Very first Aggie identified as great-great grandfather of 2 current students

Zachary Lawrence, a Texas A&M University sophomore, is a fifth-generation Aggie. Zachary Lawrence, a Texas A&M University sophomore, is a fifth-generation Aggie. Photo: Texas A&M University Photo: Texas A&M University Image 1 of / 26 Caption Close Very first Aggie identified as great-great grandfather of 2 current students 1 / 26 Back to Gallery

Texas A&M University senior Lindsay Lawrence and her younger brother Zachary Lawrence are fifth-generation Aggies, an undoubtedly small group.

But the pair from Shiner can also claim an even more elite status - direct descendants of the man believed to be the school's very first enrollee.

John Archibald McIver, from Caldwell about 25 miles west of College Station, was apparently the first student to enroll in A&M's first session, which started on Oct. 4, 1876.

He was incorrectly listed as James Archibald McIver in the first student directory but a correction was made in the next year's list, according to a university news release.

Since A&M was the state's first public institution of higher learning, that would make McIver the first student to enroll at a public college in Texas.

Zachary Lawrence, who is McIver's great-great-grandson, is a sophomore psychology major and, like the Aggie men in his family's four prior generations, a member of the school's Corps of Cadets.

Lindsay Lawrence, who is not on campus this term, is majoring in allied health. An older brother, Ryan Lawrence, graduated from A&M last spring.

They are related to McIver through his granddaughter, Patsy McIver Lawrence, who is the wife of Allen S. Lawrence Jr. and their paternal grandmother.

An often-told story in the Lawrence family history supports the belief that McIver was the first Aggie, the news release said.

"What I've often heard family members say is that he rode over on horseback from Caldwell to enroll but was told he was a day early," Zachary Lawrence said in a statement. "Rather than ride back to Caldwell as he had planned, he decided just to stay overnight. He slept under a tree that night and then registered the next morning."

The family has copies of newspaper stories reporting McIver's death in 1923 and noting he was the first student to register at Texas A&M.

Also, a photo of McIver is on display in the Sanders Corps of Cadets Hall of Honor on campus and includes a caption describing him as "the first student to register at the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas," as the school was known until 1963.

School officials learned about the Lawrences' connection to Aggie history not from the students themselves but through a tweet from a former classmate of their father to Texas A&M President R. Bowen Loftin, the release stated.

Asked why he had not mentioned this connection, Zachary said he didn't want his family connection to be a factor in his admission, according to the release.

"I wanted to get into Texas A&M on my own merits," he said.