John Nance Garner was born in east Texas but moved to Uvalde in the 1890s to practice law. Shortly thereafter, he was appointed Uvalde County Judhe, and the rest (as they say) is history.
Garner was a colorful and frequently profane figure in state and national politics, who most famously observed that "The vice presidency was not worth a bucket of warm piss." He said this some time after accepting FDR's offer of the Vice Presidency.
For more on the incredible career of John Nance Garner, see the Handbook of Texas online here: (
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For an in-depth examination of whether Garner thought the VP job was not worth a bucket of warm SPIT or warm PISS (REALLY) see here: (
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Or if you just want to enjoy sme of his biting wit and murderous one-liners, see here: (
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He lived in Uvalde for the entirety of his political career and retirement. He and his son Tully deeded the home to the City of Uvalde in 1952. In 1999 the city deeded the hom,e to the Unioversity of Texas, which now operates the Dolph Briscoe-John Nance Garner History Museum here.
From the museum website: (
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"Briscoe-Garner Museum - Introduction
The Briscoe-Garner Museum is one of four divisions of the Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, an organized research unit of The University of Texas at Austin. The museum is located in the house that served as John Nance Garner's home for more than thirty years.
The museum is dedicated to the remarkable lives of John Nance "Cactus Jack" Garner and Dolph Briscoe, both Uvalde natives and historically important political figures from Texas. The first floor documents the life and career of "Cactus Jack" Garner, the first Texan to serve as speaker of the U. S. House of Representatives and as vice president of the United States. The second floor is dedicated to Dolph Briscoe who served as Texas governor from 1973 to 1979 and led a distinguished career in public service, business, and ranching..
John Nance "Cactus Jack" Garner (1868–1967) was speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives during the last two years of Herbert Hoover's presidency (1931–1933) and vice president during President Franklin D. Roosevelt's first two terms (1933–1941). Garner was a dominant national political figure who played a critical role in the passage of much of the New Deal legislation aimed at alleviating or ending the most severe economic crisis in U.S. history. The Briscoe Center archives include the extensive John Nance Garner Scrapbook Collection, the only significant body of Garner papers that exists.
Garner served as a political inspiration and mentor to Dolph Briscoe (1923–2010), who was a member of the state legislature from 1949 until 1957. Briscoe was elected governor in 1972 and served through the oil-boom years of the 1970s, during which he increased spending for highway improvements, signed into law the Texas Open Records Act and streamlined state agencies. He was one of the state's leading ranchers and president of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association. In 2008, The University of Texas at Austin announced the naming of its Center for American History after Gov. Briscoe, in recognition of his support for preserving and promoting Texas and U.S. history.
Garner and his wife, Ettie, who had served as his personal secretary during their years in the nation's capital, lived in the two-story brick house on 333 North Park Street in Uvalde until her death in 1948. In 1952, Garner donated the structure to the City of Uvalde as a memorial to his late wife, but continued to reside on the property in a small one-story cottage until his death on November 7, 1967. The John Nance Garner House was named a National Historic Landmark in 1972. In 1973, the Garner Museum opened with the mission to preserve and exhibit photographs, cartoons, documents, paintings, sculptures, and artifacts documenting Garner's life and career.
On November 20, 1999, the City of Uvalde transferred ownership of the Garner Museum to The University of Texas at Austin to become a division of the university's Briscoe Center for American History. In 2011, the Board of Regents of The University of Texas System approved the renaming of the John Nance Garner Museum to the Briscoe-Garner Museum, in honor of the late Governor Dolph Briscoe.
The Briscoe Center is among the leading research agencies in the nation for the study of historical topics that relate to the life and career of both Briscoe and Garner. Its Research and Collections Division located on the Austin campus constitutes the largest archive and library in existence on Texas history, with special strengths on the congressional and political history of Texas. The Briscoe Center archives include the extensive John Nance Garner Scrapbook Collection, the only significant body of Garner papers that exists, and Dolph Briscoe’s personal and gubernatorial papers."