Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1884-04-21
FRONTIER SKETCHES.
"reminiscences Of Early Days and First
settlers IN Comaucle and
BOsuue Counties.

remarkably good crop year all over Texas.
IL rained continuously all spring and sum.
mer and everybody knows here Is no poor
land in Northwest Texas IL 10 Is Kept wet,
and every grain OF seed that was planted
came up, matured and produced an album
dapt yield, aud such "A coat of grass as none
can form any idea OF but those who saw the
country in the fall of 1854. Every mast bear
ing tree was loaded with acorns, the br,,u ches
and springs were running flush all the year,
and the larger streams between the b, azVs
and the Colorado were past fordipg "a good
deal OF the timc. This unusual wet ,pring
aud summer was followed by an open warm
fall and winter. No ire ying weather until
after Christmas, and not much then, all ii
which was very fortunate for undertaking In
the winter 10 form n new settlement 20 re.
mote ON every thing, as our small squad
had Undertaken 10 do.
In my last sketch left us In camp on tina
night OF the 10th OF Decem her 1851, ON Mercer
creek, six miles south of the present town OF
Comnnche. The only white woman in oui
crowd were Mrs. Alice Mercer and the writ
er's wife, Mrs. Julia a. Co lier. Mrs. Mercer
was "A second wife, and MIR. MERGERS Juuior
by one score and ten years, and was fond OF
somewhere to wear II, and very much op-
posed to gong on the frontier. During our
slow and tedious "trip from Georgetown to
our camp on MERGERS creek, few days over
four months, Nj. AMI Mrs. Mercer had quar-
reltng for b leak fast. dinner and supper and
itth.re was anything between meals, 1t was
quafreling,
Mrs. Mercer was n good woman and un
firing IN n great many things, and one of
thOsc tnlngs was quarreling at Jesse, and al
times would pour out Walls of pen: up heated
wrath promiscronsl, on ''all the world ana
the rest oi mankind In general. While
travelling 10 was sorter bearable but AFTER
reaching our destination and stopping in
camp for two days IL got so bad that Uncle
Jesses iorbearance esased to be "a virtue, and
nom n war Of words a separation was agreed
to and division of traps and caiamiLies,
such as children, negroes, wagons, goods
wares and merchandise. quickly followed
This temporary separation baked for "A time
ADnafnntIV IN
writer no alternative but to return to The
settlements. But Mr.. ana Mrs. Mercer both
unb0sOmed their grievances to the writer
and his wife. no one else to talk to but ne
groes, and fortunately our efforts to bring
about reconciliation were awaiting and the
| matter ended without a final separation, aud
Alice quit for a time her scolding and quar-
reling, and We proceeded with our efforts 10
| locate ourselves, Mercer and the writer set
Ting ON the same tract of land ON Mercer
creek, Six miles south of the present. town of
Comanche, and improving the farm now
owned by Mrs. Caroline Montgomery. Upon
this tract OF land In the early part of Jan
uary, 1853, the writer erected the rrst cabiu
that was built In the territory now embraced
in Comapche county, in which cabin on the
| 30 h day of May, 1867 Thomas A. Collier, son
of +. NJ and Julia n Was born, the first child
| born In Comanche county. II. j. Holmsley
started Improvements on his tract
of land, two mites north ON aolmsley's
creek, and In The early part of February, 1855,
st ,ried a team of 1--WE yoke of oxen To break
| ing prairie, which was the first furrow
! ploughed In the county. The pow was Aeld
by Thomas j. Holmsley, then lust grown aud
| the team wa driven by James Taylor. This
| farm is now owned by James CunninPh m,
| ir. In the early pat of Eebru ny, Asa Reed,
| from Octibbeha county, Miss, arrived in the
| settlement, located ON Hoimsley's creek, aud
| improved the farm now owned by Jesse
johnson. About tbs middle of February DT.
| Tuggle arrived and improved the firm on
| MERGERS creek now owned by David III. Cum
bingham. About the pSt OF February John
| a. Mcclure Henry Martin, ST., and Charles
ii. lsh m. originally from Georgia, but then
| from Bell County, arrived and Mcclure I'm
proved the farm now owned by 4. j. HOlms-
| ley, one mile below the town of Comancha ON
Indian creek. Henry Martin, ST. settled four
miles lower down, and Charles H. Isnam two
miles above on Indian creek. These eig ht
families--Mercer. Collier and Tuggle ON MeI-
GERS creek, Holmsley and Reed ON Homs-
| ley's creek, and Moisture, Martin and Isham
on Indian creek-were the llrst settlers In
| the territory now embraced IN Comanche
county. ON the first day OF June, isS5 The
second child, son of John A. and Ley
| Mcclure, was born In Comanche county.
In the early part OF May 1sj5 NJ.
o. and Lee Coker immlgfatc from
and in June Chas. c. Campbell, originally
from Louisiana, arrived and settled ON Mcr-
GERS creek, and on the 18Th OF September,
1856, Kate. II daughter of Chas. q. ana Julia
| A. CaTpuell, was born, which was the third
| birth IN Comanche county. Kate grew 10
womanhood in Coms meme, and was rrst the
| wife Of DIR. Aldrdge, who shot himself acct
| denlally, but is now the wife OF } no. lander
| son n respected citizen of y ,nanchC.
! Ine w1ller moved from tOllanche u HOS
| que county In the carly part II january, ist6.
HIS son, 4. a Collier, the first child born ia
Comanche, was then In his eleventh year,
and has lived In this (Rosquej county ever
since; was principal deputy in the county
clerk : office during the wri er's two terms OF
that office, and was my successor for one
term, and is now a candidate for sheIiif of
Bosque county, Young VEG ire grew. 10
manhood and ktill lives In ,omancho; had
the misfortune lew years ago 10 lose one Of
his arms, sawed up In cotton gin. Mrs.
Lucinda Hoimsley, wife of b j. Eolmsley,
died April s, 1865. Mr.. Holmsley aud All his
children save one the writer's WIFE still re-
side in Comanche county. Dr. ransom
Tuggle and aunt Lizzi., his wife, have been
dead some four years. Uncle Henry Martin
passed away some twoyears ago; Dizzy Nc
Guire, wife OF 10 N A, died in 1852 Ihas. IL
I.ham emigrated to North ARKANSAS and
died at the close of the war In 1865; Mercerand
Asa Reed both smisratedi Mercer c golng TO
There are still living In Conanche two OF the
first settlers, viz, b. ]. Holmsley and Jn9. A;
and mu scattered as above stated. In Au ust
| 1855 +. II. Medley arrived from Tippah coun-
| ty, Miss and settled on South Leon, and IN
naily from Alabama, arrived and settled on
Mountain creek, ana by Christmas IS5b our
new settlement numbered thiityhve faml-
lies all told, and was scattered over cor slider
able territory, each one settling where he
| could procure a home easiest. Several set
Elements had been made during this lime In
the Leon valley from Gatesville up. Amor
them Lem Murrell settled on Plumb creek
twelve mics above Gatesville. and +. b. Gen
try and stephen Fnqua settling in the l.eor
valley neal the present town OF Hamilton
VIM. Neal and George X Hasty settling neal
the mouth of Risley' eek al those diff rent
settlements being STA ted by immignnts
from various sections formed Kind oi nu
cieus around which clustered Immigration as
they would arrive ana Locate. DurlLg inis
period Col John NJ. stephens had goneup tht
Bosque valley and was Uusy In his efforts "
induce immigrant, 10 locate In that beautiiu
| section aud assist him IN establishing MI
seat OF government t,tephensvll.el ana cree
a little kingdom out OF the future Erati
county. The Mercer settlement, as 1t wal
then called, was gradually incre asipg In mum
bers, and on the fourth sabbath Ia May, 80
Rev. %. +. Kemp, a Methodist itlnerant, theI
In charge fthe Gainesville mission, reaches
the nrst sermon in our new. new set
double live oak In the writer's yard
The irst death In the ettlcment was l'tti'
daughter OF Charles H. lshani. caused ny eat
ing berries that grew ON mesquite mlsuelos
n deadly poison. She was buried one iiii'
west OF the town of Conanche The secon.
, Death was the result of n fighs between Jess'
, Reed and John y. Foreman, In when roi.
man was killed, and was bur Cd near Wy
scene under IA live oak The writer was =
the tree last fall, and no traces OF gra'e"i
now visible. A.,
+ The first school and church house IN IN
: new settlement was erected in the snniins,
, | OF 1851, then ON Dr. Tuggles piac-, pul NOV
! David II. Cunningham's. The nfst ncnvo
was opened In the fall OF 1922 ana iausn. y,
Andrew Nissan. Later In the faii n y 81 =
cradle number OF immigi ants arrived anu ~
: Gated, a q most all were delighteu an'
< pleased with the prospects every way. ~
! dian depredations he'd not comInehcfu ,nen
, and rotwi. hstanding our remotenss,s ,ro,,
Il the situation with hopeful anticipaiions o.
4 bright ana prosperous future. Inc ie. IN