Eighth Texas Legislature
The Eighth Texas Legislature met from November 7, 1859 to April 9, 1861 in its regular session, a first called session, and an adjourned session. All members of the House of Representatives and about half of the members of the Senate were elected in 1859.
Sessions
- 8th Regular session: November 7, 1859 – February 13, 1860
- 8th First called session: January 21–February 9, 1861
- 8th Adjourned session: March 18–April 9, 1861
Party summary
Officers
Senate
; Lieutenant Governor: Edward Clark, Democrat; President pro tempore: Jesse Grimes, Democrat, Regular session
House of Representatives
; Speaker of the House : M. D. K. Taylor, DemocratMembers
Members of the Eighth Texas Legislature at the beginning of the regular session, November 7, 1859:Senate
House of Representatives
| District | Representative | Party | Took Office |
| 1 | Solomon H. Pirkey | Unknown | November 12, 1859 |
- Basilio Benavides
- Anthony Martin Branch
- Kindallis Bryan
- Constantine W. Buckley
- William Clark
- David B. Culberson
- Nicholas Henry Darnell
- Isaac N. Dennis
- David Catchings Dickson
- Edward Dougherty
- Foscue
- James Carlton Francis
- Benjamin Cromwell Franklin
- De Witt Clinton Fort
- Lindsay Hagler, San Patricio County
- James Marshall Harrison
- J. W. Henderson
- Alfred Marmaduke Hobby
- Richard Bennett Hubbard, Jr.
- Henry Lawrence Kinney
- Francis J. Lynch
- John Haywood Manley
- Samuel Maverick
- John N. McClarty
- George McKnight
- Roger Q. Mills
- William Wright Morris
- Titus H. Mundine
- José Ángel Navarro
- Allison Nelson
- Benjamin F. Parker
- Samuel Redgate
- Joel Walter Robison
- Shelton
- Daniel McDowell Short
- John Dennis Stell
- M. D. K. Taylor
- Robert H. Taylor
- Robert J. Townes
- Jacob Waelder
- Charles A. Warfield
- George Washington Whitmore
- William Amos Wortham
- Friedrich Wilhelm von Wrede, Jr.
Membership changes
Senate
| District | Outgoing Senator | Reason for Vacancy | Successor | Date of Successor's Installation |
| District 3 | Martin D. Hart | Hart resigned February 26, 1861. | Turner L. Greene | Unknown |
| District 8 | Louis T. Wigfall | Wigfall announced his resignation on December 7, 1859. | E. A. Blanch | January 14, 1860 |
| District 9 | Jesse H. Parsons | Parsons resigned after the adjourned session. | - | |
| District 12 | Alexis T. Rainey | Rainey resigned after the regular session. | Steward Alexander Miller | January 21, 1861 |
| District 14 | John R. Dickinson | Dickinson resigned after the regular session. | Henry P. C. Dulany | January 26, 1861 |
| District 15 | Henry C. Wallace | Wallace resigned January 4, 1861. | Franklin Barlow Sexton | None |
| District 15 | Franklin Barlow Sexton | Sexton did not appear. | None | |
| District 25 | Eggleston D. Townes | Townes resigned March 13, 1861. | Nathan George Shelley | November 4, 1861 |
| District 29 | Forbes Britton | Britton died February 14, 1861. | Benjamin Franklin Neal | March 19, 1861 |
| District 30 | Isaiah Addison Paschal | Paschal resigned March 29, 1861. | Unknown | Unknown |
- District 15: Sexton did not return from Confederate States Army service in time to meet with the legislature.
- District 25: Shelley elected in special election held March 25, 1861 and sworn in with the Ninth Texas Legislature.
House of Representatives
| District | Outgoing Representative | Reason for Vacancy | Successor | Date of Successor's Installation |
| District 22 | John N. McClarty | McClarty resigned after the regular session. | William Wright Morris | January 22, 1861 |
| District 65 | Henry Lawrence Kinney | Kinney was opposed to secession and resigned February 9, 1861. | Alfred Marmaduke Hobby | March 19, 1861 |