A twentieth century history and biographical record of north and west Texas, Volume II, Part 75

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 75

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

367

HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

class, as he afterward told Major Wise, four- teen of the prettiest girls he had ever seen in his life. The sequel of all this was that one of the girls afterward became his wife.

About that time Mr. Jeffress arranged to be- come teacher of a private school at the resi- dence of Judge Lyman in Bastrop county, not far from the school in which Major Wise was employed, so that the two gentlenien saw each other frequently. While filling that position he became acquainted with R. J. Swancoat, an Episcopal minister, who occasionally visited the Lyman family and preached in the neigh- borhood. Mr. Swancoat then had charge of the leading school in Austin and extended to Mr. Jeffress an offer to go to Austin and take Mr. Jeffress served as county attorney there until the 17th of January, 1877. On that day occurred the most memorable incident in his career. Fort Griffin being a frontier settlement had the reputation of being one of the rough- est places in the west. One night after he and a party of his fellow lawyers and associates a position in his school. The offer was accept- ed and Mr. Jeffress remained with Mr. Swan- coat until he closed his school. Later .Mr. Jeffress taught school in Cedar Creek, Bas- trop county, about twenty miles from Austin, and while there he became acquainted with Miss Bettie Moncure, one of the pupils former- * had returned from Albany, where the county ly in the school taught by Major Wise. Her father was Captain John J. Moncure of Vir- ginia, who had been in Texas many years, and the daughter was born and reared in this state. The marriage resulted from this meeting and was celebrated on the Ist of January, 1873. After a brief illness, however, Mrs. Jeffress died on the 13th of December, less than a year after their marriage. seat had recently been removed, a message was sent to the sheriff of the county that a crowd of tough characters were drinking, carousing and shooting through the town. A party was organized including the sheriff, his deputy, Mr. Jeffress and others, and they went in search of the desperadoes in order to effect their arrest. They were located in one of the saloons, in the rear of which was a sort of theatre where a performance was given every night. A fight ensued between the officers of the law and the ruffians in which the lights in the place were extinguished and bullets were flying in every direction. Mr. Jeffress was struck by a ball from a forty-five caliber re- volver, it passing through his body just above the heart and lodging near the shoulder blade right beneath the skin. A long and tedious illness followed and although medical and surgical aid was provided, his life was despaired of by the physicians in attendance. His father was summoned from Virginia and came to the bed- side of his son, remaining with him as long as he could and then bidding him good-bye, never expecting to see him again on earth, but fate had ordained otherwise and as time wore on he began to improve and finally was able to make a journey back to his old Vir- ginia home, but his service as prosecuting attorney of the county was ended by that shot.

Mr. Jeffress in his grief went to Austin to pay a visit to his lifelong friend, Major Wise, and was there during the time of the great excitement when E. J. Davis was retaining possession of the reins of government and Richard Coke and R. B. Hubbard were inau- gurated as governor and lieutenant governor of Texas. After being in Austin a few weeks Mr. Jeffress returned to his old home in Vir- ginia, where he spent several months, return- ing to Texas in 1874. He then spent a short time with his father-in-law, Captain Moncure, of Bastrop county, after which he went to Comanche county, where he again taught school for a time. He then took up the study of law and was admitted to the bar in Co- manche county in the spring of 1875. Soon af- terward he accompanied Judge J. P. Oster- hout, the presiding judge of the district, to Shackelford county, going there to hold the first district court ever convened in that coun- ty. Among the prominent lawyers in the party were: Colonel Lowry, of Belton; Colonel W. S. J. Adams, of Comanche ; H. H. Neil, now as- sociate justice of the court of civil appeals of

San Antonio; N. R. Lindsey, now district judge of the Comanche district. The party went to Fort Griffin, where court was held. During that term there were many indictments found by the grand jury and all the visiting lawyers were kept busy during the entire tern of court. Mr. Jeffress was employed on some of those cases and finally decided that it would be a good place to locate, which he did, en- tering upon the practice of his profession at Fort Griffin. After he was there for a time he was elected prosecuting attorney for Shack- elford and the attached counties, the other counties being attached to Shackelford for judicial purposes, as they were unorganized.

While Mr. Jeffress was at home the family physician, Dr. Agnew, made an examination and changed the course of treatment from that which the Texas doctors had followed. After

368

HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

two months Mr. Jeffress was much improved and felt quite himself again, save that the wound continued to discharge. In the course of time a piece of bone came out and then the wound healed.

While in Virginia at that time Mr. Jeffress met the lady who is now his wife and whom he married on the 17th of September, 1878. She was formerly Miss Ida Wootton and was born and reared in Virginia. In the same year he returned with his wife to Texas, reaching Albany in October, after making the trip over- land from Fort Worth, as there were no rail- roads at the time west of Fort Worth. He continued in the active practice of law in Al- bany until the spring of 1881, when he removed to Colorado, Texas, where he has since re- mained and has occupied his present office since April, 1886. His practice for several years has largely been office practice, although he has tried some important civil and criminal cases. He was appointed agent for Senator Joseph E. Brown of Georgia, having charge of all of his property in Texas. He took charge August 16, 1881, and served as Senator Brown's agent until his death, November 30, 1894, since which time Mr. Jeffress has represented the executors, having charge of the Texas estate. He has also represented the estate of Hon. Edmund W. Cole of Nashville, Tennessee, and of Hon. L. N. Trammell, of Georgia, who was for many years chairman of the railroad commission of that state. He is also the representative of Colonel Henry R. Duval, of New York, former president of the Florida Central and Peninsu- lar Railway Company, and these varied inter- ests bring to him a good financial return.

In the family of Judge Jeffress are four liv- ing children, three sons and a daughter: Em- met Calvin, Corinne, Prentiss Clark and Woot- ton Walton. Judge Jeffress is a refined and highly cultured genteman of the old Virginian school and displays many of the excellent traits of character that characterized his fa- ther's life. He has a high sense of honor and justice and in all of his dealings with his fel- low-men has won the unqualified confidence and esteem of those with whom he has been asso- ciated. He is one of the oldest attorneys in point of residence in Colorado, where he has built up a successful law practice. It is ever a pleasure to meet with men of this type, men who stand for advancement in all that develops character and that works for good citizenship and for high ideals in private life.

JOHN W. BAKER. The Baker family has long resided in Texas. The father of our sub- ject, Robert Baker, was familiarly known as Uncle Bob Baker, a term which also indicated the enviable position which he held in the es- teem and friendship of those who knew him. He was born in Fayette county, Alabama, near Tuscaloosa, February 5, 1839, and in the pa- ternal line came of Irish descent, while on his mother's side he was of English lineage. His mother bore the maiden name of Miss Fore and the ancestry of that family can be traced back to four brothers, who came to this country from England, one of whom was a captain in the British army before his emigration to the new world. They settled in the south, proba- bly in the state. of Georgia. The name was originally spelled with an accent mark over the "e." The Baker family has been represented in Alabama for about a century and a number of the representatives of the name came to Texas and are now living in the southern part of this state. None of them have become wealthy but are all in comfortable financial circumstances and are regarded as valued citi- zens of the various localities in which they re- side. Obed Baker was the grandfather of John W. Baker of this review. In 1851 he left Alabama and came to Texas with his family, settling first in Bastrop county, which was then a new and wild district with few settlers. His first home was a log cabin, in which the family lived in true pioneer style amid the en- vironments of frontier life.

Robert Baker was twelve years of age when he came to Texas with his parents, and was reared in Bastrop county, where he remained up to the time of the Civil war. In 1862 he en- tered the Confederate service and was under such intrepid commanders as Colonel Kirby Smith and General Magruder, while Captain Hobson commanded his company. He served throughout the entire war, in the campaigns. largely confined to Texas, especially in and near the city of Galveston. After, his discharge from the army at the close of hostilities he re- turned to Bastrop county, where he made his home until 1882. He had been married in 1861 to Miss Mary Nancy Woods, who was born in Mississippi and came to Texas with her parents sometime in 1850. She was born No- vember 30, 1843, and is now living in Taylor county. In 1882 Robert Baker removed to Williamson county, settling near Georgetown, where he made his home for fourteen years, when in December, 1896, he went to Taylor

WILLIAM R. DAVIS

369

HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

county, locating in Jim Ned Valley, just on the edge of the timber. There he spent his remaining days, his death occurring on the 12th of February, 1905. He was a minister of the Primitive Baptist church for thirty-five years and divided his time between his business af- fairs and his church work, attending regularly the church services each Sunday, his labors proving an effective element in the moral de- velopment and progress of the localities in which he made his home. In his family were twelve children, eight sons and four daughters, of whom nine are now living, six sons and three daughters.

John W. Baker, whose name introduces this review, was born in Bastrop county, Texas, May 27, 1871, and was there reared upon his father's farm, while in the public schools of the neighborhood he acquired his education. He afterward took up the work of the teach- er's profession in Williamson county, where he was actively connected with school work for two years, and then in 1896 went to Taylor county. In the following year he accepted a position with Clayton Brothers Company, whom he practically represented as bookkeep- er until 1900 and on the Ist of January of that year he became connected with the Ed. S. Hughes Hardware Company in a similar posi- tion, remaining in that employ until April 6, 1904. He then resigned and removed to Lawn in the southern part of Taylor county, where he opened up a general mercantile business on his own account. This is a thickly settled district, and having an extensive acquaintance Mr. Baker succeeded in rapidly building up a fine and growing business and is recognized as one of the leading merchants of this part of the country.

On the 23rd of November, 1893, Mr. Baker was united in marriage to Miss Lora Shaw, a native of Williamson county, Texas, and their family numbers three sons and a daugh- ter. Mr. Baker has been a member of the Baptist church for nine years or more and is a zealous worker in the cause. He likewise belongs to the Odd Fellows society, in which he has taken all of the degrees of the subordin- ate lodge and encampment and is likewise ? member of the grand lodge of Texas. He be- longs to the Masonic fraternity and his life is in harmony with the teachings of these various fraternal organizations. An enterprising young business man, alert and energetic, he is making for himself a creditable place in the business world and is meeting with very grati- fying success.

WILLIAM RALPH DAVIS. A living illustration of the thrift and independence with which men of energy and industry and honesty are invariably rewarded, in whatever field of endeavor, is seen in the person of the subject of this life sketch. In easy-going, healthful and fertile Northern Texas where every grain of sand is a molecule of productive energy and every spot of clay is a storehouse for the season- ing which pushes germination and development of farm products to a profitable harvest much prosperity and some poverty is in evidence everywhere, and so the question of universal success in the domain of agriculture becomes a matter of human effort and depends upon the physical and mental attributes of the man be- hind the plow. Under the most favorable con- ditions of climate and soil indolence accom- plishes nothing, but under the same conditions unconquerable energy oozing from every pore accomplishes all things and the application of these observations brings us to the subject in 'hand, for the personality of it has all his life suggested an ever-exploding bundle of dynamic energy which has kept the machinery of his career in regular and economic motion to the end that each year of time has contributed something substantial to his record of achieve- ments.

All that Mr. Davis is and all that he has ac- complished have been developed and brought about under the social and agricultural in- fluences prevailing in Montague county, for he came to the county at the beginning of his in- dependent career and took his position at the foot of the ladder up which he was destined to climb. After a brief period of renting he con- tracted for a piece of Titus county school land six miles south of Forestburg and into a rude cabin of one room he moved his wife and his scant effects and the battle was on. While farming always commanded his interest and active efforts he developed a penchant for trade and barter and each year's profits of the farm were substantially supplemented by an income from his craft. With the accumulating profits of the years farm after farm came into his pos- session until three quarter sections of land were embraced in his dominions, and the same im- proved, productive and drained by the waters of Denton creek.

The education of his growing family became a matter of much concern to Mr. Davis and when, in 1902, an opportunity presented itself to locate himself against the townsite of Sunset and within a stone's throw of a good school, he embraced it and purchased one hundred and

370

HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

thirty-nine acres, with improvements complete for the convenient use of his family and he took possession of it at once. With no hint at detail and without mention of many incidents bearing on and affecting his progress through life we have thus briefly pointed out the substantial achievements in an active and ever-busy life. He has not toyed with politics nor given en- couragement to features of industry beyond and outside of his personal knowledge and he took an active interest in the success of Meth- odism in his community. He was one of the board of stewards, aided in the choir work of the society and matched any cash contribution which found its way into the society's treas- ury from any other local source.

Mr. Davis came into Montague county in 1875, just married. For five years he had been engaged in discharging his youthful duty to his father in Collin county and he was started out upon his career with a sound body and mind, but with little knowledge of books. In 1870 the family settled in Collin county from Maury county, Tennessee, in which county and in Lawrence and Wayne counties, that state, they had lived since 1857. To Georgia the family migrated from Cleveland county, North Caro- lina. In this latter county and state our subject was born on the 8th of November, 1851.

Luke Stansbury Davis was our subject's father and his birth occurred in South Carolina in 1803. He remained in the Palmetto state until after his marriage to Diana Ralph, a Rhode Island lady, and then moved into Cleveland county, North Carolina. In his early life Mr. Davis, Sr., was a teacher, but the occupation of a farmer finally possessed him to the exclusion of all else and he was engaged in it at his death, in Montague county, Texas, in 1878. His wife survived till June 6, 1889, and died leaving children, living and dead: Lindsay C., who was killed at the battle of Shiloh; Charles L., who passed through the Confederate service and died in Petersburg, Tennessee, leaving a family of six children; Easter S., Elizabeth, wife of G. D. Marine, died on Denton creek; Hil- liard S., who died in Montague county, the father of three children; John P., and Mary, wife of John Warren, both of Montague ; Fletch- er, who died here without issue; William R., our subject; Ellis, who passed away in Mon- tague county leaving four children, and Robert B., of Faxon, Oklahoma.

November 21, 1875, William R. Davis and Mary E. McKnight were married in Collin county, Texas. Mrs. Davis was a daughter of Robert and Laura (Dewberry) McKnight,

from Lauderdale county, Alabama. April 10, 1885, Mrs. Davis died, being the mother of Minnie, Robert S., and Eugene. In 1888 Mr. Davis married Josephine, a daughter of George and Nancy (Champion) Fletcher. Mrs. Davis was born in Texas, and is the mother of Oscar L., Edna Elizabeth, Lillie Belle, Garland Leo, Ora B., Georgia Bryan and Forest London.

The results of his thirty years of effort in Montague county show that it has been good for the county to have Mr. Davis here. It is fair to presume that his personal welfare would have been well conserved in any other fertile and productive locality, but the fact of his presence here and his commendable social and industrial achievements warrant us in com- mending his record to the students of local his- tory among the generations of the future.

W. McD. BOWYER. Among the first set- tlers in the western section of Texas and one who has been a constant observer of the pass- ing events, changing conditions and the growth and development of. the country from the epoch of the primitive past to the progressive present, is W. McD. Bowyer and so well known is he in this section of the state that no history would be complete without the record of his life. He was born in Lexington, Rock- bridge county, Virginia, October 29, 1848, and is descended from English ancestry, the line being traced back as far as William the Con- queror. On the maternal side Mr. Bowyer comes of Scotch descent. James Hubbard Bowyer, the father of our subject, was also a Virginian by birth, and the last years of his life were spent in Abilene, Texas, where he died in 1887. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Aurelia McDonald, was born and reared in Washington, D. C. Her father, John McDonald, was chief clerk of the United States senate up to the time of his death and since then two succeeding generations of the family have been represented in the same position, the present incumbent being H. B. McDonald. In the family of James Hubbard Bowyer were three sons and three daughters, five of whom are now living, their homes being in different parts of Texas. William McD. Bowyer was named in honor of William McDonald, his maternal uncle, who was one of the three Mc- Donalds that have acted as chief clerk in the United States senate and was probably one of the best informed men in the country on par- liamentary law, being the author of a text book on that subject.

William McD. Bowyer was reared in Lex-

371

HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

ington and attended the Washington and Lee University of that city. He was also a student in the Virginia Military Institute at Richmond and was pursuing his education there when the city was evacuated during the closing year of the Civil war. He was at that time sixteen years of age. Following the cessation of hos- tilities General Robert E. Lee was elected president of the university at Lexington and remained at the head of the institution for five years or until the time of his death, Mr. Bow- yer attending the funeral services. Follow- ing the evacuation he made his way to his home as best he could, walking the entire dis- tance. He afterward went to West Virginia and assisted in the building of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad. Following the completion of that line he removed to Ohio, where he was engaged on the construction of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad and later went to Kentucky, where he aided in building the Cincinnati Southern Railroad, extending from Cincinnati to Chattanooga, Tennessee. While thus con- nected with railroad building he acted as book- keeper for the company of railroad contractors.

For twenty-nine years Mr. Bowyer has been a resident of Texas, arriving in this state in 1876. He first located at Burnett in Burnett county, where he engaged in merchandising, and later removed to Lampasas county, where he was again connected with his brother, John Bowyer, now of Abilene, in a mercantile enter- prise. Seeking a permanent location he decided upon Jones county and took up his abode with- in its borders in the spring of 1880 before the county was organized. He erected the first house in Anson and his history is closely inter- woven with the growth and development of the city from that time to the present. He has been well pleased with his choice of a location, regarding this section of the state as a most delightful country because of its climatic con- ditions, its soil and many natural advantages. With the building of the town he opened a general mercantile store, which he conducted for about ten years and during that time he also acted as postmaster, having the office in his store. Since his retirement from commer- cial life he has been engaged in farming and he owns some valuable property in the county, including two farms, one of which is about five miles southeast of Anson and another about the same distance northeast. He also owns some valuable town lots and business prop- erty in Anson and one hundred and fifty acres of land which immediately adjoins the corpora- tion limits of the town. He is one of the suc-

cessful business men of the county and as he has himself expressed it-his life exemplifying the same thought-"industry, frugality and so- briety will make any man in this country."

Mr. Bowyer was married in July, 1881, on the little hill near where his home now stands, to Mrs. J. A. Carr, nee Knox, who was reared in Mississippi and came to Western Texas in the fall of 1879. They have two children living, John St. Clair and Ottis McDonald, and they lost three other children in early life. Mr. Bowyer's connection with the county has been one of benefit to this part of the state and in his business career he has gained not only gratifying success but also an honorable name.

JAMES M. ISBELL, M. D., is today the oldest physician of Abilene, and in this part of the county although he is not actively engaged in practice to any great extent at the present time. The Isbell family, of which he is a repre- sentative, is of French extraction and the an- cestry can be traced back through two centur- ies or until about 1688, when members of the family came from France and settled in the Carolinas.

James H. Isbell, the father of Dr. Isbell, was a native of Greenville, Tennessee, where his father, James Isbell, was engaged in the prac- tice of medicine. The son was born in 1808 and in 1835 he came to Texas with a company of Tennessee Volunteers who offered their services to the young country. In the mean- time James H. Isbell had studied medicine and had engaged in practice. Following his arrival in Texas he participated in the battle of San Jacinto and in this battle his three brothers, John, Alexander and William Isbell, were also engaged, as was his brother-in-law Napoleon Magruder. Upon removing to. Gonzales, Texas, where his last days were spent, Dr. James H. Isbell abandoned the practice of medicine and carried on business as a land agent, locating lands all over the state. This proved a profitable industry in the early de- velopment of Texas and he prospered in his undertakings. His wife, to whom he was mar- ried in 1838, bore the maiden name of Amanda Magruder and was a native of Lexington, Ken- tucky. She was a ward of William Hardin, alcalde of the Mexican government at Liberty, and had been brought by him to Texas in 1835. She was then a young lady of sixteen years and had just finished her course of study in the academy at Lexington, Kentucky. She was of Scotch descent, her forefathers having come from Scotland to America in 1745 and set-

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

A twentieth century history and biographical record of north and west Texas, Volume II, Part 75

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