Search
Print

Histories

» Show All     «Prev «1 ... 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 ... 931» Next»     » Slide Show

From Tennessee To Texas in 1881

http://www.mindspring.com/~r-cfn/tentx.html

From Tennessee To Texas in 1881

Hutcheson Family Stories

Started: Birchwood, Tennessee on December 6, 1881 

Arrived: Weatherford, Texas on December 9, 1881


Grandsons who have the pleasure of hearing interesting stories from their grandfathers enjoy a rare treat that is not soon forgotten. The following account was given to Jim Bole Hutcheson by his grandfather Charles Lafayette Hutcheson.

In 1879, James C. Hutcheson found favorable living conditions in Parker County, Texas near Springtown. Through communications with him, it was learned by his relatives in Birchwood, Tennessee that open-range, good water, and cheap land was plentiful. In the summer of 1881, William Lafayette and Alfred L. Hutcheson, along with Pleasant Doughty came to Texas to buy land for settling their families. They selected the Springtown area and bought large tracts of land. The price of land varied between one dollar per acre for rather poor grassland to ten dollars per acre for good farming land. Two of the farms purchased by these men are still owned by their descendants. After a few days in Texas, the men returned to east Tennessee to begin preparations for moving their families to Texas. All of the land owned by them in Tennessee was sold so that there would be no reason for the families to return to their native state. In August 1881, William Newton Hutcheson and William Henry Casey, a friend, came to Texas to complete the deal for the purchase of the land bought by William Lafayette Hutcheson. These young men, about twenty years of age, came by train on the northern route. They brought the money for transaction because there were no banks at that time that could handle this type of business. Besides the responsibility of paying for the land, they also had the task of securing farm equipment, teams, feed, household furnishings, and other supplies for the families which were to arrive before the end of the year. One favorable feature was that a comfortable farmhouse had been built on the farm of William L. Hutcheson.

On December 4, 1881, forty-nine people, gathered by William L. Hutcheson, met in Chattanooga, prepared to leave for Texas. The travelers, from Birchwood, boarded a steamboat at Blythe's Crossing, on the Tennessee River near the Hiwassee River. Charles Lafayette Hutcheson was eighteen years of age at this time. His parents were a little over fifty years of age. Two railway companies were bidding for the arrangements of the trip, one a northern and the other a southern. The one offering the southern route plan agreed to transport the party for one hundred and fifty dollars less than the northern, provided they would wait until the next morning to depart. On Monday, December 6, 1881, the group filled one passenger coach, which was to be their home on the trip from Tennessee to Texas. The group carried some forty thousand dollars with them. The women carried most of the money hidden in their clothing. An interesting part of the trip was during the departure at Chattanooga when the train was skirting Lookout Mountain. It was described as rather frightening to look to the right and see the summit of the mountain far above them and to look to the left and see the Tennessee River winding around far below.

Upon reaching Memphis with the coach in the coupling yards, the Silas Witt family sent their oldest son, Calvin, to a nearby restaurant for some food. Cal was foolishly given all the money the family possessed. While the boy was getting the food, the train whistle blew, exciting Cal. He left the restaurant so hurriedly, in fear of missing the train, that he left all the money on the counter in the restaurant. As the family was completely out of funds, the other members of the party supported the family on the remainder of the trip.

To cross the main rivers which had no bridges, the coach boarded a specially built ferry with tracks for the train. The second night of the trip was spent in Little Rock, Arkansas, where the coach was changed to another train. The trip on the Southern Railway ended at Texarkana, and the remainder of the trip was made on the Texas and Pacific. Mr. C.L. Hutcheson, as well as many of the elder boys and men, carried a gun throughout the trip. Mr. Hutcheson had a Smith and Wesson "Six Shooter". The trip was not without amusing incidents, one of which was the following: One member of the group stepped to the front of the coach and said, "Stickem'up, this is a holdup". It was quickly known that the travelers had no intention of giving up their money. The cocking of cap and ball pistols could be heard all over the coach.

The third night was spent in Texarkana. With the change to the Texas and Pacific lines, the travelers felt they were nearing their destination. Only after another long day of travel they were in Fort Worth on the fourth night. They knew they were really in Texas and not too far from their new homes. Upon reaching Weatherford on December 9, they were met by William Newton and William Henry, the fellows who came ahead to get ready for the families’ arrival. There were also some friends and relatives on hand to greet them. For those familiar with Weatherford at the present, in 1881, the train station was on the east side of North Main Street and up the track a bit. The town was described by Mr. Hutcheson as a "shanty town" with wooden sidewalks. Saloons were plentiful and it was also noted that there was a large William & Cameron Company Lumber yard. "The houses were scattered over a large area," said Mr. Hutcheson. Little time was lost after arrival in Weatherford. They were soon on their way, in wagons, to their new homes in the north part of Parker County. This part of the trip was slow for the travel weary people. Although this trip was not as melodramatic as a trip by covered wagon would have been, it must have taken great courage to make the trip in a new and poor region.

Those coming to Texas in the group were: William Lafayette and Ruth Hutcheson, Charles Lafayette (age 18), James Doughty, Samuel Emmitt, George Oscar, Harriett Ellen, Sara Elizabeth, and Laura Alfred C. and Louisa Hutcheson, Walter and Maggie William R. and Emma Doughty, Collins, Lou and Crate Pleasant and Martha Doughty, Jeff D., Lambert, Walter, Dillie, Ida, and Ellie Grandmother Rachel Doughty. Grandmother Sarah (Wellington) Worthington. Hutcheson Holman Mrs. Regina Holman (widow of Lavendar Murphy Holman) Willis, Lewis, Jemema, Corda, and Edith Silas (age 46) and Maratha Jane Conner Witt (age 38) Calvin (age 19), Nettie (age 17), Violet (age 15), Jennie (age 13), Jim (age 12), Melie (age 10), Nat (age 7), Will (age 4), Tiney, and Hattie W.A. (Bud) Haney Josh Baker Dr. Lewis

These people soon established themselves in the new land and assumed the responsibilities of good citizens, even under many privations and often dangerous living conditions. To be able to adjust and survive are known qualities that each transplanted citizen must have.

 



Warning: Undefined variable $allow_media_add in /homepages/12/d484092304/htdocs/www/family/showmedialib.php on line 640
Linked to

» Show All     «Prev «1 ... 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 ... 931» Next»     » Slide Show




Home Page |  What's New |  Surnames |  Photos |  Histories |  Documents |  Cemeteries |  Places |  Dates |  Sources