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From “The Lone Star State” published 1892
The following is a bit from the chapter about Johnson and Hill County. THE LONE STAR STATE “Johnson and Hill Counties” 1892 Mrs. Jane M. Patterson, relict of John Patterson, and a lady much respected for her many excellent qualities of mind and heart, was born in Glasford Parish, Scotland, December 29, 1833. Her parents, James and Isabel(sic) Wood, were natives also of Scotland, in which country they were married, and in 1851 they came with their children, nine in number, to the United States. Previous to this, the father had bought some land in Texas from an English colony company and had sailed to America to settle on…
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1859 James Wood Land in Erath County and Sale to M. Frazier
Page One The State of Texas County of Hill Know all men by these presents that I, James Wood, of the county of Hill and state aforesaid for and in consideration of the sum of $125 dollars to me in hand paid the receipt whereof is hereby fully acknowledged have bargained sold aliened and conveyed and by these presents do bargain sell alien and convey to Monro Frazier of the county of Erath and state of Texas his heirs and Assigns forever all of the following described tract or parcel of land to wit, lying and being situated in the county of Erath on the Paluxy River about…
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Crazy Jane’s Obituary and the End of R.A. Ferguson’s C5 Brand
Background Robert Andrew Ferguson, R.A., Uncle Bob, the C5 Horse and Cattle Man…Grandpa Ferguson. Whatever name you think he went by, he was a big deal in the part of Hill County. He made his fortune in the gold fields of California and invested his gold in horses. R.A. was supposed to have had more horses under brand than any man in the world and his obituary indicated that he kept them long past the time when he could work them. He just loved his horses and spent a good deal of his fortune in his later years for the privilege to have them. R.A. donated the land for what…
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Jane Patterson 1910 “Early Reminiscences” Hillsboro Mirror
Background Jane Wood Frazier Patterson was interviewed in the spring of 1910, and gave her memories of her life. There are some errors in the letter. A few include the story about the family in Leon County. I refer you to the letter written by Isabella Riddell Wood about their journey to Ft. Graham. This articles also states that brother Hugh left for the Gold Fields of California was never heard from since. We have letters from Hugh so…I don’t know about the “never hearing from him again” unless he went to California almost a decade after the Gold Rush. Our letters stop before the start of the Civil War. …
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Early Baptists in Texas 1884
Background Religion was an important part of the lives of early Texan settlers. When my great, great, great grandparents immigrated, they brought with them their staunch Scots Presbyterian beliefs. They joined the Presbyterian church in Milford and were buried in the Milford Cemetery…a strong indication of their affiliation with that church even until the time of their deaths. Of course, other churches moved into the area as population increased. When the Baptists traveled through, they visited Isabella and R.A. Ferguson. R.A. admittedly never joined a church, but he did refer the visitors to his wife. Isabella had been raised Presbyterian by her parents James and Isabella. However, with new churches…
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Renick and Frazier Document October 15, 1872
Background This is the Renick and Frazier business. George Renick and James C. Frazier are the owners. James C. Frazier is Monroe Frazier’s brother. The original document has all of the blanks you see below. The information isn’t filled out so this may have been a preliminary document that needed to be filled out. The Document RENICK & FRAZIER Oct. 15, 1872 __________ of R.A. Ferguson and J.R. Davis a note for the balance of the purchase money for a tract of land sold for the heirs of James Wood ___________________ in Paluxy in Erath County said note ________ on the ______ day of 1872 due _____________my with per…
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Isabella Ferguson Letter to George Renick 9 September 1878
Background I believe that George Renick is the business partner of James C. Frazier. These men ran Renick and Frazier and seem to do land transactions. I don’t know if they were real estate agents or surveyors or lawyers who specialized in land transactions. I am sure if we lay all of their documents out, we could maybe tell. James C. Frazier is the brother to Monroe Frazier, husband of Jane Wood Frazier (by this time, Patterson), the sister of Isabella Ferguson. In this letter we see that R.A. is “out west” and won’t be home for three months. The boys, Robert and Jimmie, are most likely Isabella and R.A.’s…
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Lillias Park Ferguson Letter to Jeanette Wood Ward July 28, 1869
Background Lillias Park was orphaned when her parents, William and Frances Park died in Leon County on the journey to Ft. Graham. Lillias and her brother, Archibald, raised by the Woods and their other siblings, William and David were raised by the Ridgeway family. Lillias married R. A. Ferguson‘s nephew, John Ferguson. When Lillie speaks of Aunt Isabella, she is referring to her adoptive sister Isabella who married John Ferguson’s uncle R.A. Sorry if this is confusing, I didn’t do the matchmaking. The Letter July 28, 1869 Dear Jeannette or Jennette, I will commence an answer to your letter which I received on the 18th of this month. We…
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James “Squire Jim” Ferguson’s Account of Their Trip to California
Background We’ve all heard about Robert Andrew Ferguson’s exploits as a cowboy. He helped tame the wild West, had more horses under brand than any man in the world, and was one of the wealthiest men in Hill County. Before all of that, he was a young man in Gaston County, North Carolina when opportunity in the way of a gold rush in California came knocking. Gold was discovered on January 24, 1848 at Sutter’s Mill in Coloma, California. The news of the discovery of gold was first announced in San Francisco by a newspaper publisher in March of 1848. Evidently, he walked through the streets with a vial of gold…
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Ferguson Men and the California Gold Rush – George P. Ferguson Account
Background Four Ferguson men left Gaston County, NC for the California gold fields in 1849. They were James “Squire Jim” Ferguson, his son William; Squire Jim’s nephew, Robert Andrew Ferguson, and Alfred Hall Ferguson, son of George W. Ferguson. The following was written by Alfred H. Ferguson’s brother George Porter Ferguson. He lived in Hillsboro, Hill County, Texas for a number of years and certainly knew R.A. Ferguson as they did not live far apart. It is interesting that George P. Ferguson states that his brother, Alfred, died in California. This is not true. Alfred remained in California until his death in January of 1909. A quick search for our…