Stevens moved to Texas in the early 1840s, where he began working as a clerk in a store. In 1847, he was elected as one of the Alderman for the Second Ward in Houston, a position he retailed through 1850. Meanwhile, he opened his own mercantile store and amassed enough wealth to invest in emerging transportation companies. Most notably, he was a founding subscriber to the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos & Colorado Railway, the first railroad to operate in Texas. In 1853, he divested of his mercantile business in order to focus on the railroad business.[2]
Stevens served as the mayor of Houston for two consecutive one-year terms in 1855 and 1856. As mayor, he continued his interest in promoting railroads. During his tenure, he obtained a charter from the State of Texas on behalf of the City of Houston to run a railroad to tap into the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos & Colorado Railway at Pierce Junction. The city invested $130,000 to lay seven miles of track for the Houston Tap Railroad, which allowed the city to capture part of the lucrative cotton trade with the Brazos Valley.[2]
Death and legacy
Stevens died in office on July 21, 1856, after long suffering from tuberculosis.[2]
In his will, Stevens pledged $5,000 toward the establishment of a school in Houston, provided that other citizens would donate another $10,000. Houstonians doubled that amount, and with a total of $25,000 in capitol, the Houston Academy was founded in 1858. The Houston Tap Railroad named its only locomotive, the James H. Stevens, in his honor.[2]
Harold Platt included Stevens on his list of Houston antebellum "commercial-civic elites."[3]
References
^Benham, Priscilla Myers (July 1, 2017). "James H. Stevens". Handbook of Texas Online. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
^Platt, Harold L. (1983). City Building in the New South: The Growth of Public Services in Houston, Texas, 1830–1910. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. p. 17. ISBN0-87722-281-9.
