USA > Texas > Bastrop County > History of Texas, together with a biographical history of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson counties. Pt.1 > Part 47
USA > Texas > Travis County > History of Texas, together with a biographical history of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson counties. Pt.1 > Part 47
USA > Texas > Burleson County > History of Texas, together with a biographical history of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson counties. Pt.1 > Part 47
USA > Texas > Lee County > History of Texas, together with a biographical history of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson counties. Pt.1 > Part 47
USA > Texas > Williamson County > History of Texas, together with a biographical history of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson counties. Pt.1 > Part 47
USA > Texas > Milam County > History of Texas, together with a biographical history of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson counties. Pt.1 > Part 47
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are deceased, the remaining four sons being citizens of Milam county. The danghter, whose Christian name was Martha D., was twiee married, first to Robert Johnson, and after his death, in 1867, to A. B. Lovelace. She died in 1891. James Samuel, the sub- jeet of this sketeh, is the next in age. Pres- ton Walker, the second son, was killed at Franklin, Tennessee, in 1864, being Lienten- ant of Company F, Tenth Texas Infantry. The three youngest are Alvin Peter, John M. and Martin Edward.
James Samnel Perry, named for his grand- fathers, James Perry and Samnel Morrow, was born in Scott county, Kentucky, Septem- ber 5, 1835. Ile was in his seventh year when his parents moved to Missouri. His boyhood and youth were passed in Lafayette county, w. iere they settled, and his prelim- inary edneation was received in the schools of that county. Coming to Texas with his parents, in 1853, he resided on the farm in Travis and Washington counties, engaged in farming and stock-raising, and attending school at Independence in the latter county until the opening of the late war. He en- tered the Confederate armny in 1861, enlist- ing in Company F, of which he was elected Lieutenant, Tenth Texas Infantry, commanded by Colonel Roger Q. Mills, with which he was in active service during the greater part of the war. At the fall of Arkansas Post, in 1863, he was taken prisoner with his brigade; was subsequently exchanged, and was with Bragg, and then with Johnston and Hood in their operations abont Chattanooga, and in all of the Georgia campaigns down to Atlanta, before which, in the second day's fight nuder Hood. he was wounded, losing the thumb and two fingers of the left hand. Disabled by this from further duty in the field, he was placed in the detective service,
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and until the close of the war was on the Mobile & Ohio Railroad. After the snr- render he returned to Texas, and, having read law, was admitted to the bar at Brenham, in 1866, and began practice at Millican, which he pursued at that place and at Bryan until 1872, when he moved to Cameron, Milam connty. During his residence at Bryan he was Connty Judge of Brazos county, under Throckmorton's administration, and in 1876 he was elected Connty Judge of Milam county. In 1874 he moved from Cameron to Rock- dale, where he continned in the practice of law, and three years later became interested in the banking business. The institution, with which he was connected, was the Rock- dale Bank, the pioneer institution of the kind in Milam county. It was started in January. 1874, by Isaac Jalonick, representing Stowe & Wihnerding, of Galveston, and was run about a year, when it failed, and was then bought by Wayland & Wheatley; two years later these men sold it to Judge Perry, who kept it in active operation until Jannary, 1892, when it went into voluntary liquidation.
In 1882 Judge Perry was elected to the State Senate for the senatorial district com- posed of the counties of Milam, Brazos and Robertson, and served in that capacity during the eighteenth and nineteenth sessions of the Legislature.
In the twenty years that Judge Perry has resided in Milam county he has accumulated considerable means, most of which are in- vested in lands in the county and in town lots and enterprises of one kind and another in Rockdale. Whatever tends to further the interest and welfare of the community in which he lives, receives his cordial approba- tion and prompt assistance. He is president of the Rockdale Cotton Oil Mills, and is one of the chief promoters of the Rockdale Im- I
provement Company, owners and operators of the water works and electric-light plant of that place. Ile is the present Mayor of Rockdale, and is credited with making a dig- nified and efficient officer, thoroughly alive to the interests of the town, and prompt in the execution of its laws. . Under his adminis- tration the town has prospered as never be- fore, and it was mainly through his manage- ment that the city acquired its very efficient system of water works and electric lights.
HIe has always been a Democrat and comes of a long line of Democratic ancestors. Ilis father was an associate, in early life. of Rich- ard M. Johnson, one of Kentucky's great lights of Democracy, under whom he was trained to a strict observance of the principles and practices of the party.
In May, 1869, Judge Perry married Miss Annie Hubert, a danghter of Ben Hubert, of Bryan, and a native of Polk county, this State. To this nion five children have been born, all of whom are living. These, in the order of their ages, are: Annie Belle, Preston H., Milton Carroll, Jimmie F. and Earl. Mrs. Perry comes of one of the early settled families of Texas, her father having moved to this State about 1836, and she is herself a good type of one of this great State's best products, an intelligent and refined lady, an affectionate wife and mother. Both she and her husband are members of the Baptist Church, and are liberal in their charities as well as zealous in the interests of their church.
R. WOODALL, Baileyville, is one of the substantial and progressive young farmers of the Brazos bottom in Milam connty. His father, Jefferson P. Woodall, was born in Jones county, Georgia, in 1830.
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There he grew to manhood and married bottom, 350 of which is in cultivation and Asenia, daughter of John Dumas. Mr. upon which 130 bales of cotton were grown in 1891 and about the same number in 1892. A gin and small mercantile business is con- dneted in connection with the management of this farm. Mr. Woodall owns a farm of 359 acres lying on the Brazos river, 175 acres of which is in cultivation. He owns a gin and does a good business with this during the ginning season. Woodall followed farming during his life- time and was fairly successful, and died in his native State in 1858. Onr subject's paternal grandfather was Robert Woodall. He was a planter, and, like his son, Jeffer- son, had no political or military record. Hle married Mary Miller, and was the father of six children, two of whom are now living. Mr. Woodall died in 1875. Our subject's Mr. Woodall married in 1869 Miss lda, the daughter of Dr. C. C. Briggs of New York, who married Miss Sarah Oakley and had only one child. Mr. and Mrs. Briggs are now living in Alabama. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Woodall are: Carey, Rich- ard, Dumas, deceased and Goldy. In per- sonal appearance, Mr. Woodall is of medium height, of muscular frame, and of large proportions. As all men of considerable avoirdupois, he is of a pleasant and affable temper, making his companionship agrecable and entertaining. maternal grandfather, Jolm Dumas, married Matilda Kolb, and became the father of Eliza- beth, who married Joseph Slade of Lonisiana; Ann became the wife of John W. Ilard; she is now deceased; Jerry, deceased; and Asenia, our subject's mother. Mr. Dnmas was mar- ried first to Hannah Gorden, by whom he had Nancy, now deceased, who married Will- iam Harrison; Helen deceased, who married Newton Samples; Sarah, deceased, who mar- ried John Harvey; Edmond; Martha, de- ceased, who married William Brewington; Temperance, who married John D. Holloway; and Jolin C. Dnmas, deceased.
From the union of Jefferson P. Woodall and Ascnia Dumas two children were born, namely: Mary, wife of James M. Eaves, and residing in Burnet county, Texas, and John R., our subject. After the death of Jefferson P. Woodall, his widow married L. P. Eaves, now of Wilderville. Falls county. Of this marriage one child is living, Minnie. John R. Woodall was raised in Georgia and received in youth the elements of a common English education. At the age of seventeen he was thrown own his own resources and in the fall of 1875 he came to Texas, locating in Milam county, where he engaged in farming on rented land. He then assumed the engage- ment and control of the 500-acre tract be- longing to W. J. Brewington on the Brazos
In politics Mr. Woodall is a Democrat, and a leader in local matters.
B LOEWENSTEIN & BRO .- Perhaps no single case better illustrates the phenomenal commercial growth of the towns of Milam county during the last twenty years than does that of B. Loewen- stein & Bro., of Rockdale, a firm that en- joys the distinction of being one of the pioneers of that place and one of the first in commercial strength in the county. They have been in business in Rockdale just twenty years, having opened their first stock of goods here December 24. 1873. That was before the International & Great Northern Railroad had reached this place, and when the town of
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HISTORY OF TEXAS.
Rockdale was as yet only a small opening among the post-caks. During the time that Rockdale remained the terminus of the rail- road every thing about the place was in that unsettled condition characteristic of new western towns, the business of the Messrs. Loewenstein being no exception; but, with the departme of the terminal, things rapidly settled down to a solid basis. Then it was that the Messrs. Loewenstein began to lay their plans to establish themselves in a staple business and grow with what promised to be a legitimate growth of the community. With the influx of immigration they extended their acquaintance, and let it be known that they had come to stay. They increased their stock as their trade demanded, and raised : he grade of goods as the buying publie became edu- cated to better qualities and prices. The swiftly passing years have wrought a wonder- ful change in their fortunes. From a few handfuls of goods, representing only $200 or $300 investment, their stock has in- creased to one varying from $40,000 to $50,000, and they do a cash business of $75,000 a year. They handle dry goods, clothing, boots, shoes and groceries the same as when they began twenty years ago, bnt they have classified and arranged their stock, systemized their business and conduct it in an entirely different manner from that ob- served in former years. One of the most im- portant changes which they have made has been from the credit to the cash basis. This change was made in 1889, and their business instead of suffering from it has increased and is better now than it ever was. They ocenpy commodious quarters: a double-front, two- story brick house, fronting on two streets, built by themselves at a cost of $6.000, and admirably arranged for the safe, convenient and expeditions handling of their trade.
They employ a corps of ten clerks, and dur- ing the fall season especially their place is a hive of industry.
The firm is composed of Benjamin and Joseph Loewenstein, brothers, both of whom are natives of Prussia, both were reared in their native country and came to America, Benjamin in 1866 and Joseph in 1867. Benjamin came to Texas in 1868 and Joseph in 1869, and from that date until they settled in Rockdale they lived in Colorado and Aus- tin counties. In the twenty-five years that they have lived in this country they have be- come thoroughly Americanized, and are as much attached to all of the interests and in- stitntions of their adopted home as they could be had they been born on the soil. They are public-spirited to a degree seldom witnessed in those of foreign birth, standing ready at all times to put their money in any legitimate enterprise and subscribing liber- ally for the promotion of local industries. Benjamin is vice-president and member of the board of directors of the First National Bank of Rockdale, which he helped to organize. He is a stockholder in the Rock- dale Cotton Oil Mills, which he also assisted in setting on foot. IIe is a stockholder in the Rockdale Cotton Platform Company; and the firm established the Rockdale Briek Works, representing an investment of $12,000, with a capacity of 2,000.000 bricks annually, which they conducted successfully until recently disposed of by sale. During the time that they ran these works they erected seven brick business buildings in Rockdale, besides a number of dwellings, and were constantly buying and improving property in the place as well as contracting and building for others.
Joseph has been a member of the Board of Aldermen for seven years, and Benjamin has served half as long on the School Board.
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Both are Republicans in polities, but have never sought any public office, and in fact take but little interest in political matters. Benjamin belongs to the A. O. U. W., and Josephi to the Masons, Knights of Honor and American Legion of llonor, and both to the Hebrew order, B'nai B'rith.
In April, 1873, Benjamin married Miss Carrie Malseh of Colorado county, this State, but a native of Germany, having been brought by her parents to America when small and reared in Texas. March 16, 1881, Joseph married Miss Sarah Levine of Galveston, she being a native of New York but of German aneestry. Each of the brothers has children. each has an elegant home in Rockdale and a host of friends.
W ILLIAM L. GILES, a successful farmer of Travis county, is a son of Edward S. Giles, who was born in Sumner eounty, Tennessee, August 6, 1798. In 1831 the latter moved to ITardeman county, same State, and in 1849 settled three miles below Austin, Texas, but subsequently moved to Duval. He finally made his home with our subject, where he died July 7, 1877. In political matters, he affiliated with the Democratie party, served as Justice of tlie Peace in Tennessee some time, and was fre- quently solicited to become a candidate for the Legislature, but always refused. Socially, he was a Master Mason; and religiously, was and Elder in the Presbyterian Church for many years. His parents were Josiah and Caroline Giles. The father, a native of North Carolina, moved to Tennessee when it was yet a part of North Carolina, settling in Sumner county, where he died in 1828. lle served as a Captain under General Jackson
in the war of 1812, and participated in the battles of Talledaga and Horse Shoe Bend.
The Giles family came to America from Ireland in Colonial times, locating in Vir- ginia and North Carolina, and many mem- bers of the family served in the Revolution- ary war. The mother of our subject, nee Naney Jackson, was born in Fauquier county, Virginia, April 20, 1799, a daughter of Stephen Jackson, a native also of that State. IIe was a wheelwright by ocenpation, and in an early day ,located on the Ohio river at Shawneetown, Gallatin county, Illinois, where he died in 1856. The Jackson family are of Irish descent. Josiah Jackson, a brother of the mother of our subject, was Presiding Elder of a conference in Illinois. Mrs. Edward Giles located in middle Ten- nessee when quite young, near where her husband's father lived. Mr. and Mrs. Giles were married in 1825, and were the parents of eight children, viz .: Mary M., widow of Wade Henry, and resides three miles from Austin; Lizzie, wife of N. R. Land, of Corn Hill, Williamson county; William L., our subject; Lewis L., who was killed at Mun- fordville, Kentucky, with Colonel Terry, December 17, 1861,; Val C., of Austin; and Calvin Lyeurgus and Eliza, deceased when young. .
William L. Giles, the subject of this sketch, was born in Hardeman county, Ten- nessee, December 22, 1831, and received a good education. He remained with his parents until 1854, after which he clerked in a mereantile house until 1857, and in that year was appointed Deputy Tax Collector and Assessor of Travis county, Texas. He continued that oceupation until the breaking ont of the late war, when he enlisted in the Sixth Texas Infantry. Mr. Giles was capt- utred at the battle of Arkansas Post, taken to
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Camp Butler. Springfield, Illinois, fonr months later was taken to Petersburg, Vir- ginia, and exchanged, May 1, 1863, and was forwarded to Richmond, where they reorgan- ized temporarily to repel the Federal cavalry under General Sherman during the battle of Chancellorsville. Ile saw Jackson's funeral train, was transferred to the army of Tennes- see, took part in the battle of Chickamanga and Missionary Ridge, and in most of the engagements of the Tennessee campaign. Mr. Giles was slightly wounded at the battle of Ringgold. At the close of the war he was discharged as Second Lientenant of the Car- alry of Colonel Venevide's regiment, after which he remained at his father's home two ycars. In 1867 he located on his present farm of 199 acres in Travis county, 140 acres of which is under a fine state of culti- vation, and has the necessary stock for farm use.
Mr. Giles was married in 1866, to Sallie A. Jordan, a daughter of Frederick and Har- rict (Buchman) Jordan, natives of South Carolina. They moved to what was then the Republic of Texas, locating first in Austin county, and in 1858 came to Travis county. Both are now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Giles have five children: Alice O., an art student at Austin; Lewis L., Flora C., Maggie B. and Eugenc. Mr. Giles affiliates with the Democratic party, and his wife and two daughters are members of the Christian Church.
J OHN B. WOLF .- He who weds him- sef to a great principle lays the founda- tion of a successful life. In every man's carcer some mainspring of action can be found, and according as that silent force is directed his destiny will be determined. The
life purpose of the subject of this sketch seems to be no scheme of self-aggrandize- ment or fleeting worldly ambition, but sim- ply to live up to the measure of his endow- ments and responsibilities, to develop a char- acter and leave an honorable name to his posterity.
John B. Wolf comes of good stock, his lineage running back through pioneer fami- lies of this country to the old state of Penn- sylvania, where his first ancestors on this continent were of that number of industrions, thrifty, peaceful people called "Pennsylvania Dutch." The course of migration of the family from Pennsylvania was by way of North Carolina, Kentucky, Missouri, and Arkansas, in each of which States they were early settlers. Michael Wolf, the father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Hop- kins county, Kentucky, and was taken by his parents when a youth to Arkansas, where he grew up and passed his subsequent life. At a proper age he married Elizabeth Adams, who like himself was a native of Kentucky and a member of a pioneer family of that State and Arkansas, and a lady of many excellen- cies of character. They were the parents of seven children, of whom John B. was the fifth in age. He was born in what was then Izard, now Baxter, county, Arkansas, Decem- ber 25, 1840. Both parents died while he was yet a child, and thus deprived of the care and guardianship natural and proper to his age his early training was attended with some disadvantages. He grew np, however, a sturdy youth, and by the assistance of rela- tives and industry on his own part acquired some knowledge from books, with which, supplemented with a fair measure of pluck and energy, he began life for himself at the age of seventeen, coming at that age 1857 -to Texas. From 1857 to 1860 he made
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his home in the northern part of this State where he was variously engaged as farm hand, .. teamster, brick-maker and school-teacher. IIe returned to his native State just before the opening of the Civil war, and there en- tered the service of the Confederacy in May, 1861, enlisting in Company I, Fourteenth Arkansas Infantry. For four years he fol- lowed the varying fortunes of the flag of the Confederacy, participating in the hardships, pleasures and thrilling experiences which made up the life of the connnon soldiery in that great struggle. He saw service under cach of those distinguished generals, Price, McCulloch, Gardner and Bnekner, and was in the departments east and west of the Mis- sissippi river. Ile entered the army a pri- vate but was made captain of his company at Corinth, Mississippi, in 1862, and com- mandcd it from that date until the surrender. He was never wounded but was once cap- tured, and while in imprisonment partici- pated in an episode that attracted much at- tention at the time and has since come to be regarded as one of the romances of the war. It occurred on board a vessel in the Atlantic occan and is known in history as the "Cap- ture of the Maple Leaf." A brief account of this event belongs to this biography, and will here be given in almost the language in which Captain Wolf narrated it to the writer. On this point he said:
"On the capture of Port Hudson in June, 1863, the Federal authorities paroled the private soldiers but retained the commis- sioned officers with the intention of sending them North to be placed in prison. I was one of this number of officers. We were put aboard a gunboat at Port Hudson and sent down to New Orleans, where we were trans- ferred to the steamer Catawba, guarded by Billy Wilson's New York Zouaves and
taken to Fortress Monroe. At this point we were transferred to another steamer, the Maple Leaf, in charge of a captain with a crew of fifty men and a guard of twenty-four Federal soldiers under command of a lieu- tenant. Under this escort we put to sea, the intention being, I suppose, to take us to Johnson's island, near New York city. But we had no desire to go to prison, and we were not long in making up our minds to effect an escape if such a thing were possible. As to mumber we were about equally divided, there being seventy-five Confederates and seventy- five Federals. The Federals had the advant- age, however, inasmuch as they were in pos- session of the arms and munitions of war, and were the recognized masters of the sit- nation. But the Confederates, being officers, and as you might say in a certain sense picked men, were not lacking in brains, re- source and courage. A fairly vigilant watch was kept up on the part of the Federals while we were in port and until we got well ont to sea; but once safely, as they thought, away from shore, they relaxed their vig- ilance, trusting, I reckon, to the waters and to our supposed submission to fate. It was then, however, that we saw our chance. The guards served in relays of eight each and we knew that we could easily overcome eight men even if they were armed and we were not. Accordingly, at a given signal a rush was made for the guards and for the pilot and engineers, who were soon disarmed, in our possession and our prisoners. The plan was to keep the guards closely confined so that they would not give any annoyance and to place a sufficient number of our own men over the pilot and engineers to make them do our bidding, and then pull for the shore. It happened to fall to my lot to be one of those assigned to
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duty over the pilot, and from the advantage- ons position of the pilot honse I surveyed the operations below. The capture took place abont ten o'clock in the morning and it was not long before we were headed for land. We were not given much trouble by the Fed- erals after we got possession of the boat; for we had the advantage of them and were deter- mined, as they knew, to make our escape. A fusilade of rough jokes and bantering was kept up pretty much all day, and several at- tempts were made by the pilot to rim the boat back into Fortress Monroe; but we were sufficiently acquainted with the lay of the land to prevent anything of the kind being done.
" Finally, about sundown, we reached the shore and seenred a safe landing off Cape Ilenry, Princess Aun connty, Virginia. We paroled the Federal gnards and crew and leaving eight or ten of onr sick, and, wounded on board the boat, the remainder of us set ont for Richmond. We were then, although we did not know it, in Union lines; but we soon began to enconnter obstacles, and these inultiplied as we proceeded until it became expedient for us to seek safety in the swamps of North Carolina. We were concealed in these swamps some ten or twelve days, being fed and protected by the families of Confed- erate soldiers who were then at the front, and kept informed by them of the movements of the enemy. During this time we fell in with an old guerrilla captain named W. B. Sandlin, who was operating in that locality and to whom we were indebted for a great deal of assistance. He had a company made np mostly of boys, who however, did effect- ive duty in dogging the enemy from point to point and occasionally rounding up a straggling squad of Federals. In time Cap- tain Sandliu and his boys seenred some small
boats, in which he transported us to Albe- marle Sound, and, piloting us through the enemy's lines, landed is at a point from - which after a few hours' rapid march we were beyond the reach of the Federals and safely on our way to Richmond. Before we reached the latter place, however, we were met by a detachment of General D. HI. Hill's cavalry, which had been sent ont by Presi- dent Davis to assist us to escape, news of the capture of the Maple Leaf having been pub- lished in the Northern papers, through which chamel it had reached the authorities at Richmond. We received a royal welcome at the seat of the Confederate government, and, what we needed and appreciated fully as much, rest and food. For my part I re- mained there only a few days, when I started west to rejoin my command. I reached Joseph E. Johnston's army, then in Missis- sippi, which I entered about July 10, 1863, and remained with it for three months. At the end of that time I heard of my command, not yet reorganized however, west of the Mississippi river. I immediately secured a a transfer and made my way to it, entering a brigade at Washington, Arkansas, made up of paroled troops from Vicksburg and Port Hudson. I served in this command under General Thomas P. Dockery until the close of hostilities, receiving my discharge at Mar- shall, Texas, in May, 1863."
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