Goldsboro semi-weekly argus., 1909-04-28
AND THE YEARS ROLL ON
@-
Col. ". B. Fort Writes of a
Young Texan Heroes
Death.
His Remains Rest In Beautiful Willow
Dale Cemetery In This City and
His Grave Is Remembered
With Flowers, Flags
and SaluteS on
Memorial
DaV.

Day.
Editor Argus:
Jared K. White, a young, brave and
daring Texas Ranger, of Company B.,
Eighth Texas Cavalry, was killed
March 20, 1866, on the old Fort home
stead, located fourteen miles north OF
Goldsborc, Wayne county, North Caro-
lima, on Nahunta Swamp.
Extract from Goidsboro Argus, of
Saturday, June 27, 1904:
"Death of VIM. b. F. Fort.
'.There died yesterday morning at
a. m., a man not only remarkable
for his age, but for his ancestry as
we'll; he was Mr.. VIM. Benz. Franklin
Fort, father of our esteemed county
men, w. B. and J. w. Fort, of the Ma
hunta section. The deceased was 80
years of age, having been born on the
18th of June, 1911, on the plantation
tains 1,5OO acres of land, and where
all the hereditary generations of the
Fort family have been born, lived and
died, back to the time of King George
III, by whom it was granted to the
original Fort when all this section
was known as Dobbs county, the
county seat of which was New Bern,
and when Tryon was Colonial Cover
nor, occupying the Tryon Palace in
the City of Elms.'
F01rf q
ative of Benjamin Franklin, after
whom the subject of this sketch was
named, and there are now at the old
Fort homestead, where the deceased
died yesterday morning in Nahunta
township, silver and gold knee and
shoe buckles preserved through all
the passing generations of the Fort
family, as heirlooms from the Frank
lin branch thereof.
William Benjamin Franklin Fort
married Miss Evelyn Becton Isler
who preceded him to the grave thirty
five years ago. She was a relative OF
the Isler family of this city, and was
sister of the late Mrs. Council Woot
en-, who was mother of Mrs. Judge w
T. Faircloth, Of this place; so that ht
had a wide family connection, run
ming back through the years, will
some of our most distinguished peo
pie.
| Deceased was one of the oldes
members of the Primitive Baptis
| Church at Nahunta. His funeral will
be held from the old homestead thi
morning at IL a. m. Elder Jonathal
T. Edgerton officiating, and the inter
ment will be made in the ancestra
burying ground on the plantation"
From the above sketch it will b
noticed that the young Texas Range
lost his life and was first buried O
almost sacred ground. l saw an e.
tract from a Texas paper, June 2
1907, headed "In Memory of Teri
Rangers; Handsome Monument
the State Capitol Grounds of Austi
! Texas in Commemmoration of tt
, Valor Of the Eighth Texas Cavalr
+ Better Known as Terry Rangers, Pr
visional Army of the COnfedera
r.
f my memory back to April. 1865, whe
my only brother, the late J. w. Fol
G. and / had just returned from Lee
surrender at Appomattox, my broth
a paroled soldier of Stonewall Jac
# sons Corps and l parOled sailor u
II der Admiral Semmes, of the Confe
; lerate Navy, both arriving at home
q the old Fort homestead, where '
e found our aged father had surviv
A. the horrors of the terrible war wi
> serious fights had been fought
70 tween Wheeler's Cavalry and Sht
r mans advanced guards on their mar
wv to Greensboro, NC, where Johnso
ID army surrendered.
Mt The most important and bleodi
To of the conflicts fought on the
homestead was March 20, 1865,
,r. tween Texas Rangers and Feders
if The Federals were marching up
wv old mill lane and the Rangers W
ed fighting them under cover of bral
Sc. tparallel with the lane.
Ranger White would bravely l
out in the open, when on one of
bold dashes he was shot through
body and was killed, the same .bu
killing another Rangers horse uT
him, who instantly mounted VIII
horse and continued the fight U
=. the Rangers drove tie Federals
ab. across the swamp at the old hist
ns. mill where Whitney's first cotton