USA > Texas > A pictorial history of Texas, from the earliest visits of European adventurers, to A.D. 1879. Embracing the periods of missions, colonization, the revolution the republic, and the state; also, a topographical description of the country together with its Indian tribes and their wars, and biographical sketches of hundreds of its leading historical characters. Also, a list of the countries, with historical and topical notes, and descriptions of the public institutions of the state > Part 47
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" He was in many respects a remarkable man. He possessed a wonderful hold upon the affections of the masses, over whose passions and sympathies his control was unbounded. The reckless daring of his own character contributed largely to this influence This, aided by a generous, unselfish spirit, and captivating manners, made him, wherever known, the idol of the people.
" Inaccessible to threats or bribes, he was an upright and honest judge, who unflinchingly administered the law. In Congress and the Legislature he had no selfish purpose to subserve; he was therefore the able and watchful guardian of the people's rights.
" His intercourse with his brethren of the bar was marked with great courtesy. Towards the younger members, he ever extended a helping hand, and breathed a kind word of encouragement. The writer is but one of hundreds who remember gratefully the kindness extended to them in days long past, by Judge Williamson.
" The eloquence of Judge Williamson more nearly resembled that of John Randolph than of any other historical character.
" When fully aroused, there was a fire and vigor in his speech that sur- pass all description. True, there was a quaintness and eccentricity, but it was all stamped with the originality and power of genius.
" He was not only a wit of the first class, but a humorist also; and like all great humorists, he bore a burden of melancholy which was only bright- ened by these sudden sallies, as the storm clouds are illumined by the sheet- lightning. In an appeal to the people, and as an advocate before a jury, he was unsurpassed.
"We are of those who believe that 'life is not without its purposes.' For example, admonition, encouragement, or reproof, the lives of our predecessors are most eloquent. We do not present the subject of this sketch as free from blemish. Far from it-he was mortal and therefore fallible. He had one fault, and a most grievous one it was. One of 'the fears of the brave and follies of the wise.' This might well and properly be
RUINS OF LAFITTE'S FORT.
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BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES.
ascribed to the ' temper of the times' in which a large portion of his life was spent-the wild and disorderly state of society then existing.
" The fate of our distinguished men have been most deplorable-Collings- worth, Grayson, Rusk and Jones died by their own hands. May I suppli- cate for Robert M. Williamson (who, if he was a great sinner, was also a great sufferer) the kind charity of all Christians, and close this article by the following lines from the Light-House. which no voice sang so sweetly as his own:
" ' In life's closing hour when the trembling soul flies, And death stills the heart's last emotion, Oh! then may the seraph of mercy arise, Like a star on eternity's ocean.'"
WILSON, JAMES C .- Was a native of England; came to Texas in 1837; was one of the Mier prisonors, in 1842-43, refusod to claim British protec- tion, even to secure his liberation; said he was a Texan; finally made his escape. In 1844, was Clerk of the District Court of Brazoria county; in 1856, Commissioner of the Court of Claims; was afterwards sent to the Senate from the Matagorda District. At the end of his term, renounced politics and entered the itinerant ministry in the Methodist Episcopal Church, South; died at Gonzales in 1861.
WILSON, ROBERT, (Honest Bob) .- Come to Texas in 1828; was at the capture of San Antonio, in 1835; represented Harris county two terms in the Senate of the Republic, and died in Houston, in 1856.
WOOD, GEORGE T .- Was a native of Georgia; came to Texas in 1836; was for several terms a member of the Texas Congress, and elected Briga- dier General of the militia ; in 1846, raised a regiment for the Mexican War, and served with distinction; after his term expired, he returned home and was elected to the State Senate. Was elected Governor in 1847, and at the close of his term, retired to private life. Died in Panola county, in 1856.
YOAKUM, HENDERSON-The historian of Texas, was a native of Tennessee ; graduated at West Point in 1832 ; resigned his commission and studied law ; served one term in the State Senate of Tennessee; came to Texas in 1845; was in the Mexican war as a lieutenant. For a number of years he was engaged in preparing a most elaborate history of Texas, which was pub- lished in two large volumes, by Redfield, in 1856. He was a resident of Huntsville, and trustee of both the colleges located at that place. He died while on a visit to Houston, in 1856.
YOUNG, WILLIAM C .- Was a member of the Annexation Convention in 1845 ; in 1861, raised a company and captured a number of the United States forts in the Indian Territory. He and his brother, James Young, were way- laid and shot in 1862.
ZAPATA, ANTONIO-A Mexican Republican patriot in Jordan's expedition.
35
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HISTORY OF TEXAS.
He was ever faithful to Republican principles, and was especially obnox- ious to the Centralist party, by whom he was finally captured, beheaded, and his head stuck on a pole near the old Stone Ranche on the Rio Grande.
ZAVALLA, LORENZO DE-Vice-President of Texas during the government ad interim; was a native of Merida, Yucatan; born in 1781. His autobio- graphy contains the following sketch. It was written in answer to a publi- cation, charging him with being "a vagabond; libertine, and a wicked man." This charge was brought by Tornel, Santa Anna's Minister of War, in justification of the order for his arrest :
"I am now forty-one years old. I was at school till I was nineteen. Afterward I was elected Secretary of the City Council of Merida, which post I filled until 1812, 1813, and until July, 1814, when I was imprisoned at San Juan de Ulloa, as a Liberal, till 1817. During the latter part of this year and the following ones of 1818 and 1819, I was a physician in Merida, and maintained my good reputation until I was elected, in 1820 and 1821, Deputy to the Cortes of Spain. "There I did what I could, and was the colleague of Pedrazo. In February, 1822, I was elected Deputy to the Congress of Mexico, and continued in that post during 1823 and 1824; and afterward Senator, in 1825 and 1826. In March, 1827, I was Governor of the State of Mexico till 1830, when the revolution of Jalapa forced me to leave the Republic. In 1829, I was also Minister of Finance till October. I have also held other positions of trust, as Secretary of the Provincial Assembly of Yucatan, in 1820, before my election as Deputy ; twice a member of the Junta of Elect- oral Censors of Mexico; and, lastly, I might have placed myself at the head of the party which to-day rules Mexico, and I would not.
" Is a man, I would ask, who has invited these trusts from his fellow cit- izens, a vagrant and a wicked man? I have been President of the General Congress, and my name stands first in the Constitution of Mexico. I have been President of the Senate, and to-day I am a colonist of the Province of Texas."
In 1833, he was again elected to Congress, and also Governor of the State of Mexico-the House of Deputies passing, by a unanimous vote, a resolu- tion permitting him to hold both offices. He was appointed Minister to France in 1834, which post he resigned in 1835, to carry out his long-cher- ished desire to establish a home in Texas.
In Santa Anna's letter to Cos, ordering the arrest of Zavalla, he writes: " I give this supreme order, requiring you to provide and bring into action all your ingenuity and activity in arranging energetic plans for success in the apprehension of Lorenzo Zavalla, which person, in the actual circum- stances of Texas, must be very pernicious. Spare no means to secure his person and place it at the discretion of the supreme government."
The Texans hailed with joy the arrival of such a distinguished representa- tive of Mexican Republicanism, and his advice was eagerly sought. In an address at a public meeting at Harrisburg he thus explains his views : " That Coahuila and Texas form a State of the Republic, and as one part of it is occupied by an invading force, the free part of it should proceed to organ- ize a power which should restore harmony and establish uniformity in all
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branches of the public administration, which would be a rallying point for citizens whose hearts now tremble for liberty. But as this power can only be organized by means of a Convention which should represent the free will of the citizens of Texas, it is my opinion that this step should be taken, and I suggest the 15th of October as a time sufficient to allow all the depart- ments to send their representatives." Zavalla was one of the delegates from Harris county in the Consultation, in 1835, and in the Convention the fol- lowing year. At the organization of the government ad interim, he was elected Vice-President. When the treaty was entered into with Santa Anna, at Velasco, it was expected Colonel Zavalla would go as one of the Texas representatives to Mexico, to conclude the final arrangements for peace be- tween the two countries, but the forcible detention of Santa Anna in Texas interfered with the arrangement, and Zavalla, in feeble health, retired to his home near Lynchburg, where he died, November 15th, 1836.
PART IX.
THE COUNTIES OF TEXAS. Their History, Topography &c.
COUNTIES OF TEXAS.
1. ANDERSON-lies in latitude 32, between the Trinity and Neches rivers. Bounded on the north by Henderson, east by Cherokee, south by Houston, and west by Freestone. It was originally in Burnet's colony, but belonged to Houston county until 1846, when it was formed into a separate county and named for Vice-President Kenneth L. Anderson. Fort Houston, two miles southwest of Palestine, the county-seat, was occu- pied as a military post, by Captain Jewell's company, in 1835. Palestine is a thriving city, situated on the International railroad, 152 miles from Hous- ton ; 91 miles from Hearne, and 81 from Longview. In 1870 the county had a population of 9,229 ; assessed value of property in 1876, $2,760,000. The soil is of four kinds: the first a light, sandy soil, easy of cultivation; the second a red, sandy land, very strong and enduring; the third a dark grey and covered with hickory, oak, etc; the fourth is creek and river bottom, exceedingly rich. The county is well-watered. Extensive pine forests are found in the eastern part, while oaks of different varieties, hickory, pecan, walnut, ash, elm, etc., may be found in other portions. All the ordinary products of the farm, garden and nursery are produced in the greatest abundance. A mineral ridge runs through the center of the county, in which an abundance of iron ore may be found. Two furnaces were in suc- cessful operation during the Civil War.
2. ANGELINA .- Lies between the Neches and Angelina rivers, and derives its name from the latter. Bounded on the north by Cherokee and Nacog- doches, east by Nacogdoches and San Augustine, south by Tyler, and west by Trinity and Houston. Homer is the county seat. This county lies on the route of travel of Governor Cordero, in 1806. In 1830, Gen. Mier y Teran visited Texas and laid out a town named for himself, on the Neches river, to which four leagues of land were given. He left Col. Bean in command. It was under the jurisdiction of Nacogdoches until 1846, when the county was created. The soil in the bottoms is black, sandy and very productive. A considerable portion of the uplands is also rich. The county is heavily timbered with pine, oak, beach, magnolia, hickory, sugar maple, ash, mulberry, etc. It is on the line of the E. & W. N. G. Road. Homer is 160 miles from Houston and 126 from Shreveport. Population in 1870, 3,985 ; assessed value of property in 1876, $359,318.
3. ARANSAS .- A sparsely populated county lying on the Gulf of Mexico. Bounded north by Refugio, east by Espiritu Santo Bay, south
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HISTORY OF TEXAS
by the Gulf of Mexico, and west by San Patricio. It derives its name from the river of the same name. It is said that Aranzas is one of the names of a palace of the King of Spain. Rockport, the county seat, was selected as a shipping point for cattle and for putting up beef in 1866. The county was created in 1871.
4. ATASCOSA .- Was created from Bexar in 1856; named for the Atas- cosa creek. Pleasanton is the county seat, thirty miles south of San Antonio. Bounded on the north by Bexar, east by Wilson and Karnes, south by Live Oak and M'Mullen, and west by Frio and Medina. The Navarros, Salinas and others, established stock ranches in this county early in the present century, but during the revolution these ranches were broken up, and no permanent settlements were made until about 1853. It is mostly prairie, and admirably, adapted to stock-raising, especially hogs and sheep. A considerable portion of the land is suitable for cultivation, and there are fine farms on the Atascosa, the Borego, the San Miguel, and other creeks. In 1870 the population was 2,915; assessed value of property in 1876, $825,428.
5. AUSTIN .- Lies on the west side of the Brazos river, about fifty miles from the city of Houston. It is bounded on the north by Washington, east by Waller, south by Fort Bend, and west by Colorado and Fayette. It was in the heart of Austin's first colony, and settled in 1822, by some of the first of his colonists. Among the early settlers were Wm. Robbins, Wm. Prather, George and Wm. Huff, John M'Farland, Wm. Petus, Wiley Mar- tin, the Allcorns, Shipmans, Bordens, James Cochran, etc. The town of San Felipe was laid out in 1824 by Baron De Bastrop, and received four leagues of land. It was the capital of the colony until the period of the revolution in Texas; the headquarters of the land business and the resi- dence of the land commissioner and Samuel M. Williams, the clerk. It was the first Alcalde's district in the colony, In 1822 Josiah H. Bell was Alcalde; he was succeeded in 1829 by Thomas Barnet and Thomas M. Duke; 1831, F. W. Johnson ; 1832, Horatio Chriesman ; 1833, Luke Lassas- sier ; 1834, Robert M. Williamson.
In 1834, James B. Miller was political chief of the department of the Brazos. During this year occurred the first public execution in the colony : a man by the name of Clayton was hung in San Felipe for the murder of Abner Kuykendall. The Labor settlement was twelve miles above the town. There lived the Castlemau family and others. It was on a creek then called Palmetto Creek; but Mr. Cummings built a mill near where Milheim now stands, and the name of the stream was changed to Mill Creek.
The Convention met in San Felipe, in 1833, and the General Consultation in 1835. On the 30th of March, 1836, the town was burned by the retreat- ing Texas army under Houston, said to have been done by a misapprehen- sion of the general's orders. After the revolution, Thomas Barnet was the first chief justice of the county. He was succeeded by Edwin Waller, who held the office for many years. In 1842, the county seat was removed to Bellville, named for Thomas Bell, an old settler. The county was named for Stephen F. Austin.
COURT HOUSE, PARIS.
645
COUNTY SKETCHES.
During the colonial period a number of enterprising Germans settled in the county, and a considerable portion of the inhabitants speak that lan- guage. The assessed value of property in 1876 was $2,362,385.
6. BANDERA .- Bandera, the county seat is on the Medina River, thirty- five miles northwest of San Antonio. Bounded on the north by Kerr, east. by Kendall and Bexar, south by Medina and Uvalde, and west by Edwards. It derives its name from a mountain pass. A large Apache village formerly occupied the site of the present town of Bandera. The county has several creeks: Pipe, Red Bluff, Winding's, etc .; is pretty well timbered, having some fine cedar brakes, and plenty of building stone. Assessed value of property in 1876, $236,536. It is a fine county for sheep.
7. BASTROP-Lies on both sides of the Colorado River. Bounded on the north by Travis, east by Lee, south by Fayette, and west by Caldwell. A settlement, near the present town of Bastrop, was formed in 1828, and then called Mina, from General Xavier Mina. The town of Bastrop was laid out by Stephen F. Austin in 1830, and named in honor of Baron de Bastrop. Four leagues of valuable land was assigned to the town tract .. The land title issued June 8th, 1832. Samuel Wolfenbarger was first Al- calde. In 1835, this municipality was the first to organize a committee of safety. Andrew Rabb was first chief justice after the revolution. The valley lands are exceedingly fertile, and most of the uplands are susceptible of cultivation. McDade, on the Western Branch road, is 128 miles from. Houston and 37 from Austin. Elgin and Paige are railroad depots on the Western Branch road. In 1870 the population of the county was 12,200. Assessed value of property in 1876, $2,514,479. Few counties are superior to this in the State. The land is rich and the population permanent and prosperous.
8. BEE-Situated in the stock-raising portion of the Southwest. Created in 1857; named in honor of Bernard E. Bee, Sr .; Beeville is the county seat. It is bounded on the north by Karnes, east by Goliad, south by Refugio, and west by Live Oak. Its water courses are the Mission and Aransas rivers, and a number of smaller creeks. Population in 1870, 1,082; assessed value of property in 1876, $625,922. Its principal trading point is Corpus Christi, 50 miles distant. The streams are the Aransas, the Blanco, the Medio, the Papelota, and the Chiltepin, all small and with very little timber. Bee is almost exclusively a stock-raising county, and the business of nearly all is to raise cattle and sheep. These do very well, and are raised at scarcely any expense.
9 BELL-Lies in the very heart of the State; mostly rolling prairies ;. soil very productive ; its staples are wheat, corn, cotton, etc. Bounded on the north by Coryell and McLennan, east by Falls, south by Milam and Williamson, and west by Burnet and Lainpasas. Was created in 1850, and named for P. Hansborough Bell. Belton is the county seat. The county is well watered. The Leon, Lampasas and Nolan's Creek, unite near Belton. and form Little river. Eleven miles from Belton is the Salado spring, one of the
646
HISTORY OF TEXAS.
boldest and most remarkable in Texas. This colony was included in Robert- son's colony, and attempts were made in 1834-5 to form settlements, by the families of Read, Fulcher, Early, Childress, and others; but the Indians were troublesome, and the settlement was abandoned until 1844, when popu- lation began to flow into the country. Belton became the county seat in 1851. Population in 1870, 9,791; assessed value of property in 1876, $3,102,800.
10. BEXAR-Is by far the wealthiest and most populous county in western Texas ; bounded on the north by Kendall and Comal, east by Guadalupe and Wilson, south by Wilson and Atascosa, and west by Medina. San An- tonio, the county seat, is in the valley of the river of the same name, a few miles below where the spring flows out from under the rocks, a full sized river, one of the most picturesque and beautiful in the world. Adventurers settled on this river about the year 1692. In 1730, sixteen families arrived in the neighborhood from the Canary Islands. The presidio of Bexar, named for the Duke of Bexar, then viceroy of Mexico, was created Novem ber 28, 1730. Among the objects of great curiosity in San Antonio are the old mission churches, founded in the early part of the last century, for the benefit of the Indians. The Alamo-Poplar church-was founded May 8th 1744; it was not long used as a church, but is famous in Texas history. It is in the heart of the city, on the east side of the river, and gives name to the plaza upon which it stands. Concepcion is two miles below the city, on the left bank of the river; celebrated as the point at which the first battle, of the Texas revolution was fought in 1835. It is in a tolerably good state of preservation, and religious worship is occasionally celebrated at its altar. San Jose, four miles below the city on the right bank of the river, was one of the grandest of all the mission structures in Texas. Though rapidly going to ruins, some of its splendid statuary is still visible in its walls and niches, though the arched roof and dome have fallen in. San Juan, is six miles below the city on the left bank of the river; it is in ruins. La Espa- da is on the west side of the river, nine miles below the city ; portions of the walls are still standing. San Fernandes, was a parish church, built for the colonists from the Canary Islands, in 1732. It is on the Military plaza in the city, and was re-built in 1868, as a cathedral. The dome of the old church was left standing, and forms the sacristy of the new one.
In 1730, San Antonio became the capital of the province of Texas, and continued to be the principal city until the revolution of 1835. It is the centre of a large trade with Western Texas and Northern Mexico. In 1877 the city was connected by rail with the railway system of the State. And since that time, there has been a large increase in its business and popula- tion. In 1870 the population of the country was 16,053. In 1876, the pop- ulation of the city was 17,314. Assessed value of property, about $10,000,000. The city is the headquarters of the Fifth Military District, and the govern- ment has recently erected a building for the Quartermasters' Department at a cost of $100,000. There is also an arsenal and some other public build- ings.
The following shows the export business of San Antonio for the year ending June 1st, 1878: Hides, 2,902,756 pounds; wool, 1,950,855 pounds ;
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COUNTY SKETCHES.
merchandise, 5,272,225 pounds; cotton, 1,495 bales; live stock, 268 cars; bones, 144 cars. From February 25th to July 25th, 1878-during the very dullest portion of the year-199 houses were built. San Antonio has a street railroad, water-works, and is lighted with gas.
11. BLANCO,-Created in 1858; named for one of its principal streams; settled in 1852. Bounded on the north by Llano and Burnet, east by Travis and Hays, south by Comal and Kendall, and west by Gillespie and Llano. This is a stock-raising prairie county, though there is some timber; and a great deal of rich, arable land. All the cereals do well. Its principal water courses are the Blanco and the Pierdinales rivers. Blanco, the county-seat, is sixty miles from San Antonio, forty from New Braunfels, and fifty from Austin. In 1870, the county had a population of 1,187. Assessed value of property about $400,000.
12. BOSQUE .- Created in 1854; named from its principal river. Bounded on the north by Somervell, east by Hill, south by M'Lennan and Coryell, and west by Hamilton. Meridian is the county-seat. The valley lands of the Brazos river and the Bosque are very rich and productive; the up- lands somewhat hilly, but fine for grazing purposes. Population in 1870, 4,981; assessed value of property in 1876, $1,338,703.
13. BOWIE .- Named for James Bowie; was created in 1840. It is the extreme north-eastern county of the State; bounded on the north by the Indian Territory, east by the State of Arkansas, south by Cass county, and west by Red river. The trans-continental railway, commencing at Texar- kana, traverses the entire length of the county. In 1870, the population was 4,684. In 1876, the assessed value of property was $948,976. Boston is the county-seat. It is well watered by Red river on the north, and a fork of the same river running along on its southern boundary, as well as by a number of smaller streams tributary to these. The surface of this county is rolling; a large proportion of which is heavily timbered, chiefly with post oak. The soil, away from the bottoms, is of a sandy character, usual in post oak lands. In the bottoms it is the rich red land so well adapted to the cultivation of cotton. Pears, Peaches and other fruits are successfully cultivated, but the apple is found in great abundance.
14. BRAZORIA .- Lies on the Gulf of Mexico, and includes the coast on both sides of the Brazos and Bernard rivers, and Oyster Creek. Bounded on the north by Fort Bend, east by Harris, south by the Gulf, and west by Matagorda. It contains one of the richest bodies of land on the continent. Its staples are sugar-of which it produces more than all the other counties in the State-cotton, corn, tobacco, etc., etc. The Brazos is connected by a canal with Galveston bay, and a railroad fifty miles long connects Columbia with Houston. The county is about equally divided between timber and prairie, and is adapted to either agriculture or stock-raising. The county was settled in 1823 by Josiah H. Bell, Brit. Bailey, Joseph H. Polly, Primm, Bradleys, Amos and Daniel Rawls, Damon; and a little
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HISTORY OF TEXAS.
later, by David Tilley, James and John T. Beard, Thomas Westall, T. J. Pilgrim, the Fenns, Shipmans, John D. Pitts, John Brown Austin, W. D. C. Hall, the Alsburys, Millburn, Mrs. General Long, and Major Cavitt, etc., etc. John Austin settled at the town of Brazoria in 1828; the town was laid out in 1831, and about that time Mr. Perry, the brother-in-law of S. F. Austin, arrived in the county, and settled at Peach Point. They had for neighbors, the M'Neils, Millses, Hawkins, Munsons, etc. In 1831 there were about thirty houses in the town, three of them being of brick. On the first of May, 1832, Decree Number 196 created the municipality of Bra- zoria, extending four leagues above the mouth of Big Creek, and westward to the Trespelacios. First John Austin, and afterwards Edwin Waller were Alcaldes. In 1834 the name was changed to Columbia, but was the next year changed back to Brazoria. In 1836, first Velasco and afterwards Co- lumbia, were occupied by President Burnet as the seat of government. The Constitutional Government of the Republic was inaugurated at the latter place. Brazoria was then the most wealthy and populous municipal- ity in Texas, and the place of residence of a large number of the leading citizens of the Republic. Its population in 1870 was 7,527, a majority of whom were colored. Assessed value of property in 1876, $1,964,778. Be- sides the Brazos and Bernard rivers, there is little living water, and on account of the brackish and unwholesome character of the water, cisterns are largely used. The surface is level, about one-half of it being covered with a heavy growth of, perhaps, the noblest live oaks in the whole Union. It is from these bottoms that the Navy of the United States is hereafter to derive its most valuable ship-building material, the value of which is incal- culable. The soil, as may be supposed, is exceedingly rich, red and deep, yielding luxuriantly. Peaches, quinces, oranges, lemons, and similar fruits are cultivated. Upon the coast the health is good; higher up and along the bottoms, chills and fever are prevalent at certain seasons, but generally the people enjoy excellent health.
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