Fletcher Summerfield Stockdale (c. 1823 – 4 February 1890) was a
U.S. politician in
Texas.
Stockdale was born in either 1823 or 1825 in
Russellville, Kentucky as one of eight children of Thomas W. and Laurinda Stockdale. He studied law and was admitted to the
Bar in
Kentucky. Stockdale moved to Texas in 1846 and settled in
Grimes County.
By 1856, Stockdale had moved to
Calhoun County, which he represented in the
Texas Senate from 1857 to 1861. He was elected
Lieutenant Governor in 1863, and served in that post until late May 1865 when he became the
Governor of Texas after then-
Governor Pendleton Murrah fled to
Mexico. Stockdale served until provisional governor
Andrew J. Hamilton assumed office in August 1865.
In the late 1860s, Stockdale served as president of the
Indianola Railroad and promoted the development of
refrigerated cars for carrying
beef to markets.
Stockdale married his second wife, Elizabeth, the daughter of Texas politician
Gustav Schleicher, in 1877 in
Washington, D.C. They resided in
Cuero, Texas, until his death 4 February 1890.
Stockdale, Texas, was named in his honor.
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