Ira Ingram was a soldier, legislator, and a land owner. He was a member of Stephen F. Austin's

Stephen F. Austin

Stephen Fuller Austin was born in Virginia and raised in southeastern Missouri. He was known as the Father of Texas, led the second, but first legal and ultimately successful colonization of the region by bringing 300 families from the United States. The capital of Texas, Austin in Travis County,...

 Old Three Hundred

Old Three Hundred

The Old Three Hundred is a term used to describe the 297 grantees, made up of families and some partnerships of unmarried men, who purchased 307 parcels of land from Stephen Fuller Austin and established a colony near present day Brenham in Washington County, Texas.Moses Austin was the original...

. Ingram is also noted for being the Republic of Texas

Republic of Texas

The Republic of Texas was an independent nation in North America, bordering the United States and Mexico, that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the state claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S...

's first Speaker of the House.

Early life

Ira Ingram was born in Brookfield, Vermont

Brookfield, Vermont

Brookfield is a town in Orange County, Vermont, United States. It was created by Vermont charter on August 5, 1781. The population was 1,222 at the 2000 census. Brookfield is best known for its floating bridge which spans Sunset Lake buoyed by pontoons...

, the son of Phillip and Rachael (Burton) Ingram. Ingram then lived in Tennessee

Tennessee

Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

, where he stayed until he moved to New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...

. In New Orleans, he married Emily B. Holt of Tennessee on March 13, 1823. They had one daughter. Emily died in October 1824.

Texas

In January 1826, Ingram and his brother Seth moved to the Austin Colony at his brother's recommendation. In 1828, they were partners in a merchandising establishment in San Felipe de Austin (presently known as San Felipe, Texas

San Felipe, Texas

San Felipe, also known as San Felipe de Austin, is a town in Austin County, Texas, United States. The town was the social, economic, and political center of the early Stephen F. Austin colony. The population was 868 at the 2000 census.-History:...

). Ira ran for mayor (alcalde) of San Felipe de Austin but lost to Thomas M. Duke. However, that year he represented the Mina District at the Convention of 1832 and San Felipe in the Convention of 1833. The next year, he was elected the first alcalde of Matagorda.

The Texas Revolution

Texas Revolution

The Texas Revolution or Texas War of Independence was an armed conflict between Mexico and settlers in the Texas portion of the Mexican state Coahuila y Tejas. The war lasted from October 2, 1835 to April 21, 1836...

 broke out on October 2, 1835. On December 22, 1835, Ingram wrote the Goliad Declaration of Independence. Ingram also played a key role in the Texas Revolution. After the war, he was the first Speaker of the House for the Republic of Texas

Republic of Texas

The Republic of Texas was an independent nation in North America, bordering the United States and Mexico, that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the state claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S...

. He served during the First Congress of the Republic of Texas (1836–1837).