• Family Genealogy Research,  Ferguson

    Ferguson Land Records in Hill County, Texas in 1890

    Background R.A. Ferguson bought a lot of land in Hill County, Texas and elsewhere.  He needed it as he was a stockman and also providing for a large family.  In 1887, he purchase 13 acres near his home (deed recorded in 1890).  This was abandoned land.  Notice that the chain carriers were JW Ferguson and RM Ferguson, his sons. I attached the link to the pdf of these documents below.  In the field notes, they use the word “vacancy” a lot.  I haven’t seen that word used in other surveys.  Was this land scraps between other parcels of land that belonged to no one? The Documents 13 acres land RA…

  • Family Genealogy Research,  Ferguson

    Robert Andrew Ferguson’s Buried Gold in Hill County, Texas

    Background I am thrilled that the Gaston Gazette published these stories about R.A. Ferguson.  However, I am not certain about the dates and all the details.  For example, in one of their articles, they have him heading to the gold fields of California before gold was discovered.  In another, they say he went with one companion when we know that he went with his uncle, Squire Jim Ferguson, Squire Jim’s son, and another cousin.  Still, the articles provide insight into what happened.  We need to piece all the facts and details together from all the articles if we are to have a clear picture of R.A.’s adventures. The Article Excerpt…

  • Family Genealogy Research,  Ferguson

    Robert Andrew Ferguson: Not a Common Man

    Background Following his death in March 1910, an article illustrating Robert Andrew Ferguson’s life appeared in the Gaston Gazette.  Some of the dates and timeline are incorrect, I believe, if you compare them to other documents we have.  Over all it is an amazing tribute fitting for an amazing life. The Article Published in the Gaston Gazette, Gaston, NC on Tuesday, April 12, 1910 NOT A COMMON MAN. Late R.A. Ferguson, Gaston County Man Who Recently Died in Texas, Was a Hero from His Youth – Caught Monkeys in South America and Mined Gold in California- Sketch of an Interesting Career. Some weeks ago the Gazette published an account of…

  • Family Genealogy Research,  Ferguson

    Robert Andrew Ferguson Dies In Texas: Gaston, NC Obituary

    Background R.A. Ferguson is kind of a big deal in our family.  I suppose that this is because he lived a larger-than-life sort of life.  Robert Andrew Ferguson was a cowboy in Texas before and after the Civil War.  He went on horse and cattle drives and is reported to have had more horses under brand than any man in the world.  His was the C-5 brand and we are all just a little bit proud of him for his accomplishments.  Lately, I have found documents that paint a clearer picture of him.  R.A. (Uncle Bob to many) had beautiful penmanship.  He was a good friend.  Grandpa Ferguson liked to…

  • 1846 Homestead Renovation,  Wood

    Treasures from the Wardrobe

    The Treasure Hunt It takes no stretch of the imagination to believe me when I tell you that the house in the photo above was full of nasty trash, furniture, rat droppings and general yuckiness.  How much imagination would it take to believe that we found some really cool stuff as we pawed through every stinking item wearing latex gloves and respirators? Before we threw one thing away, Jerry and I went through every box, drawer, and closet in the house item by item.  Some folks had already come and stolen items from the house and went through things.  Jerry and I were the only ones who could have told…

  • 1846 Homestead Renovation

    Wedding Bells Ring!

    Not Your Typical Wedding Planning Have you ever heard the joke about going to a fight and a hockey game breaking out?  That is what Jillian and Mike’s wedding reminds me of.  We were in the middle of saving the house and cutting back and burning limbs one minute, and the next, we are planning a wedding. Jillian and Mike came to help us with the house this weekend.  We spent the day using the chainsaws.  And then, Jillian and Mike shocked the socks off of us at dinner.  They announced that they wanted to get married…in two weeks.  And they wanted the wedding near our place.  And they thought…

  • 1846 Homestead Renovation

    Reusing the Original Stone in the New Fireplace

    Things I Hate for $1000 If you have read anything on this blog, you can probably guess that my number one most hated thing when we started was having to alter the house.  I wanted to keep it original.  Period.  The first thing we needed to do was shore up the foundation and get the house out of the dirt.  That made sense.  Of course, the first thing we had to do was (insert drum roll here) tear down the beautiful (to me) chimneys.  Dang it. Looking at the photo above, and also now that I am in a more rational state of mind, I can see clearly that the…

  • 1846 Homestead Renovation

    A Colossal Error in Concrete Staining

    We decided that stained concrete was the way we wanted to go with flooring in the new addition.  Stained concrete is inexpensive and it is durable..  Unfortunately, ours has big problems and I am not sure how to fix it. It Started Off So Well… Jerry and I went to Dallas to a concrete staining store.  They had everything we would ever need to be successful.  We looked at all the products, colors, and tools.  We were ready to commit that day to purchasing what we needed.  I had a clear idea of what I wanted the floor to look like.  Neither of us wanted a solid color.  We liked…

  • 1846 Homestead Renovation

    The Stairs in the New Addition

    When the framers started to work on the second story, it was obvious that we needed to install the stairs in order to make their lives easier.  It did look strange to be building stairs to seemingly nowhere, but the decision was made that it was time for them to be installed and install them we did. The Design What would the stairs look like?  I really wanted to get the old staircase out of my great grandparents’ house.  It was the first banister I ever slid down (with the permission of my great aunt Margaret Jo and in spite of the disapproving look from my grandmother).  That was an…

  • Uncategorized

    Using The Church Handrails

    The Handrails My grandfather, Warren Ferguson, was an all around great guy.  He was funny and loving.  He was a hard worker.  As a welder and tinkerer in just about everything, he was an invaluable member of his small farming community of Mertens, Texas.  Many of the farmers in the area will testify that Warren (Dadaw) could fix anything.  Dadaw would hitch his welder behind his pickup and go where he was needed.  I loved him bunches. My grandparents were also life-long members of the only church in Mertens, the First Baptist Church.  My grandmother wrote the historical marker that resides in front of the church.  My grandfather built the…