wife or "paramour" as the central character.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromNorth Carolina's 6th congressional district 1829–1831 | Succeeded by |
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| National | |
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