Sam Houston School

                                               ~Sam Houston ~
 A great man in history. We took a field trip to the Sam Houston Schoolhouse and learned so much in such a short time. He was a teacher, practicing attorney, 2 term US Congressman from TN, Governor of TN, and then as a Texan he achieved even more ~ helped liberate Texas from Mexican rule, served 3 terms as President of the Republic of Texas, helped annex Texas to the US, and was a US Senator from Texas for 14 yrs. All this was accomplished in a lifespan of 70yrs.
                  (an excellent book we read prior to the field trip)

The kids retained so much from this trip that it amazes me. They got to actually have some lessons taught by a "schoolmarm" in period dress and manner in the actual one room schoolhouse where Houston first taught school. Attended displays and watched various craftsmen use a spinning wheel to make various kinds of yarn, flax and silks, make ammunition for rifles of the period, grind corn into meal by hand (very hard work) and take a tour of the on-site museum.
                           The One Room Sam Houston School House                                                    Having class                                       Grinding corn by hand

More info about Houston ~ he was a friend to the Native American people, married 3 times and died with the last words on his lips being "Texas, Texas". 
You can learn more about this amazing legend in TN and Texas History  here
and here.