Star of Destiny · the Private Life of Sam and Margaret Houston

Much is known about Sam Houston's political and military career, but until Star of Destiny the influence of his wife and children on his life has been overlooked. Star of Destiny draws upon previously unpublished family letters between Sam and his wife Margaret Lea, which reveal a deep interdependency between the two. These letters are astonishing in their emotional honesty and they reveal aspects of married life in the nineteenth century that are overlooked by most historians. The letters, which have been unavailable to the public, counteract the myth of the lone hero who conquered the frontier without support or influence of his family. The author, great-great-granddaughter of Sam Houston and Margaret Lea, has gathered hundreds of letters from family members and interviewed descendants to tell the story of this remarkable marriage.