Glimpses
of Grayson County from the Early Days
When the publication of this book
was first contemplated, I had thought to make it merely a souvenir for
this
year's "Old Settlers" meeting, but I find that one small pamphlet
will not more than make a good beginning for a biographic history of
the early
settlers of Grayson County, so I have determined to issue it in
portfolios,
giving sketches of biography and history, as frequently as the data can
be
collected, together with portraits, views, etc., until the story is all
told.
A limited number has been published, but should the demand for it be greater than the supply, another editing will be issued. For kindly help in this work, I am indebted to many friends, but for this number, especially to Dr. W. H. Trolinger of Whitesboro, and Tom Randolph of Sherman. Yours faithfully, Tom Bomar Introductory
To write the history of the early
settlement of any portion of Texas is a task
that would cause even a bolder narrator than him, who in these pages
will
attempt to tell the story of the early days of Grayson, to shrink from
the
undertaking. But some one must do this duty, that the memories of the
hardy
pioneers who have given us this "goodly heritage," may be perpetuated,
and that
future generations may know the true history of those days of storm and
sunshine,
light and shadow: fraught with dangers, yet brightened by that
sublimest of
human attributes -hope.
When the pioneer settler crossed the Red River and looked toward the south, the west, and the east, he saw spread out before him a country teeming with myriads of richest hued flowers which wafted on the air such sweet perfumes that even the craftiest handiwork of the oriental world has never equaled, beautiful undulating prairies, mighty forests and hundreds of limpid streams. Prairies and forest abounded with game, deer, bear, antelope, buffalo, wild turkeys; and the rich virgin soil only needed the work of his hands to make it bring forth great harvests for his sustenance. But with all this charming and pleasant prospect came the dangers from the dreaded savages who roamed at will in this lovely flower and emerald carpeted garden of the western world. The sun shone on no fairer landscape than that now within the bounds of Grayson County, and the brave men and women who periled their lives to possess it for their posterity are deserving of the most grateful remembrance from the generations who now enjoy the fruits of their heroism. They were simple and unassuming people, honest and hospitable, and were, in a large measure, unsuspicious of others. Their doors were always open to the stranger, and many people living today will attest of the thousands of good deeds done by those early settlers in assisting those who came among them seeking for homes. They were, with all their hardships, a vigilant and watchful people, and divided their time between the field and the chase, oftentimes leaving the plow in the half-run furrow to repel the assaults of some raiding band of Indians, or to pursue some ravenous animal that would make havoc among their flocks and herds. In those days settlements were often many miles apart, and social life was far more highly enjoyed than in thickly settled communities, because of the rarity of gatherings for pleasure and social intercourse. Families would oftentimes, by an early start, go ten or fifteen miles to visit friends, such then being considered near neighbors, and return by moonlight to their homes. On these visits the trusty rifle together with the shot-bag and powder-horn were considered necessary accompaniments. The fatigue of such journeys was considered a very small matter. But these were men and women of iron frames and nerves like tempered steel, who breathed the purest of heaven's ozone and drank in the sweet perfumes of a wilderness of flowers. How unlike the brain- and nerve-weary, overworked men and women of today. That was the time when the fleet-footed antelope and deer sped along their narrow paths, where now course the heavy-laden railway trains. Then the ox-wagon with its long team of cattle wended its way by dindy [sic] beaten trails across the country, bringing from the nearest market, sometimes hundreds of miles away, the necessary supplies for the people of this section, and whose arrival at the little village was greeted by a full turnout of the people to see and help about unloading the goods and opening the boxes and barrels. Frequently very amusing scenes and incidents would occur on such occasions. One such mentioned here will not be inappropriate. There was a noted character, George Stamps, who lived at the old town of Preston, on Red River, who kept a little all-sorts stock of general merchandise, "dry goods, groceries, hardware, drugs, tar, turpentine and testaments," as his bulletin-board read, and in addition had a barrel of whiskey always on tap. One Christmas season Stamps concluded he wanted something extra, and ordered from the Alexander Brothers, of Bonham, "a lot of everything good for Christmas." The goods came and likewise the crowd to see them opened. Everything went well until a small brown box marked "cod-fish" was reached. The odor of the box called forth strong expletives of disgust from Stamps, who swore the thing was "spite," and after passing it through the crowd for proof of his judgment, it was returned so marked and credit demanded for it. While there were many inconveniences to be encountered in regard to freights and passenger travel, it is a well-known fact that in the early days of Grayson County, such things as a robbery or interference of any kind with goods in transit, or persons traveling through the country alone, was entirely unknown. A case in point, the truth of which will be vouched for by many people living today, will serve a good purpose. George W. Newcome, who lived at Kentucky Town, was a man who dealt largely in lands, and it was often necessary that he should carry large sums of money with him, which being bulky and heavy, he would place in his capacious saddlebags. On his arrival at Sherman he would hitch his horse to the famous old pecan tree that formerly stood on the public square, throw the saddlebags across a limb, go off and transact a day's business and feel that his money was as free from molestation as though locked within the steel vaults of a bank, and would, to use his own language, often never think of it unless it was needed for use. Many other incidents of like character, which will be related in future chapters, in which the names of such men as Frank Richards, Phillip T. Wells, William C. Coffey, and many other early merchants and traders will figure, will serve to tell the story of the sterling honesty of those people of brawny arms and rugged exterior. Merchants would ride over the country for several days at a time, collecting their accounts, and when overtaken at night would stop at the first house they came to, and were never molested, although they would many times have thousands of dollars with them, and that fact well known to many persons. When through with collecting and ready to start to market, their money, chiefly gold and silver, would be placed in a pair of saddlebags and strapped across a mule, and they would start on their journey. It was no uncommon thing when these starts were made for half the men in the town to be present and bid them good-bye. So it will be seen that, while the pioneers were a rough and uncultivated people, they were honest. These are a few of the characteristics of the men and women whose biographies will be told in the pages of this little book and its followers, and no more pleasing task has ever fallen to the hands of the writer than this effort to perpetuate their memories in a form that generations yet unborn may know their lives and, as far as possible, their features as well. Biographic Sketches
George C. Dugan
George C. Dugan was born in
Jefferson County, Missouri, October 7, 1812, eight
years before that territory was submitted as a state of the union. His
father
was Daniel Dugan, a native of Virginia, and his mother was Catherine
Vaden, a
native of Kentucky. Thus, too, he was born a pioneer. The family in
1816 moved
to Illinois, where George went to school, and acquired such knowledge
of books
as could be obtained in the log cabin, puncheon floor[ed] schoolhouse
of the
western border. In later
years the family removed to Arkansas, from which state Mr. Dugan removed to Texas in 1835, first into what is now Fannin County, and in 1837 [he] moved to the well-known Dugan place on Choctaw Creek in Grayson County. Those days were [ones] of watchfulness for the pioneers, and all work was done with a sentinel on the watch for the Indians. In 1844, Daniel Dugan, an uncle of George C., with another young man, were surprised and killed by Indians. Not long afterward they attacked his father's house and killed a young man who was lying in bed with his brother. His father returned the fire and killed an Indian. The Indians, while attempting to steal the horses from the stable, were entrapped by George and his brother William, who killed three of them. These are but a few of the many tilts of the Dugan family with the redskins, but they held their ground and never flinched, no matter how hot the conflict. On the 7th of January, 1849, George C. Dugan was married to Miss Harriet Walls, a native of Kentucky. She was a practical woman, and was a great help to her husband's success in accumulating property. Mr. Dugan was a thorough and sagacious farmer, and by good management accumulated quite a fortune previous to the Civil War. When the war closed, Mr. Dugan removed to Sherman and commenced merchandising. After five years in the business, he retired, and turned his attention to land and livestock affairs. Mr. Dugan died, January 5th, 1881, at his home in Sherman. Two sons and four daughters still survive, most of whom are residents of Grayson County.
William D. Fitch William D.
Fitch, the first [sic] County Clerk of Grayson County, was born in
Alabama, May 20th, 1821. From that state his father removed to Texas,
in 1844,
locating first at old Fort Warren on Red River, where he remained one
year,
removing from there into what is now Grayson County, locating near
White Mound.
About this time the Mexican War came on, and William and his brother
John
enlisted and went to the front as member of Capt. Dan Montague's
company. At
the close of the war they returned home and when Grayson County was
organized
in 1847, William D. Fitch was elected County Clerk, in which capacity
he
James P. Dumas James
P. Dumas was born September 20th, 1820, in Greenville District, South
Carolina. He moved to Texas in 1841, settling in Milam County, where he
lived
till 1843, when he moved to the falls of the Brazos and resided there
till June
1844, when he moved to the present site of Dallas, building the third
house at
that place and laying off the original town. Leaving Dallas July 20th,
1845,
when he moved to Sister Grove, Grayson County, where he lived till his
death,
which took place on February 1st, 1875. James P. Dumas was married in
Fayette
County, Alabama, on April 13th, 1844, to Mary A. E. Thompson, who still
survives him. He enlisted as a volunteer in Montagne's company and
served in
the Mexican War. Mr. Dumas was prominent in the early settlement of
Grayson
County, and the records attest of much work on his part in the
establishment of
the boundaries of many of the original surveys in the county. He was a
man of
thrifty habits, and by careful watchfulness, amassed quite a fortune,
principally in lands.
Ambrose B. White Capt. Ambrose B. White was born in Ohio, October 24th, 1811; his early days were spent in Illinois near Springfield. When the Black Hawk War broke out in 1832, he shouldered his gun to defend the pioneers against the blood-thirsty savages, and fought bravely with his comrades until the war closed. But in the midst of the carnage was a young lady who was destined to be his wife. Through a long day's hard fighting she molded bullets for him while he shot Indians. This lady's name was A. E. Murdah, and after the close of the war, on the 20th of June 1833, they were married. Capt.
White founded the town of Whitesboro and at the time of his death held
the office of Mayor, an office which he had filled many times since the
incorporation of the town. When he settled where the town of Whitesboro
stands,
he found himself in
Col. George R. Reeves The
ancestors of Col. Reeves migrated from Ireland to the United States
about
the year 1794, and located in South Carolina, where his father, William
S.
Reeves, was born in 1796. After the death of his parents, William S.
Reeves, at
the age of three years, was taken to Nashville, Tennessee, then a
frontier
village, and brought up by an uncle, a pioneer settler. He served in
E. D. Webster Among the earliest settlers of the western portion of Grayson County, was E. D. Webster, who located on Jordon Creek, twenty miles west of where Sherman now stands. Mr. Webster was born in Massachusetts in 1799, from which state he removed to Ohio, which was then a frontier country, in 1815. After he arrived at man's estate he went to Louisiana in 1821, and from there removed to Missouri in 1825, in which year he married Margaret Furman. In 1845 he removed to Texas, opening a farm on Jordon Creek, in what is now Grayson County, where he lived until the 30th of August 1861, at which time he died. His widow died in March 1867.
Dr. James Lafayette Leslie Dr.
J. L. Leslie was perhaps one of the best known and most highly esteemed
physicians who located in northern Texas in the days of its early
settlement.
He was a native of Alabama, being born in Monroe County in that state
on the
20th day of January, 1825. From that state he removed to Mississippi
and
located at Carthage, where he commenced the practice of medicine in
1847. In
1848 he married Miss Ellen Louisa Jack, and removed to Lamar County,
Texas, in
1850. Removing again in 1852, he located in Mantua, Collin County, and
upon the
establishment of the town Van Alstyne in 1873, he located in that
place, and
Thomas C. Roberts Thomas
C. Roberts was born in McMinn County, Tennessee, August 3d, 1823. Was
married to Nancy P. Miller in 1844.
M. L. Webster M.
L. Webster, who has for many years been conspicuous in the upbuilding
of the
town of Whitesboro, was born in Ralls County, Missouri, July 1st, 1826.
He came
with his father to Texas in 1845, locating on Jordon Creek in what is
now
Grayson County. In 1846 he was ordered by the governor to raise a
company of
militia, of which he was elected captain, but the war
Joshua West When
Grayson County was organized, it appears that in the selection of
officers
the people looked for honest and capable men, and the men thus chosen
show in
their characters that but little thought was had that there would be
any need
for that heroic courage now deemed so necessary, especially in
executive
officers. Particularly does this seem apparent in the selection of
their first
sheriff ~ a man as modest and reserved in his manners as a girl. This
man was
Joshua West.
Thomas W. Randolph When
the biographer attempts to write of the lives of those he knew best and
moved most, the task is one of the hardest, as
Benjamin F. Christian When
a man dies and those who knew him all say he was a good man, and his
life
has been worthy to be an example for every young man, then those who
knew him
not will appreciate anything that will perpetuate the memory of such a
noble
character. Such a man was Benjamin F. Christian, who first saw the
light in
Tennessee about the year 1814. He came to Texas in 1844 and settled in
Upshur
County. He removed from there to Bonham shortly afterward, and married
a
daughter of Capt. Mabel Gilbert. In 1858, he located in Sherman and
engaged in
the hotel business. His wife died in 1863, and in 1864 he was married
to Miss
John R. Diamond John
R. Diamond was born in DeKalb County, Georgia, May 14th, 1820, and died
in
the city of Whitesboro, Grayson County, Texas, October 5th, 1880. John
R.
Diamond became a pioneer late in the '40s after the Mexican War, and
with his
young family removed to Pontotoc County, Mississippi. From thence he
removed to
Rusk County, Texas, and continuing westward he next settled in Collin
County.
But in 1852, preempted and settled on what is now known as the J. R.
Diamond
Peters' Colony Headright, one mile west of Whitesboro. Here he
announced to his
family that he had found the country for which he had been looking, and
that
they would be called on to move no more.
Henry C. Ritchey Biographical
sketches of the old pioneers who settled on the
"divide," where Whitesboro has since been built, would be incomplete
without recording the name of Henry C. Ritchey. In looking over the Whitesboro
News, of the second day of September, 1882, we find "that
Henry C.
Ritchey was born in the state of Kentucky in the year 1821. He came to
Texas in
the year 1834, with the families of the Ritcheys, the Latimers, the
Dixons, and
the Foremans, who have all done so much for the Republic, and state of
Texas,
since those early days of pioneer toil and hardships; all of whom first
made
their homes in Red River county. He was married in the month of
October, 1845,
to Miss M. S. Gilliam, who with their two sons Charles E. and Joseph C.
still
survive him."
Overton Love Among
the prominent characters who figured in the early settlement of Grayson
County was Overton (Sobe) Love, now a resident of the Indian Territory,
where
he stands in the front rank of progressive and substantial citizens.
Judge Love
has always felt and manifested the greatest interest in the prosperity
and
advancement of the Territory and of Texas, and the many trusts he has
had
confided to him show that the people of both countries have confidence
in his
sound judgment and business integrity. He has for many years held the
position
of Judge of the Supreme Court of the Chickasaw Nation. The recent large
amount
of money paid out in the Territory by the general government, was due
in a
great measure to his untiring efforts.
Col. Matthew Leeper Col.
Matthew Leeper was born at Lincolnton, North Carolina, in 1804, and was
the son of a soldier of the Revolutionary War. From his native state he
removed
to Tennessee, and from thence to Fayetteville, Arkansas, in 1829, at
which
place he held the responsible position of [federal] receiver of public
monies
through every administration from Andrew Jackson to Zachary Taylor. He
was
married at Fayetteville, Arkansas, to Miss Lucy Washington, a
descendant of the
family from which sprang the immortal George Washington.
Benjamin F. Savage Benjamin F. Savage was born in Cooper County, Mississippi, April 5th, 1827. Moved from Dade County, Missouri, to Grayson County, Texas, in the autumn of 1846, where he has resided ever since. He was married to Miss Martha D. Pitman, July 26th, 1849. They have nine living children, thirty-four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. He has followed farming and stock raising for a living. He is now Justice of the Peace, and living in Whitesboro. For the past thirty-five years he has been a member of the Masonic Fraternity. Has been a life-long Democrat. He is now vice-president of the Old Settlers Association.
Charles Wheelock Charles Wheelock, one of the first settlers of what is now Grayson County, moved to Texas in 1844 and located on Jordon Creek about twenty miles west of the present site of Sherman. At that time all this country was a portion of Fannin County, and Bonham was the county site [seat]. He died on the same place in 1848. His widow removed to Cooke County and died shortly thereafter. Note : A sketch of the life of Judge J. G. Thompson will appear in part II. 
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