The marriages of Tiana Rogers, a Cherokee woman who married Sam Houston.

Tiana’s First Husband
Tiana’s first husband was David Gentry, a mixed blood prosperous blacksmith. They lived in Tennessee at Frog Bayou, before the removal of the Cherokee. It’s been said that Gentry was "a ladies man."

In 1817, Gentry traveled with the Cherokee to the community around Dardanelle, Arkansas. His first wife was Mary Buffington, Tiana’s aunt.

David Gentry & Mary Buffington’s children:
Elizabeth Gentry
Isabel Gentry
Patience Gentry

David Gentry and Tiana had two daughters, but some claim they had no children. Their names were "Gabriel, and Joanna Gentry, who died without having married and with no children."

Little is known about David Gentry, but he has been recorded as being "a man of affairs." He was killed in the Osage wars, but no record of his death has been found. He died about 1826, and was considered a man of wealth and power.

Tiana’s Second Husband
Tiana’s second husband was Sam Houston, a free sprit, who later became the President of the Republic of Texas. His other titles included, Governor of Tennessee, Governor of Texas, U.S. Congressman, Senator, Schoolmaster and Frontier Lawyer. They later separated after Houston left for Texas.

Tiana’s Third Husband
Tiana’s third husband was Samuel McGrady, a whiskey runner between Ft. Smith and Ft. Gibson. They married on April 1,1836. William Armstrong, superintendent of the Western Territory had serious doubts about the character of McGrady. Armstrong, as well as some others believed McGrady was after Tiana’s property.

"Moreover, she was socially eligible to become the wife of an adopted son of the Supreme Chief. The Rogers were of distinguished tribal lineage, their name and their strain of Caucasian blood coming, by tradition, from a British officer of the Revolution. They were related to the black Coats, the Bushyheads, the Rattlingourds, the Little Terrapins and most of the principal families on the Arkansas . . . .

Tiana’s half-brother, Captain John, succeeded Oo-loo-te-ka as first chief, and his grandson, William Charles Rogers, was the last chief to rule the Cherokee Nation. The family is still important in eastern Oklahoma. Will Rogers, of Claremore, Oklahoma, and Beverly Hills, California, is Tiana’s nephew, three generations removed."

-The Raven: A Biography of Sam Houston

**To learn more about the Roger's family visit www.jcpinkerton.com

Bib:
Gregory, jack & Strickland. Sam Houston With The Cherokees.
Creel, George. Sam Houston Colossus In Buckskin. New York.
Hoig,Stan Diana, Tiana or Talihina? The Chronicles of Ok.
James, Marquis. The Raven. New York.
Williams, John. Sam Houston: A Bio. Of the Father of Texas. New York.
Flanagan, Sue. Sam Houston's Texas. Univ. of Texas Press.
Day & Ullom. The Autobiography of Sam Houston. Univ. of Ok. Press.

©2000 jpinkerton