CARDWELL, JOHN (1837-1893). John Cardwell, newspaperman, was born in Lexington, Georgia, on January 28, 1837. He studied law at the University of Virginia in the mid-1850s and moved to Texas before 1860, having inherited his father's plantation in Wharton County. He married Margaret Dunlap of Brazoria County on January 6, 1860, and they became the parents of one daughter. After the Civil War Cardwell traveled to Brazil to investigate possible opportunities for the relocation of Texas planters, but returned with a negative report. In July 1871 the Democratic Executive Committee offered Cardwell the position of editor of the Austin Statesman, a new Democratic paper (see AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN). He accepted and became known for his vigorous attacks against Edmund J. Davis and other public figures. He resigned from the paper in 1883 and retired to his plantation. Two years later President Grover Cleveland appointed Cardwell United States Consul General to Egypt, a post he held until 1889. Cardwell died at his home on April 17, 1893.
BIBLIOGRAPHY: Vertical Files, Barker Texas History Center, University of Texas at Austin. Vertical Files, Austin History Center.
