committees, as well as the committee on Foreign Relations, which castigated Houston for not providing information to the Congress on his annexation negotiations with the United States. Land baron Mary Maverick and their children were often ill, and in November 1844 the family sold their land along the Colorado River and moved to Decrow's Point, across from Port Cavallo on Matagorda Bay. They lived there for three years, where the new climate helped them to stay healthier. In 1844, the tax rolls showed that Maverick owned by title in Bexar County and Bexar Territory, with an additional 20,077 by survey, as well as 21 town lots. The following year he also purchased for his father, intended to be an inheritance for Maverick's children and nieces and nephews. Since 1840, Maverick had tripled his land holdings. As he was bringing the land documents home in June 1845, the boat he was in capsized. Maverick barely survived drowning and lost all of his papers. Later years After Texas' annexation by the United States, he was elected to the Texas Legislature. Fifteen years later, as the American Civil War loomed, Maverick supported Sam Houston in his call to support the Union. Nevertheless, he voted for secession as a member of the convention. Shortly afterward, he accompanied Philip N. Luckett and another Texas commissioner of safety to negotiate with U.S. Army General David E. Twiggs for the peaceful surrender of Federal garrisons in Texas. Maverick served once again as mayor of San Antonio from 1862 to 1863. After the Civil War was over, he helped John H. Reagan to reorganize the Democratic Party. He died on September 2, 1870, and is interred at San Antonio City Cemetery No. 1. Maverick County, Texas, is named for him. U.S. Representative from Texas Maury Maverick (1895–1954) was his grandson. Alamo cannon During construction of Maverick's house in 1852, 13 of the 21 cannons used during the Battle of the Alamo were unearthed. They had been damaged and buried by retreating Mexican soldiers following the Battle of San Jacinto. The Maverick family donated them to the Alamo Mission where they are now on display. Cattle branding Maverick steadfastly refused to brand his cattle. As a result, the word maverick, slang for someone who exhibits a streak of stubborn independence, also entered the English lexicon as a term for an unbranded range animal. Maverick's stated reason for not branding