A history of Texas and Texans, Part 29

Author: Johnson, Francis White, 1799-1884; Barker, Eugene Campbell, 1874-1956, ed; Winkler, Ernest William, 1875-1960
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Chicago, American Historical Society
Number of Pages: 906

USA > Texas > A history of Texas and Texans > Part 29

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While Mr. Loving had no further Indian troubles, he found himself badly involved financially. He had bought several stocks of cattle at range delivery and had bought them mostly ou time and had met his obli- gations up to 1876. But on account of heavy loss of both cattle and horses run off by the Indians, and an addi- tional loss of cattle by white thieves, he found himself unable to pay his debts maturing in 1876. A portion of his creditors, refusing to give an extension, forced him to make an assignment, when he turned over to the re- ceiver all cattle, horses and other property owned by him, having previously let his homestead near Weather- ford go in payment of debt. He owned about three thousand head of cattle at the time he failed.

That left him with little or nothing save his experi- ence and energy. He was then in the prime of life and not in the least discouraged. He continued to live in Lost Valley, and by 1882 had accumulated some cattle and land, and became one of the organizers of the Loving Cattle Company, of which he was general manager for ten years, up to 1892. During the last quarter of a century he was regarded as one of the leading cattlemen

not only through his personal influence, but as a result of his extensive operations, and in spite of many vicissi- tudes and ups and downs of fortune, such as practically all Texas cattlemen experienced, he came out on the suc- cessful side, and his individual snecess was in keeping with his prominence as an executive official of the Cattle Raisers Association.

With the organization of the Cattle Raisers Association in February, 1877, Mr. Loving became secretary and was re-elected at each annual meeting until his death. In 1879 he was also elected treasurer and held both offices until 1893. From 1893 until his death in 1902 he was general manager of the association. For many years the office of the secretary was at Jacksboro, but in 1893 was removed to Fort Worth, and Mr. Loving claimed that city as his home until his death.

HON. JAMES C. WILSON. United States District At- torney for the northern district of Texas, with office at Dallas and residence at Fort Worth, a position to which he was appointed by President Woodrow Wilson in August, 1913, James C. Wilson is a grandson of the noted pioneer cattleman, Oliver Loving, and was named for his uncle, the late James C. Loving, two eminent Texans whose careers are sketched in preceding paragraphs. Mr. Wilson is a son of Thomas and Maggie (Loving) Wil- son. His mother was the youngest child of Oliver Loving, and is now living as Mrs. C. B. Raines at Min- eral Wells, Texas. Thomas Wilson was born in Fayette- ville, Tennessee, served four years in the Confederate Army from that state, came to Texas in 1867, locating in Palo Pinto county, and was a citizen of much prominence during the early days in that county, which was then on the western frontier of settlement. He was elected to the office of sheriff of Palo Pinto county, and his death occurred in 1879 at Austin while attending the first meeting of the Texas Sheriffs' Association. Mr. James C. Wilson has a sister, the wife of Dr. J. H. MeCracken, a distinguished physician of Mineral Wells, and a former president of the Texas State Medical Association ; and a brother, Horace Wilson, engaged in the tattle commission business in Fort Worth.

Mr. Wilson has been a successful lawyer in North Texas for the past eighteen years, and has long been one of the active young leaders in politics and affairs. He was born in Palo Pinto, received his education in the public schools of his native town, Palo Pinto, and of Mineral Wells, and in Weatherford College. He graduated from the law department of the University of Texas in 1896, and while a student of law was a class- mate of Morris Sheppard, now junior senator from Texas. In the contest for the appointment as district attorney of the northern district Mr. Wilson had the support of Senator Sheppard, while Senator Culbertson had presented the name of a Dallas attorney. In August, 1913, President Wilson nominated the Fort Worth at- torney for the office to succeed W. H. Atwell, and the nomination was confirmed by the senate.

After graduating from the university Mr. Wilson was in the practice of law at Weatherford until November, 1912, and then moved to Fort Worth, and on November 15th of the same year was appointed assistant attorney of Tarrant county. During his residence at Weatherford Mr. Wilson was for two years assistant county attorney of Parker county, and later served as county attorney for three terms, being first elected in 1902. For three terms he was also chairman of the Parker county Demo- cratic executive committee.

Mr. Wilson was married in Parker county to Miss Esther English, who was born at Pictou, Nova Scotia. and came to Texas as a teacher. They are the parents of three children, James C. Jr., Horace and Emily Loving.

ASA C. WILSON is essentially a Texas product. He is one of the best known and most prominent men in

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the city of Dallas, which has represented his home since the year 1902. Mr. Wilson is manager of his late fa- ther's estate, and finds his duties in that respect suffi- cient to occupy his time and attention, though he has found time to devote to military affairs in the state and has a highly creditable record as a member of the National Guard of Texas.

Mr. Wilson was born on his father's ranch, known fa- miliarly as the "Twelve Mile House," because of its distance from Waco, in McLennan county. He is the son of Jay C. and Margaret N. (Naler) Wilson, of whom brief mention is here set forth.

Jay C. Wilson was born in St. Joseph, Missouri. He enjoyed excellent educational advantages, being a grad- uate of Yale University, and almost immediately after he received his degree he joined the gold-seekers in the rush to the Black Hills of South Dakota. It was not until 1871 that he came to Texas, locating at Waco, where he became prominent and prosperous. This was in the well-remembered days prior to the advent of the railroads into this part of the state, and Mr. Wilson es- tablished himself on a ranch just twelve miles from the then frontier town of Waco. His place, "Twelve Mile House," was one of the best ranches in that part of the state, and there Mr. Wilson accumulated a comfortable fortune, consisting mostly of property interests in Me- Lennan county, in Waco, the city of Dallas, and in other parts of the state. He died August 3, 1910. The wife and mother, who was born in Georgia, came to Texas in 1870, and she is living in Dallas.

Asa C. Wilson attended the public schools of MeLen- nan county until he was graduated therefrom, and there- after entered Baylor University, at Waco. In 1893 he entered the third-year class in the civil engineering course at the Agricultural & Mechanical College of Texas, at College Station, at which time former Gov- ernor Lawrence Sullivan Ross was president of the insti- tution. Finishing his studies there, he entered Bingham Military School, at Asheville, North Carolina, and he was there distinguished by becoming an honor graduate of that famous school, having attained the rank of major of a battalion of infantry. It was this training that in- duced his later military service, in which he made a most enviable record.

After his return home, Mr. Wilson associated himself with the First National Bank of Waco, and was thus occupied for six years. He removed to Louisiana in 1900, where he resided two years, and in 1902 he came to Dallas, and was there Cashier of the Texas National Bank for several years, or until its consolidation with the American Exchange National Bank. Upon the death of his father, in August, 1910, Mr. Wilson became manager of the estate of the senior Wilson, and he maintains his office in the building at No. 1514 Main street, one of the properties included in the Wilson estate.

As has been previously mentioned, Mr. Wilson has dis- tinguished himself in his military service as a member of the Texas National Guard. He first enlisted as a private in Company K, Second Texas Infantry, known as the "Mayor's Guard," of Waco, on October 27, 1896. He was soon promoted to the post of corporal, and later sergeant of the company, and when the Texas Volunteer Guard, as the organization had been known up to that time, was reorganized by the late Brig .- Gen. Thomas Scurry, in the latter part of 1899, Mr. Wilson was com- missioned by Gov. Joseph D. Sayers as first lieutenant, Company K. Second Texas Infantry, and was in com- mand of that company when it won the first prize as being the best-drilled company in the military estab- lishment of the state. He then became acting battalion adjutant of the First Battalion, Second Texas Infantry, commanded by Brig .- Gen. Gordon Boone. On July 6, 1906, he was commissioned by the late Gov. S. W. T. Lanham as captain and paymaster of the Texas Na- tional Guard, and served in that capacity until December

3, 1908, when, upon the death of Maj. George T. West, major and paymaster general, Texas National Guard, Captain Wilson was commissioned by Governor Thos. M. Campbell as major and paymaster general, with that rank, serving from December 4, 1908, until November 15, 1913, when he was promoted by Gov. O. B. Colquitt to be lieutenant colonel of the Second Infantry, Texas Na- tional Guard. He served with that rank until November 30, 1913, when, after more than seventeen years of con- tinuous service in various capacities, he was, upon his own request, placed upon the retired list of officers of the Texas National Guard.

Mr. Wilson is a Roman Catholic in his religion, and fraternally he is identified with the B. P. O. E., Dallas Lodge No. 71, and with the Order of Hoo Hoo, No. 20430.

On December 5, 1901, Mr. Wilson was married at Dal- las to Miss Clara S. Burke of Louisiana. She died Octo- ber 10, 1913, at Dallas, the mother of two children: Thomas Crittenden Wilson, born in New Iberia, Louisi- ana, October 25, 1902, and Pamela Clara Wilson, born at Dallas, Texas, August 10, 1905.

OLIVER W. LEE. When there is any movement on foot which will be of benefit to the people of Munday, Texas, or of the surrounding country, one of the men whom one is fairly certain to find among the leaders is Oliver W. Lee. Mr. Lee is prominent in the life of this locality, not only politically and commercially but socially as well. Mr. Lee is mayor of the city at present and his regime has been a highly creditable one. He has brought to bear on political problems, the straight- forward business methods for which he is well known and has gained the respect of his political enemies and the increased admiration of those who are his friends and supporters. Mr. Lee is, however, a man whom everyone likes, and has few enemies, even political ones.

Oliver W. Lee was born in Jackson county, Tennes- see, on the 9th of January, 1867. His father, Russell K. Lee was born in Tennessee and lived in that state during the greater part of his life. . He was a farmer and when he came to Texas in 1900 he continued to farm, his property being located in Knox county. Dur- ing the Civil war he served in the Confederate army, part of the time as a member of an infantry regiment and part of the time in the cavalry. He saw much active service and took part in some of the hardest fought battles of the war. He and his wife are both members of the Baptist church and his wife is especially active in church work. Mr. Lee married in Tennessee, his wife being Miss Seytha Smith, a native of that state. There were only two children born to Mr. and Mrs. Lee, both sons, of whom Oliver W. Lee was the eldest and is now the only one living.

Until Oliver W. Lee was eighteen years of age he attended the public schools of that part of Tennessee in which he lived. He spent his time, when he was not in the school room, helping his father with the work of the farm, but when he was eighteen years old he de- cided to start out for himself. He began as a school teacher and for a few years was thus engaged. Then for about two years he operated a sawmill. His next position was in the surveying and map making depart- ment of the Pennsylvania Oil Company. After this he went to farming and until he came to Texas this was his means of livelihood.

It was in October, 1899, that he came to this state and located in Munday, and he has resided in this county ever since. When he first came to this section he fol- lowed farming, this being his occupation for about three years. He next went to Benjamin, the county seat, where he worked in the office of the sheriff and tax col- lector. After five years of this work he was elected to the office of tax assessor. He served one term in this office and then came to Munday. Here he established the business in which he is successfully engaged at pres-

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ent. This business is general insurance, rentals and collections.

In politics Mr. Lee is a member of the Democratic party and he has always taken a very active and promi- nent part in politics. He is now serving on his second term as mayor of Munday. In religious matters Mr. Lee is a member of the Baptist church. In the fraternal world he belongs to the Knights of Pythias and to the Improved Order of Red Men. He is a member of the Munday Commercial Club and is an important factor in the work of this organization, now being its vice- president. He is, in short, one of the leaders of Mun- day, one of her big men and a man whose citizenship she could ill afford to lose. For recreation Mr. Lee would rather turn to the rough life of the camp with plenty of hunting than to anything else.

Mr. Lee was married in Clinton county, Kentucky, on the 11th of November, 1906, to Miss Irene Belle Smith, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. P. H. Smith, of Clinton county. Mr. and Mrs. Lee have become the parents of four children, namely: Irene Scytha, Russell Harvey, Grace Irwin, and Robert Sydney.

J. G. MILLS, M. D. The history of the Gill Well, at Dallas, is an interesting one and is but another exempli- fication of the fact that some of the world's greatest discoveries are made through sheer accident. In 1902 the mayor and board of aldermen of the city of Dallas let a contract for a deep well to secure water for munici- pal purposes. Work was commenced, and at a depth of 1910 feet the drillers encountered a copious flow of hot mineral water, which could not be used for domestic purposes and was accordingly permitted to run to waste. It was feared by the succeeding administration, as well as by the taxpayers whose money had been used to sink the well, that a serious blunder had been perpetrated, but decided to have an analysis made of the waters, in the hope that they might be found of chemical or medicinal value. Wherefore in 1905 Dr. J. G. Mills, a practicing physician of Marlin, Texas, with wide experience in med- ical practice in connection with thermal and medicinal waters, was sent for. Due analysis demonstrated that this well contained virtues which make it one of the most remarkable of its kind in the Southwest and that the money disbursed in sinking it could not have been ex- pended more judiciously. Since that time Doctor Mills has been at the head of the Gill Well Sanitarium Com- pany and, through careful management, has made it the most popular resort in the state.

Dr. J. G. Mills was born in Cherokee county, Texas, in 1877, and is a son of Green and Cornelia Britton (Gray) Mills, both of whom are now deceased. His father was born in Washington county, Georgia, a son of Elisha Mills, who came to Texas with his family during the late forties. In 1880 Green Mills died, and Mrs. Mills was subsequently married to Mr. S. E. Jones, by whom Doc- tor Mills was reared and who is still living, at Jackson- ville, Texas. The maternal grandfather of Doctor Mills was a soldier during the Mexican War and was one of those who fell at Monterey.

Dr. Mills was reared in Cherokee county, Texas, and attended school at Jacksonville, that county, the greater part of his education being secured at Alexander Col- legiate Institute, from which he was graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Science. He went to St. Louis at the age of nineteen years and matriculated in the Mis- souri Medical College, from which he graduated with the class of 1899, and then, returning to Jacksonville, began practice there, remaining two years. Subsequently he removed to Marlin, Texas, where, beginning in 1901, he successfully practiced his profession, being physician at the Marlin Sanitarium and the Arlington Hotel, and, in fact, since first going to Marlin has had extensive ex- perience in medical practice in connection with thermal and medical waters.

When sent for to look into the merits of the waters

at Gill Well, Doctor Mills secured five gallons of it, which he shipped to Dr. Seth M. Morris, chemist and toxicologist of the medical department of the Texas State University, Galveston, who made the following analysis: Sodium Bicarbonate, 147.93 Grs. per U. S. gal .; Sodium Sulphate, 188.38; Magnesium Sulphate, 22.51; Calcium Sulphate, 73.62; Sodium Chloride, 3.39; Alumina and Iron, 3.32; Potassium Sulphate, 0.99; Sil- ica, 0.56. Total, 440.70. Appreciating the rare and ex- cellent combination of medicinal properties in the water, he made application and secured a twenty-year lease, with a ten-year option to purchase the well from the city of Dallas at its actual cost of construction to the min- eral water strata, and in 1906, complying with the terms of this contract, purchased nearly three acres of land on Maple avenue, 2200 feet distant from the Gill Well, where he erected a bathhouse of brick and equipped it with necessary apparatus to properly utilize the water. The property is situated one and one-half miles north of the postoffice, and now has greatly added value and attrac- tion on account of being situated on the beautiful Turtle Creek Boulevard, work on which was begun by the city of Dallas in 1914. The place overlooks the picturesque wooded vale of Turtle Creek, and, being located within easy distance of the heart of the city, makes its future bright with promise of great usefulness to the public and profit to its owner. Doctor Mills has in contempla- tion the erection of a modern sanitarium on the property. In a medicinal way, the water is laxative, diuretic. anti-acid, and tonic, but. unlike others in this group, is harmless and contains the maximum of properties of merit. It is of value in treatment of all forms of rheumatism, neurasthenia, diabetes, gout, neuralgia, and many disorders of the kidneys, liver, and digestive tract. Doctor Mills constructed of reinforced concrete a large swimming pool, in which he uses the mineral water ex- elnsively, and practically the entire output of the well flows through the pool, rendering it fresh, warm, and sanitary at all times.

Doctor Mills was married to Miss Leticia Anna Smith of Falls county, Texas, daughter of Robert Smith, who came to Texas from Tennessee. Her maternal grandfa- ther was a Milliken and a member of a family which came to Texas with Stephen F. Austin's colony in the twenties.

DANIEL D. OTSTOTT. With the coming of Daniel D. Otstott to Dallas, in 1911, there was added an element of strength and purpose, of fine capacity, and of commer- cial integrity to the upbuilding business forces of this thriving Southwestern metropolis. Bringing with him experience gained through long association with men of business stability, acumen, and strength of character, he at once took his rightful place among the men whose activities are advancing the city's commercial impor- tance, and since that time has found the time and the inclination to interest himself in matters pertaining to the civic welfare.

Mr. Otstott was born in the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1872, and in his youth was given the invigorating and healthful training incident to life on the farm, his fa- ther's homestead being located in the vicinity of Oxford, Butler county, Ohio. His educational advantages were secured, for the greater part, in the Oxford High School, and in 1891 he entered upon his business career when he went to Chicago and secured a position with the whole- sale mercantile firm of Lock, Huleatt & Company. Being content to embark in business life in a humble capacity, he made himself a thorough master of the dry goods business, and in 1898 resigned his position to enter the house of Butler Brothers, with which he has been con- nected ever since. This is one of the most extensive wholesale general merchandise concerns in the world, having great branch houses in nearly every large city of the United States. The firm was established in Boston,

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from which city the three Butler Brothers (of whom only one now survives) removed to Chicago and estab- lished their headquarters in the latter city. The wonder- ful growth and expansion of this business is familiar to everyone who is at all conversant with commercial affairs in America. The house sells to merchants by catalogue only, employing no traveling salesmen. In 1911 Butler Brothers completed their great branch house for the Southwest at Dallas, Texas, and at that time MIr. Otstott came to this city as merchandise manager, their territory embracing Texas and Oklahoma. To speak only of the building itself-it is a splendid edifice, the largest mer- cantile structure in the Southwest, eight stories high, and occupying the entire block on South Ervay street extend- ing from Young to Marilla street and back to Evergreen street, this being in the heart of the city.

Since coming to Dallas, Mr. Otstott has taken time from the important and exacting duties connected with his business to engage actively and public-spiritedly in the general business and social affairs of the city. He has been especially interested in the Young Men's Chris- tian Association, of which he is a member of the board of directors and in which he organized and managed a campaign that resulted in a large increase in the mem- bership of the organization. He is particularly interested in the boys' department, of which he is a helpful official. Mr. Otstott is a consistent member of Trinity Methodist Church.

While a resident of Chicago, Mr. Otstott was married to Miss Ida Bonnell, who was born at Lincoln, Nebraska, and they have three children: Frances, John and Du- Shane.

COLONEL WILLIAM C. YOUNG. One of the finest coun- ties in northwest Texas now bears the name of this splendid old pioneer, who was one of the heroes of the Texas Revolution, an Indian fighter and a participant in the war against Mexico, and whose activities and char- acter well deserve the honor which was bestowed in giving his name to one of the county divisions of the state.

Colonel William Cocke Young was born in Tennessee May 12, 1812, and was of Holland-Dutch and French stock. The Young family was established in Tennessee by two brothers, Abraham and Dan Young, the latter being the father of Colonel William C. Young. The fam- ily and its connections were among the most prominent of central Tennessee.

Colonel Young when a young man of twenty-two in 1834, came to Texas, locating in Red River county and engaging in the practice of law. He came with the true spirit of the pioneer, intent upon a life in a new and undeveloped country, and participated in every phase of that development until the elose of his life. He was a soldier at San Antonio, and in the border and Indian warfare which followed the Revolution took a prominent part and was associated with John B. Den- ton's expedition. When Colonel Denton was slain by the Indians in 1841, it was William C. Young and a com- panion who volunteerd to go to the scene of the massa- ere and recover the body of their leader. Through a country infested by Indians, and daring all the risks and dangers of such a journey, they performed their duty with the determination that was characteristic of the best frontiersmen, and finally returned to headquar- ters with the body of their murdered leader, having escaped all the dangers attendant upon such an enter- prise.

At the outbreak of the Mexican war Colonel Young raised a regiment of volunteers, in which he was com- missioned colonel, and saw much active campaigning during that brief period of hostilities. Following the Mexican war Col. Young resumed his law practice and in 1851 moved to Shawneetown in Grayson county, and continned to be prominent in public affairs. He had served as sheriff two terms and later as county attorney

in Red River county, and in 1857 was appointed United States marshal of his district, holding the office for three years until he resigned to take part in the war between the north and the south. He had also been a member of the first constitutional convention of the state.

A short time prior to the outbreak of hostilities be- tween the states Colonel Young was called into con- sultation with Jefferson Davis, and on returning from his last visit with the president of the Confederacy raised the Eleventh Regiment of Texas Cavalry and went into active service. He led his regiment until fail- ing health compelled him to resign and return home. As a representative of the Southern government he con- tinued to perform important service in North Texas, and it was during the performance of his duty that he met his death, being assassinated by bushwhackers in Cooke county during the unsettled conditions in that region towards the end of the war. One of his fellow citizens had been shot down and the murder was traced to the work of a band of outlaws, and while Colonel Young was in search of the body of the victim he him- self was killed while near his own home. One of Colonel Young's sons succeeded in tracing the murderer to his regiment in the Confederate army, demanded and re- ceived his surrender, took him to the spot where his father had been so foully killed, and there some of the colonel's own negroes strung up and summarily exacted the penalty of death from the assassin. Colonel Young was one of the most influential men of his time in Texas, and it was to perpetuate the memory of his distinctive services that Young county was named in his honor.

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A history of Texas and Texans, Part 29

Author: Johnson, Francis White, 1799-1884; Barker, Eugene Campbell, 1874-1956, ed; Winkler, Ernest William, 1875-1960 Publication date: 1914 Publisher: Chicago, American Historical Society Number of Pages: 906

Author: Johnson, Francis White, 1799-1884; Barker, Eugene Campbell, 1874-1956, ed; Winkler, Ernest William, 1875-1960
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Chicago, American Historical Society
Number of Pages: 906