Edward Degener
| Edward Degener | |
|---|---|
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| San Antonio City Council | |
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In office 1872–1878 |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 4th district |
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In office March 30, 1870 – March 3, 1871 |
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| Preceded by | District created |
| Succeeded by | John Hancock |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 20, 1809 Brunswick, Prussia (now Braunschweig, Germany) |
| Died | September 11, 1890 (aged 80) San Antonio, Texas, U.S. |
| Resting place | San Antonio City Cemetery No. 1 |
| Political party | Republican |
Edward Degener (October 20, 1809 – September 11, 1890) was a German-born American politician. He was a Republican U.S. Representative from Texas during the Reconstruction era.
Originally from Germany, Degener moved to the United States and lived in Texas. During the American Civil War, slave-holding Texas joined the Confederacy, but Degener remained loyal to the Union, and was persecuted by the Confederates for this loyalty to the U.S. Two of Degener's sons were murdered by the Confederates in the Nueces massacre. After the war ended, Degener served as a Republican congressman for the Texan 4th Congressional District and as a San Antonio city council member in the 1870s. He died in 1890.
Born in Brunswick, Germany, Degener pursued an academic course in Germany and in England. He was twice a member of the legislative body in Anhalt-Dessau and was a member of the first German National Assembly at Frankfurt-am-Main in 1848.
He immigrated to the United States in 1850 and settled in Sisterdale, Texas, in the Texas Hill Country west of San Antonio, with its burgeoning German immigrant population. Degener engaged in agricultural pursuits.
During the U.S. Civil War, civilian Degener was arrested by the Confederate army and charged with being "a dangerous and seditious person and an enemy to the government." Degener had allegedly criticized the Confederacy, corresponded with alleged enemies of same, and failed to report known Union sympathizers. Degener pleaded not guilty. His legal counsel challenged the legal authority of the military, and the charge of sedition, which was not a crime legally recognized by the government. Found guilty anyway, he was ordered to post a bond of $5,000 that he would be loyal to the Confederacy.
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