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Died, at the home of his daughter, Mrs. John Blair, on Tuesday
morning [December 21, 1897] at Wharton, Capt. E. S. Rugeley, after a
lingering illness, in the seventy-sixth year of his age. Owing to
the bad weather and condition of the roads, his remains were
temporarily deposited in the city cemetery at Wharton, but will, at
an early date be removed to the family burial grounds near Hardeman.
His death, though not unexpected, has cast a gloom over our county,
where he was held in high esteem by the entire citizenship. He was a
resident of this county since '45, but temporarily moved to Wharton
a few months ago. The BREEZE joins a large circle of friends in
extending sympathy to the bereaved family. The following is a brief
sketch of his life, for which we are indebted to the Wharton
correspondent of the Post:
"In the passing away of Judge E. S. Rugeley a
striking and notable figure of Texan history is removed. His father,
Hon. John Rugeley, a member of the widely known and celebrated
family of that name in South Carolina
, was one of the early Texan patriots. He had lived in the state of
Alabama previous to his coming to Texas, having served several times
as a member of the legislature; coming to Texas in 1840, he settled
in Matagorda county, where he engaged extensively in planting; he
served also in the congress of the young republic and was until his
death in 1878 a man of prominence and wealth. He left numerous
descendants, who, like their people before them, are of note and
value as citizens.
One of his sons, the subject of this sketch,
Edward S. Rugeley, was born in the State of
South Carolina seventy-five
years ago [September 12, 1822]. Of a naturally bright and
intellectual mind, he was prepared for the legal profession. Given
the advantages of a classical education at the
Columbia college in his
native State, he was admitted to the bar when a very young man;
coming to Texas
about the time it was entering Statehood in 1845 [here he] engaged
in the practice of his profession, and as a young man acquired fame
and promise. Following in the footsteps of his father, with the
accumulation of wealth came the desire to live the independent life
of "lord of the manor." Giving up his profession, he was soon
occupied with the duties of a planter, the rich soil of the famous
Caney beckoning an invitation. With his father he was among the
first to engage in the culture of sugar in South
Texas ; their plant was an extensive one, with
all the advantages of slave labor, which made it a profitable and
paying industry. At the first bugle note of war which awakened the
sections to strife, Judge Rugeley, then a man in the ___ and prime
of life, threw his all into the cause which threatened the hearth___
of his loved Southland. He tendered his services to his adopted
State, serving in Bates' and later in Brown's regiment, with the
rank of captain throughout the war. Returning to his home at the
close of the civil conflict, with the wreck and ruin of the war
around him, his once vast property sadly diminished, he again began
the struggle. His indomitable spirit was unconquered. Prosperity
came with thrift and good management; he was again surrounded with
every blessing of life. In 1875, in response to the almost unanimous
call of his people, he represented his district in the convention
which framed the present constitution of
Texas . A number of years
ago he gave up the life of a planter and served as judge of
Matagorda county for several terms with credit to himself and left a
record her citizens are proud of to-day.
Judge Rugeley was united in marriage to Miss Mary
E. Smith in Alabama
in 1845. The marriage was a happy and prosperous one, and the couple
have seen their children grow up around them to be their pride and
consolation. Seven children blessed the union, of whom three sons,
John, E. S., Jr., and Frank L. Rugeley, and two daughters, Mrs. John
Blair and Mrs. P. G. Brooks, both of whom live in Wharton, survive.
The sons live in Matagorda county.
Judge Edward Rugeley was a man made to be loved,
honored and respected. Of a strikingly genial disposition, easy of
approach, honest, open and high-minded, there were but few his
peers. A true type of the chivalric spirits who in ante-bellum days
strove so faithfully to make Texas
grand and great.
And thus they fall, these grand old pioneers.
Their like we shall not gaze on again. One by one they drift to the
ground like autumn leaves. They have achieved their span; they have
measured their space and will leave behind the record of their deeds
and work written in bright letters of gold upon the fairest pages of
the annals of their country for the children of posterity to praise
and emulate.
Of him who now passes in review it can be said
'His life book is ___, he throws down his worldly burden and goes on
his long rest a Christian by precept and example, a fair, pure
man--while the tears of kindred and friend shall alike prove his
worth.
The Bay City
Breeze
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In Memorium.
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It is
hard to bid farewell forever, to those we
love and death is always terrible, but when
a young, lovely and useful woman passes on
to the land of the silent sleepers, the
heart feels that something loveley in the
universe has ceased from existance and
broods with an utter sense of desolation
over the sad misfortune that should at once
take from husband, children, father, mother,
brothers, sisters and friends, one so
beloved by all who knew her well. "Those
whom the god's love die young."
Lealia
[Lelia] Elmore, wife of John Elmore and
daughter of Judge E. S. Rugeley, of
Matagorda County, died after a severe
illness at her home on Caney the 22nd day of
February, 1895, in the 33rd year of age, in
the prime of life she is taken from us,
leaving four beautiful little children, as
frail, perishable keepsakes and remembrances
of her existance. "The laws of God are
inscrutable."
It
cannot be that earth is our only abiding
place, that life is a bubble, cast up by the
ocean of eternity, to float a moment upon
its waves and then sink forever in darkness
and nothingness? Else why is it that the
high and glorious aspirations of our hearts
are forever unsatisfied, and finally, why is
it that bright forms of human beauty are
presented to our view and then taken from
us, leaving the thousand streems of
affections to flow back in an Alpine torrent
upon our hearts.
| Farewell,
Lelia,
Thou are gone
to the grave, but we cannot
deplore thee;
Though sorrow and darkness
encompass the tomb,
The Savior has passed through
its portals before thee;
And the lamp of his love is the
guide through the gloom.
Thou are gone to the grave--we
no long hold thee,
Nor tread the rough paths of the
world by thy side;
But the wide arms of memory are
spread to enfold thee,
And sinners may hope, since the
sinless hath died--
Thou are gone to the grave--and
its mansion forsaken,
Perchance, they weak spirit, in
doubt lingered long;
But the sunshine of Heaven,
beamed bright on thy waking,
And the sound which thou heard
was the seraphine's song.'
Requescat in
Peace. K. W.
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John A. Elmore Passes Away
Death Occurred Monday Afternoon After
Illness Extending Over Some Months.
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John
A. Elmore died Monday at 2:06 o'clock p. m.
at the Caney Valley Hospital, where he had
been taken some ten days previously for
treatment. His death was the result of
Bright's disease, from which he had been a
sufferer for many months.
The
funeral was held Tuesday at 10:30 a. m. from
the residence of Mr. and Mrs. W. F. Needham,
the remains being followed to the cemetery
by a large concourse of sorrowing relatives
and friends. Religious services were held at
the home, and then the Woodmen of the World,
of which order Mr. Elmore had long been a
member, took charge and under their auspices
the remains were consigned to the grave. The
hymns rendered by a few solo voices at the
grave were beautiful and appropriate.
Deceased was a son of Col. H. M. and
Elizabeth Patrick Elmore, and grandson of
General John A. Elmore, a soldier of the
American Revolution. He was born in Waverly,
Walker county, Texas, on February 1, 1856.
In the early 70s he served the state as a
ranger in company with John Blair, and in
1879 came to Matagorda county, where he
engaged in farming. In 1881 he was married
to Miss Lelia Rugeley, daughter of Capt. E.
S. Rugeley. The children born of this union
are Marshal, Mina (now Mrs. John Reading),
Ollie (Mrs. W. F. Needham), and John Archer.
All of these are residents of Wharton except
Mrs. Reading, who lives at Mart, Texas, but
was here when her father breathed his last.
Their mother died in February, 1895. In 1909
Mr. Elmore, then engaged in the contracting
business in the Brownsville section of the
state, was married to Miss Rosa Howell of
Brownsville, and of this union two children
were born, Joe McCain and Albert Croom, who
with their mother are residents of
Brownsville.
Mr.
Elmore's health becoming so precarious some
two years ago, he came here in the hope it
would be improved, making his home with his
children, but it gradually grew worse. A few
months ago his sons sent him to Mineral
Wells in the hope he would improve, which he
seemingly did for a time, but not for long.
A couple of weeks ago he became unable to
get about and he was placed in the hospital
and a trained nurse's services retained to
attend his every want, but he never rallied
enough to arouse hope that he would improve,
but peacefully and quietly passed into the
beyond on Monday afternoon.
Besides the children named, one sister, Mrs.
(Dr.) Rugeley of Bay City survives of the
immediate family.
Attending the funeral were a number of
friends from other points.
Wharton Spectator, Friday, October 29,
1913
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John A. Elmore
- Husband of Leila Rebecca Rugeley Elmore
Wharton City Cemetery, Wharton, Texas
Photo courtesy of
Gerald Powell |
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