Sam Houston rides a horse stepping forward, his cloak streaming behind him and one arm extended in a point. "TEXAS SESQUICENTENNIAL" arches across the top between "1836" and "1986," and "GENERAL SAM HOUSTON" runs along the bottom, with small stars between the legends.
"THE LONE STAR STATE" arches over an outline of Texas bearing the word "TEXAS" and scattered stars. ".999 FINE SILVER" and "ONE TROY OUNCE" are struck below.
Issuer and distributor attributed to Colonial Coins, Inc. per a period Coin World advertisement listing the "Houston" design in 1 oz silver. No mint mark or maker's name is struck; manufacturer unknown.
The 1986 Sam Houston Lone Star State silver round trades infrequently, with only five verified sales between 2013 and 2024 and none in the last two and a half years.
| Date | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Apr 10, 2024 | 44.00 | Most Recent |
| Jun 3, 2018 | 18.50 | |
| Jun 14, 2016 | 39.95 | |
| Apr 22, 2016 | 27.40 | |
| Jun 12, 2013 | 47.99 | Highest Ever |
Scroll for full 5-sale history ↓
1986 Sam Houston – Lone Star State Silver Round Overview
The 1986 Sam Houston – Lone Star State Silver Round is the Sam Houston design of The Lone Star State Collection, a six-design 1986 series sold through Colonial Coins, Inc. of Houston for the 150th anniversary of Texas independence. The round names him by rank, “GENERAL SAM HOUSTON,” and puts him on horseback with one arm thrown out, pointing. Colonial worked out of the city that carries his name, and the man on the coin lived several lives before the one this round honors.
According to the Handbook of Texas, Houston was born March 2, 1793, on a plantation near Timber Ridge Church in Rockbridge County, Virginia. His father died when he was about thirteen, and the family moved to Blount County, Tennessee, in 1807. In 1809 he ran away to live with the Cherokees, spending about three years with Chief Oolooteka’s band, who named him Colonneh, “the Raven.” He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1813 and was wounded three times at Horseshoe Bend on March 26, 1814, fighting under Andrew Jackson, who became his patron. He went on to Congress in 1823, a term as governor of Tennessee in 1827, and then a collapse. His marriage to Eliza Allen ended within weeks of the January 22, 1829 wedding, and he resigned as governor on April 16 and went west to the Cherokees in Indian Territory, where he was called “Big Drunk.” He crossed the Red River into Texas on December 2, 1832.
By 1835 he was in the middle of it. The Consultation named him major general of the Texas army on November 12, 1835, and the Convention at Washington-on-the-Brazos reappointed him on March 4, 1836, two days after he had represented Refugio at the convention that adopted the Declaration of Independence. The Handbook says he worried about his army’s lack of discipline. He joined it at Gonzales, the town of the [Gonzales Cannon design]([add URL]), and retreated east ahead of Santa Anna while civilians fled in the Runaway Scrape.
It paid off on April 21, 1836. According to the Handbook’s account of San Jacinto, Houston ordered Deaf Smith to burn Vince’s bridge, which kept Mexican reinforcements out, and formed his line around 3:30 in the afternoon while Santa Anna’s army rested. The battle lasted “but eighteen minutes.” The Texans charged shouting “Remember the Alamo!” and “Remember Goliad!” Houston’s official report counted 630 Mexicans killed and 730 taken prisoner, against nine Texans killed or mortally wounded. Houston’s ankle was shattered by a musket ball. The Handbook’s biography adds that his horse, Saracen, was shot from under him. Santa Anna slipped away and was found the next morning hiding in the grass, dressed as a common soldier, and not recognized until his own prisoners called him “el presidente.” The victors also captured, among other things, $12,000 in silver. The Alamo design in this series tells what the battle cry remembered. Houston was known afterward as “Old Sam Jacinto.”
The rest of his career is as striking as the war. He defeated Stephen F. Austin for the presidency and served from October 22, 1836, to December 10, 1838, then again from December 12, 1841, to December 9, 1844. He was one of the state’s first two U.S. senators from 1846 to 1859, won the governorship in 1859, and in March 1861 refused to swear loyalty to the Confederacy. The secession convention removed him from office on March 16. He died of pneumonia in Huntsville on July 26, 1863, at seventy, and was buried in Masonic regalia. The [Heroes of Texas design]([add URL]) includes him among six names, and the Lone Star design covers the star seal he approved as president.
The round shows him mounted, a cloak streaming behind and a hat on his head, the horse stepping forward with its head lowered, and the dates 1836 and 1986 on either side of “TEXAS SESQUICENTENNIAL.” No legend names a scene, and no source located so far says who drew the design.
1986 Sam Houston – Lone Star State Silver Round Attribution
The year is struck on the obverse, in the dates 1836 and 1986 flanking “TEXAS SESQUICENTENNIAL,” so no dating attribution is needed.
The round carries no mint mark or maker’s name, and nothing located so far identifies the plant that struck it. Issuer and Distributor are attributed to Colonial Coins, Inc.: a period Colonial Coin World advertisement lists the Lone Star State line, including the “Houston” design in 1 oz silver, as Colonial’s product. No Certificate of Authenticity or original packaging has been tied to this example, so the attribution rests on the advertisement and is attributed, not confirmed.
1986 Sam Houston – Lone Star State Silver Round Notes
- The reverse is shared with the other five silver obverses of The Lone Star State Collection.
- Serialized examples of this design exist, numbered on a smooth band within the reeded edge. Each serialized round gets its own entry; this entry covers the plain 1 oz silver round only.
- A different Sam Houston obverse appears on separate Colonial products, including the Sam Houston / Alamo Proof and the City of Houston Proof-Like. Those pieces are not part of this series.
1986 Sam Houston – Lone Star State Silver Round References
- Sam Houston, Handbook of Texas, Texas State Historical Association
- San Jacinto, Battle of, Handbook of Texas, Texas State Historical Association
- Colonial Coins, Inc., period Coin World advertisement listing the Lone Star State designs and formats
- The Lone Star State Collection, The Texas Stacker
- Colonial Coins, Inc. (Houston, TX), The Texas Stacker
- Documented example examined (this entry)
- Texas Stacker Archives
