A twentieth century history and biographical record of north and west Texas, Volume II, Part 105

Author: Paddock, B. B. (Buckley B.), 1844-1922; Lewis Publishing Co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: Chicago, New York, The Lewis publishing co.
Number of Pages: 972

USA > Texas > A twentieth century history and biographical record of north and west Texas, Volume II > Part 105

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Upon his father's farm Andrew J. Martin spent his boyhood days and as a diversion from the regular routine of duties of the farm and the schoolroom made frequent excursions for mink and coons. He remained there until about 1859, when, on account of the death of the par- ents, the family was broken up and the children were scattered. Andrew Martin went to live with a brother-in-law, Willshire Chapman, with whom he remained for about two years. He next sought employment at a salary of eleven dollars per month in the year 1861. The Civil war was now in progress and he enlisted in Colonel Jeffries' Regiment, becoming a member of Company E, Eighth Missouri Cavalry, with which he served throughout the entire period of hostilities, participating in all of the engage- ments of his command. There was hard fighting and all of the difficulties and dangers of war to be encountered, but he bravely stood at his post defending the cause which he had espoused. After the close of hostilities he started home, riding his own horse from Minden, Louisiana, but while on the way, because of the spring floods and the condition of the country caused thereby, he was obliged to sell his horse and continue the journey by flat-boat, reaching home on the 16th of June, 1865.

In the summer of that year Mr. Martin fin- ished cultivating a crop for his brother-in-law, Dennis Bryant, and on the Ist of January, 1866, he removed to Wolf Island, in Mississippi coun- ty, Missouri, where he rented land and began farming on his own account. He remained there until he had raised about seven crops, principal- ly corn, when he sold out and removed to Rush- es Ridge, where he lived for about ten years, there devoting his time principally to the culti- vation of wheat. In March, 1884, he left Mis- souri and came to Texas, arriving at Anson on the 9th of March of that year. Here he rented a little place for ten dollars per month and be- gan putting up a house and making general improvements. Upon this place he made his home. Eight years of the time, however, was spent in Anson in the hardware and implement business, from 1886 until 1894. In the latter

year he sold out and gave his undivided atten- tion to farming and stock raising. Mr. Martin had in his farm six hundred and forty acres just at the edge of Anson, of which one hundred and sixty acres is under cultivation, and he was one of the successful business men and leading agri- culturists and stock dealers of that part of the state. His business success is due entirely to his own well directed efforts and capability and his prosperity is well merited. He now resides in Stamford and is a member of the firm of Baker, Bryant & Company.

On the 12th of November, 1871, in Nelson county, Kentucky, Mr. Martin was married to Miss Emma L. Pottinger, a native of that county, born in 1850. They have had no chil- dren of their own, but have reared several. Mr. Martin has been a member of the Masonic fra- ternity since 1866, taking the degrees of the lodge and the chapter and is an exemplary rep- resentative of the craft, true to the teachings which form its basic elements.

P. D. SANDERS was born in Grimes county, Texas, October 5, 1855, son of Peter T. and Har- riet A. (Dueitt) Sanders, natives of Marion county, South Carolina. The Dueitts were of Scotch descent and the family was represented in South Carolina among the early settlers of that State. Peter Sanders was a house builder, doing both masonry and wood work. In 1853 he moved from South Carolina to Texas, locating in Grimes county, where he soon became somewhat interested in the stock business and worked hard to get a start. While in a fair way to pros- perity, overwork broke down his health and he died in the prime of life, in 1861, at the age of thirty-four years. His widow reached the ripe age of seventy-one years, her death occurring in Grimes county, in 1894. Of their eight chil- dren, all died in infancy, except two, P. D. San- ders, the subject of this sketch, and a daughter, now Mrs. L. P. Mills, of Leon county, Texas.

It was just at the opening of the Civil war times that P. D. Sanders was left an orphan by the death of his father, and the widowed mother with three children was left to struggle for an existence in a new and thinly settled country. From the time he was eight until he was fourteen years of age, P. D. attended such private schools as there were in their neighborhood, his school- ing being confined chiefly to the summer months. . After he was fourteen he took charge of his mother's farm and the small amount of stock that she had left, and supported her and his sister. The youngest child meantime had died. He con-

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

tinued to reside with his mother until 1881. That year he went to Burleson county, Texas, and rented land near Caldwell, the county seat, which he cultivated for two years. While there he was elected justice of the peace of his precinct, and he soon afterward changed his residence to the town of Caldwell and engaged in the hotel busi- ness. For five years he ran the hotel, four years of that time serving as justice of the peace and at the same time spending all his leisure moments in the study of law. In due time he was admitted to the bar, during the spring term of the District Court at Caldwell, in 1886, and at once began the practice of law. In January, 1888, he moved to Haskell, and in No- vember of that year he was elected county judge of Haskell county, for a term of two years. To this office he was again elected in the fall of 1892, and served two terms, up to the fall of 1896. He was elected district judge of the Thirty-ninth Judicial District in the fall of 1898, for a term of four years, and since his retirement from that office he has been practicing law and conducting a general land and investment busi- ness at Haskell. Judge Sanders is a man of fine personality, is yet in the prime of life, and has before him prospects for greater success than he has already attained. His acquaintance and his business relations extend not only all over his own county but also to numerous adjacent counties.

While living on the farm with his mother, in 1875, at the age of twenty, Judge Sanders mar- ried Miss Addie Elliott, who was born and reared in Union Town, Perry county, Alabama. She died in October, 1886, leaving five children, the youngest three weeks old. After living a widower for more than a dozen years, the Judge married for his second wife, May 24, 1899, Miss Neelia Porter, daughter of Robert Porter of Burleson county, where she was born and reared. Of Judge Sanders' family we record that his eldest daughter, Hattie E., died in 1899. She was a graduate of the Haskell high school and had taught school one term. Fred T., his eldest son, is engaged in the cotton gin and con- fectionery business at Haskell; P. D., Jr., is a resident of Calgary, Alberta Province, Canada, where he is Veterinary Inspector for the govern- ment; Alma, a music teacher, resides in Cald- well; and Zora B., wife of H. C. Park, lives in Haskell. By the second marriage there is one child, Rufus Cedrick, at this writing two years old.

For twenty-eight years Judge Sanders has

been a consistent member of the Methodist church. He has been a Royal Arch Mason thir- teen years and ten years he has affiliated with the Woodmen of the World.

WILLIAM HENRY WYMAN. Among the worthy citizens of Haskell, Texas, is found the subject of this sketch, who has resided here since March 1, 1899. Wyman is an English name and originally was spelled Weymann. Members of the family emigrated from England to this coun- try in Colonial times and settled in Massa- chusetts, Maine and New Hampshire, and during the Revolutionary war, being in sympathy with the Mother Country, moved to Nova Scotia. Calvin Wyman, the father of William Henry, was born in Maine and accompanied the family on their removal to Nova Scotia, where he was reared and spent his life. When he was quite young the support of his widowed mother and three young brothers and a sister devolved upon him, and for a number of yrars it was neces- sary for them to practice the strictest economy. He learned the trade of furniture maker, later engaged in the manufacture of furniture, and carried on that business for many years. His three brothers, Albert, Willian and Joseph, when they grew up became seamer, and in time each was master of his own vessel. The sister, Mary Ellen, married an English soldier by the name of Charles E. Villiers, who was for many years associated with Calvin Wyman, in the manufac- ture of furniture. Calvin Wyman died of fever in Nevis, British West Indies, March 10, 1870, whither he had gone in search of health. His wife was before her marriage Miss Mary Brown and was known as the belle of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, in which town she lived. Her people were Scotch. William Brown, her father, went with his family from New Hampshire to Nova Scotia at the same time and for the same reason the Wymans did. The rocky harbor in which they landed they called Sunday Point because of the day of landing, which was on a Sunday, and it was four miles south of Yarmouth. Cal- vin and Mary Wyman had ten children, five sons and five daughters, of whom five are now liv- ing, viz .: Arabella, widow of Rev. Charles A. Harris, Yarmouth, Nova Scotia; William H., whose name introduces this sketch; John C., a practicing dentist of Brooklyn, New York; Joseph R., who is carrying on the furniture busi- ness established by his father at Yarmouth; and Jacob L., a resident of Dixon, Tennessee. Of the deceased members of the family we record

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

that two sons and a daughter died in infancy, and two daughters died at about the age of six- teen years.

William Henry Wyman was born in Yar- mouth, Nova Scotia, March 14, 1842. He was a weakly youth and his schooling was frequently interrupted on account of his ill health. When he was fourteen he went into his father's factory, where he served a seven years' apprenticeship covering all the different branches of furniture business. And at least half of this time he had charge of the business, assuming the manage- ment of affairs in order to relieve his father who was at that time in poor health. He afterward became associated with his father as a partner, under the firm name of C. Wyman & Son, which partnership lasted about four years. After this the business took the name of Wyman Brothers, another son, Joseph, coming into the firm. Un- der this name they continued to do business for fifteen years, and during all that time the most perfect harmony existed in all their business re- lations.

In May, 1883, Mr. Wyman left Nova Scotia and came to the United States. He first located in Shelbyville, Bedford county, Tennessee, where he organized the Bedford Manufacturing Com- pany, for the manufacture of fine grade furni- ture, of which Mr. Wyman was manager. The climate and business conditions of that locality, however, were not what he wanted for a per- manent home, and he went to Springfield, Mis- souri. There he was for some time engaged in the shoe business, afterward turned his attention to dealing in real estate, and still later was inter- ested in the organization and management of a furniture business, building factory, etc. After a residence of nearly fifteen years in Missouri, Mr. Wyman came in April, 1897, to Texas and located at Brenham, where he became connected with the Brenham Manufacturing Company. For sixteen months he was on the road as a sales- man. His next move was to Marietta, Indian Territory, where he opened a racket store, and where he remained a year and a half. Returning to Texas at the end of that time, March I, 1899, he located in Haskell, where he has since main- tained his home and identified himself with the affairs of the town, giving his influence and support to all that pertains to its welfare and prosperitv.

Mr. Wyman joined the Baptist church at the age of twenty-five years and has since been a consistent member of the same. While in Springfield he was made a deacon in the church.

For twenty-seven years he has been a member of the Masonic Order.

Mr. Wyman's first wife was Josephine M. Rankin, a daughter of Daniel Rankin, of his own town, Yarmouth. The breaking up of his home by the sad event of her death led him to leave Yarmouth, and locate for a season in Bos- ton, where later, June 27, 1870, he married Mary E. Ingraham.

She was there reared by her uncle, Samuel Tuttle. Mrs. Wyman is a native of Buffalo, New York, born November 14, 1847, and was left an orphan when five years old. Mr. and Mrs. Wy- man have a son and two daughters, namely; Arthur B., of Springfield, Missouri; Georgia L., wife of T. P. Walker, of Stamford, Texas; and Mabel E., now attending college at Springfield, Missouri.

WILLIAM T. TAYLOR. Home-building in Montague county has occupied Mr. Taylor of this review for more than twenty years and to him credit is due for the domestic develop- ment incident thereto. His home situated be- tween Montague and Bowie shows the handi- work of a modern builder and the spot which he calls home was until recent years only a prairie expanse dotted and fringed with the familiar post oak. His industry as a farmer has been rewarded from year to year and the three hundred and sixty-four acres of land with which he is listed for taxes is, of itself, some- thing to be proud of as an achievement brought about in the course of little more than a quarter of a century of active devotion to a Texas farm.

Our subject was born in Denton coun- ty, Texas, November, 13, 1857. His father, James M. Taylor, settled in Texas from Car- roll county, Georgia, in 1856, but in 1861 took his family to Arkansas, Little River county, with which he was identified as a merchant or a farmer until 1866, when he went to Polk county, and from there returned to Texas in 1877, set- tling in Montague county. James M. Taylor was born in Carroll county, Georgia, and was a son of Thomas Taylor, who emigrated from that state to Little River county, Arkansas, where he died. Among the latter's several children there were: Annie and Mary, of Cass coun- ty, Texas, the former Mrs. Blackwell and the latter Mrs. Scott; Thomas, of Cass county, and William H. H., of Polk county, Arkansas, and James M.

James M. Taylor was identified with rural

WILLIAM T. TAYLOR AND FAMILY

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

pursuits in Montague county from his advent hither until his death, at Queen's Peak, in 1886, October 10. During his first trip to Texas he remained only four years and immediately upon his return to Arkansas he entered the army of the Confederacy and served in the Eastern Department throughout the struggle between the north and the south. He mar- ried Mary, a daughter of William D. Parish, a Kentuckian, and Mrs. Taylor was born in 1835 and died in 1899 at the age of sixty-four years. She was the mother of William T., oiir subject; James S., of Nocona, Texas; Mary, deceased young ; Henry A., of Grayson county : Kate, wife of John Givens, of Indian Territory ; Robert L., of Hobart, Oklahoma, and Nannie, who married J. P. Trout and resides in Mon- tague county on the old home place where the parents both died.

The school advantages of William T. Tay- lor were not at all good and his early training and experiences were only those of the country boy. He discharged his obligation to his father by remaining with the latter till of age and when he began his own career his head and his hands constituted his stock in trade. For a time he was a farm laborer and succeeding this he rented land and on it did the initial work of his independent farming career. He went to Comanche county, Texas, in 1878, and bought there his first tract of land, and when he left there, six years later, he located in Mon- tague county, seven miles west of the county seat. Selling this property later on, he moved to his present location, buying a farm of one hundred and seventy-four acres which he has substantially and attractively improved. From the products of the soil has he reaped the re- ward of his daily labors and the profits of it he has laid out in broadening his domain until more than a half section of land is credited to him on the tax rolls of the county.

April 11, 1878, Mr. Taylor was united in mar- riage, in Comanche county, Texas, his wife be- ing Miss Ellen, a daughter of Charles H. Isham, formerly from Georgia. Mr. Isham married Mary Warnick and identified himself with the Lone Star state before the Civil War. He was the father of six girls and one boy, and his daughter Ellen was born in Comanche county, November 1, 1860. In that county Mr. and Mrs. Isham are buried.

The issue of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Taylor are: Annie, Florence, Robert, who died at twenty-one, Charles, Ethel and William.

The household of Mr. Taylor is one of the interesting ones of Montague county. Filled

with musical talent from the father down and being supplied with an instrument, the home concert has long been a feature of domestic en- tertainment. What a charm hath song and what a power it wields in uniting the domestic circle and welding it into one unseverable band. For six years Mr. Taylor has taught vocal music in his neighborhood and he leads in the production of all musical efforts at church and school. He holds a membership in the Cum- berland Presbyterian church and leads his fam- ily in attendance upon its services. Mr. Taylor has written a number of songs, among which are, "Peace in Jesus," "Scatter Many Blos- soms," that has won a great deal of fame; "Does it Avail for You?" "For Ever More," "Just Over the River."

DR. JOHN R. SLEDGE, who in the practice of medicine has attained a successful position that is only accorded in recognition of merit and capability, is one of the pioneer members of the profession in Stamford, where his labor along other lines has also been of material benefit to the city. He was born in Macon, Georgia, August 31, 1855, His father, Isam D. Sledge, was a na- tive of Raleigh, North Carolina, and when young removed to Georgia. He was married there to Miss Maria Heath, a native of that state, and they became the parents of four children, three daughters and a son. The father died in 1857 and the mother long survived him, passing away in Bell county, Texas, 1884.

Dr. Sledge was reared in Macon, Georgia, and attended the public schools of that city. When fourteen years of age he began the study of medicine in the office of Dr. A. L. Clinkscales, one of the leading physicians of Macon at that time, under whose direction he continued his reading for about six years. He attended his first course of lectures when about eighteen years of age, a second course at the age of nineteen and when twenty years of age was graduated from the College of American Medicine and Sur- gery at Macon, Georgia, of which Dr. Clinkscales was one of the faculty. In 1895 Dr. Sledge pur- sued a post-graduate course in the New York Polyclinic and he has always labored to advance his knowledge and efficiency through further in- vestigation and reading. He entered upon the practice of medicine in Tallapoosa county, Ala- bama, where he remained for six years and on the expiration of that period came to Texas, lo- cating first in Bell county, where he remained from 1882 until 1890. He then went to Cali- fornia and spent two years in Merced, subse-

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

quent to which time he returned to Texas and for a year remained in Temple. He then re- moved to Comanche, where he was in active practice until the town of Stamford was or- . ganized in 1900. In April of that year he came to the young and thriving town which was en- tering upon an era of rapid and substantial prog- ress and he has since been identified with its public interests and at the same time has care- fully conducted his practice. Here he opened an office and a liberal patronage has been accorded him, his labors being recognized by the public as most efficient and satisfactory in checking the ravages of disease.

In 1878 Dr. Sledge was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. Harrison of West Point, Geor- gia, who died in 1890, leaving two children, a son and daughter. The former, John B. Sledge, is now secretary or yeoman in the United States navy now on the battleship Wisconsin. The daughter, Mary T., is residing in Stamford. In 1895 Dr. Sledge was again married, his second union being with Miss Hallie H. Knudson, a native of Comanche, Texas, and they have one son, Charles B. Sledge.

Dr. Sledge is a member of the Odd Fellows society, in which he has filled all of the chairs and he has a similar record in connection with the Knights of Pythias lodge. He is a member of the Red Men, in which he has also held office, and his service in fraternal relations has been most satisfactory. Dr. Sledge has done an im- portant work in behalf of the city in which he now resides, his labors being far reaching and beneficial. For four years he served as city physician and for two years was alderman. He was then elected on the 4th of April, 1895, to the office of mayor and gave a public spirited, prac- tical and business like administration. He was the chief promoter in the organization of the Stamford fire deparament, which was effected on the Ist of May, 1901. He was then elected chief, a position which he still holds. This is a well organized department composed of some of the best citizens of the town and is an efficient agency and protector of the property interests. Dr. Sledge prides himself on the record of the department and the citizens of Stamford largely attribute to him the credit for the splendid work that has been done in times past. Not only in this respect has he endeared himself to the peo- ple but in connection with other enterprises for the public good as well. All progressive meas- ures find in him a warm advocate and supporter and men of this class are an honor to their com- munity.

HASKELL S. ABBOTT, a prominent lumber merchant of Stamford, conducting business as a member of the firm of Spencer & Abbott with a large trade that is indicative of the honorable business methods of the house, was born in Read- ing, Hillsdale county, Michigan, August 7, 1857, his parents being Bingham D. and Mary (Folk) Abbott. The mother, born in Pennsylvania, was of German descent, while the Abbotts were from Connecticut. The father became one of the pioneer residents of Michigan, where he located in 1832 ere the admission of the state into the Union. There he made his home for many years and both he and his wife died there. Three other brothers also went to the state at the same time and continued residents of Mich- igan until called to their final rest. Bingham Ab- bott died about 1880 at the age of seventy-five years, while his wife passed away in 1900 at the advanced age of eighty-nine years. They reared a family of eight children, five sons and three daughters, of whom one son is now de- ceased ; namely ; Julia E., now Mrs. Baldwin, of Trinidad, Colorado; W. H., also of Trinidad, Colorado; John D., on the old homestead in Reading, Michigan ; O. B., a contractor of Trin- idad, Colorado; Louise, now Mrs. Armstrong, of San Francisco, California; Olive M., now Mrs. A. H. Van Vilet, Ludington, Michigan ; and Haskell S., our subject. Henry, the oldest, died at the age of forty years, at Trinidad.

Haskell S. Abbott, reared on his father's farm, remained at home until eighteen years of age, during which time he worked in the summer seasons in the fields, while in the winter months he attended the country schools. In 1876 he came alone to Texas, settling first in Comanche county upon a ranch near Proctor. There he began dealing in cattle and also carried on farmi- ing to some extent. As his financial resources increased he purchased cows and calves and kept adding to his herd, to which he gave his per- sonal supervision and care until 1880. He then traded his cattle for sheep and took the flock to Callahan county, continuing in the sheep industry until 1887. In that year he sold out and re- turned to Dublin, Erath county, Texas, where he engaged in the hide and wool business until 1892. In that year he entered the employ of R. B. Spencer in the lumber business, working in the yard until 1900. In that year the town of Stamford was organized and a lumber yard was opened in this place by the newly organized firm of Spencer and Abbott. They now have one of the largest yards in the city, carrying all kinds of lumber, both rough and dressed, to-

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

gether with shingles, doors and sash, brick, lime, cement, roofing materials, paints, oils, glass and in fact everything needed by the builder. Their trade extends over the counties of Jones, Has- kell, Stonewall, Knox, Kent, Fisher and Dickens and their sales amount to about one hundred thousand dollars annually.

Mr. Abbott was married in 1879 to Miss Liza Burrows, of Brown county, Texas, who died in 1889. Three of their children are now living : May Agnes, Walter Bingham and Haskell S. Mr. Abbott married again in 1895, Miss Alice Powers of Dublin, Erath county, Texas, becom- ing his wife. There are two children of this marriage : Anna Louise and Lawrence Stamford, the latter the first boy baby born in the city of Stamford. Mr. Abbott has recently completed his fine residence on Swenson avenue, which is the finest and best appointed home in Stam- ford, having cost about eight thousand dollars. Its gracious and cultured hospitality is much ap- preciated by the many friends of the family. Mr. Abbott has been a member of the Methodist church since 1878. He has taken a most active and helpful part in the upbuilding of the new city in which he makes his home and which in the five years of its existence has developed al- most unlimited possibilities for business and has · also made rapid strides toward securing all of the advantages of intellectual, social and aesthetic culture known to the older east. Already Mr. Abbott has prospered greatly in his business uni- dertakings here and through the' utilization of opportunity and unfaltering diligence has gained success and made a most creditable name in trade circles of western Texas.

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A twentieth century history and biographical record of north and west Texas, Volume II, Part 105

Author: Paddock, B. B. (Buckley B.), 1844-1922; Lewis Publishing Co., Chicago, pub Publication date: 1906 Publisher: Chicago, New York, The Lewis publishing co. Number of Pages: 972

Author: Paddock, B. B. (Buckley B.), 1844-1922; Lewis Publishing Co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: Chicago, New York, The Lewis publishing co.
Number of Pages: 972