Lawrence Sullivan Ross

Lawrence Sullivan "Sul" Ross (September 27, 1838 – January 3, 1898) was the 19th governor of Texas, a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War, and the 4th president of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, now called Texas A&M University.

Ross was raised in the Republic of Texas, which was later annexed to the United States. Much of his childhood was spent on the frontier, where his family founded the town of Waco. Ross attended Baylor University (then located in Independence, Texas) and Florence Wesleyan University in Florence, Alabama. On one of his summer breaks, he suffered severe injuries while fighting Comanches. After graduation, Ross joined the Texas Rangers, and in 1860, led Texas Rangers in the Battle of Pease River, where federal troops recaptured Cynthia Ann Parker, who had been captured by the Comanches as a child in 1836.

When Texas seceded from the United States and joined the Confederacy, Ross joined the Confederate States Army. He participated in 135 battles and skirmishes and became one of the youngest Confederate generals. Following the Civil War, Ross briefly served as sheriff of McLennan County before resigning to participate in the 1875 Texas Constitutional Convention. With the exception of a two-year term as a State Senator, Ross spent the next decade focused on his farm and ranch concerns. In 1887, he became the 19th governor of Texas. During his two terms, he oversaw the dedication of the new Texas State Capitol, and resolved the Jaybird-Woodpecker War. Despite his popularity, Ross refused to run for a third term as governor. Days after leaving office, he became the fourth president of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas (now Texas A&M University). He is credited with reorganizing the university's finances to save it from closure by the state legislature and opening the first classes to women (the daughters of the professors). His tenure saw a large expansion in college facilities and the birth of many school traditions. After his death, the Texas Legislature created Sul Ross State University in his honor.

Lawrence Sullivan Ross was born on September 27, 1838, in Benton's Post, Iowa Territory. He was the fourth child and second son of Shapley Prince Ross and Catherine Fulkerson. Ross was jointly named for his paternal uncle, Giles O. Sullivan, and his father's grandfather and brother, both named Lawrence Ross. The senior Lawrence Ross had been captured by Native Americans as a child, and lived with them from the time he was six years old until he was rescued at 23.^{[citation needed]} His father, Shapley Ross, was a ranger and Indian agent who often skirmished with Native Americans on the frontier. The experiences and stories told to young Sul caused him to grow up with an animosity towards the native tribes. To differentiate Ross from his uncle and great-grandfather, he was called "Little Sul" when he was a child, and later "Sul".

Shortly after Ross's birth, his parents sold their Iowa property and returned to Missouri to escape Iowa's cold weather.^{[citation needed]} In 1839, the family moved to Milam County in the Republic of Texas, where they settled in Robertson's Colony on the lower Brazos River. Two years later, they joined seven other families under Captain Daniel Monroe and settled near present-day Cameron, where they received 640 acres (260 ha) of land along the Little River. While living in Milam, they became slave owners, enabled by the government grant of land. Their land adjoined Comanche territory and was raided several times.

In 1845, the family moved to Austin so Ross and his older siblings could attend school. Four years later, they relocated again. By this time, Shapley Ross was well known as a frontiersman, and to coax him to settle in the newly formed community of Waco, the family was given four city lots, exclusive rights to operate a ferry across the Brazos, and the right to buy 80 acres (32 ha) of farmland at US$1 per acre. In March 1849, the Ross family built the first house in Waco, a double-log cabin on a bluff overlooking the springs. Ross's sister Kate soon became the first Caucasian child born in Waco.

Eager to further his education, Ross entered the Preparatory Department at Baylor University (then in Independence, Texas) in 1856, despite the fact that he was several years older than most of the other students. He completed the two-year study course in one year. Following his graduation, he enrolled at Florence Wesleyan University in Florence, Alabama. The Wesleyan faculty originally deemed his mathematics knowledge so lacking, they refused his admittance; the decision was rescinded after a professor agreed to tutor Ross privately in the subject. At Wesleyan, students lived with prominent families instead of congregating in dormitories, thus giving them "daily exposure to good manners and refinement". Ross lived with the family of his tutor.

During the summer of 1858, Ross returned to Texas and journeyed to the Brazos Indian Reserve, where his father served as Indian agent. The United States Army had conscripted Indians from the reserve to help the "Wichita Expedition" of 2nd Cavalry in a search for Buffalo Hump, a Penateka Comanche chief who had led several deadly raids on Texas settlements. Fearing that Shapley Ross was too ill to lead them on the expedition, the Indians appointed Sul Ross as commander. With his father's approval, the younger Ross led the 135 warriors to accompany 225 troops led by brevet Major Earl Van Dorn. Ross was given the courtesy title of "Captain" during his command.