TALBOT COUNTY, GA - HISTORY LETTERS Robert Brooks from Daniel B. Brooks Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by: Hank Wenzler hwenzler@pdq.net Table of Contents page: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ga/talbot.htm Georgia Table of Contents: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ga/gafiles.htm COPY OF LETTER ADDRESSED TO: Robert Brooks, Esq. Talbotton, GA. My Dear Father, Texas, Velasco, Jan. 18, 1836 Mouth of the Brazos River Having written my feelings on the other sheet I will now proced to give you a more Explicit Explanation of this Country so far as my knowledge and information extends. I landed at this place and have seen the country for four or five miles round the whole that I have seen is low marshy Perrary five and ten miles across the water courses are lined with trees and undergrowth. Live oak is the principal timber. The skirts of the timbered land are from100 yards to a mile wide and as rich as lands can possible is these are the lands that produce 2000 pounds of cotton per acre. The parrary lands are not quite so rich----------they are only---------for rice plantations, owing to them laying so low on the coast. I went up the river to Columbia, 30 miles-there I saw some of the richest and prettiest land in the world. It was much higher and the woodland skirts much broader. This is as far as I have been. I have been informed that the interior or up countrie is a rich elevated healthy woodland woodland land. Say one third or one fourth of the former. As to game there is 2 deer in this country for every hog in Georgia, plenty of large fat wild hogs and cows, plenty of wolves, panthers and bears and in the interior millions of buffalo and wild horses and as to fowls, I sit at camp and see gangs of Brants-------and 10 miles long Brants are a species of the goose and a person not acquainted with them would take them to be geese. ---There is plenty of geese, ducks, and Sandhill cranes and all other kinds of cranes and the Tilikin with a bill nearly as long as your arm---in fact this is the greatest place for fowls and birds of all kinds that I have ever seen. The rivers and creeks are full of almost all kinds of fish viz: mullet, Trout, perch, flounders, redfish, catfish, Sheep’s Head with thousands of others that I know no name for. The coast also abounds with all kinds of shell fish in the greatest profusion. Give me bread in this country and I can live hunting with my gun and fish hook. Cows and hogs grow to an enormious size here the milk cows are as large as the large oxen that I ever saw in Georgia. I took a file of men and went after meat a few days past, we killed four wild hogs about 2 years old that averaged 250 pounds net. The range for cows and hogs must be good for fifty years hence they require no more feeding than will keep them from going wild. Northern horses will not do well here except great care is taken of them the first year, but mules do extremely well. I feel proud that I have come to Texas although I may fall through in my calculations not with stranding. The Society is bad I had rather live here that any other part of the world I have ever seen. I would suit Robt. Crittenden to a fraction. Let me entreat you not to neglect writing to me for to receive a letter form home would be the next greatest pleasure to being there. Also tell all my friends that I would be more than happy to receive a letter from any boddy in Georgia. Please direct your letter to me at MATAGORDA, Care of Col. Fannin. You will have to pay postage or they will be stoped in New Orleans. Please direct all the letters that you may write me between this and the first of May as above and if I move from there I will inform you (ink blotch) to New Orleans for the letters (more ink) to be---there for me. Give my best love to my (more ink) brothers and sisters and all my friends and relatives, kiss my child for and do in the name of every thing that is sacred take good care of her and keep her until I return or as long as you live. Mine is a soldier’s like and such uncertin, but a contending in a glorious cause and will never disgrace the ----- or Sullie the name of a soldier. My paper is now given out. I could write always but I must close my bad written and ill composed letter by assuring you I will make the best use of the time I stay in Texas and will return as soon as honor and interest will permit until then farewell. Yours affectionately, D. B. Brooks ========================= Copy of letter addressed to: The parents of Daniel B. Brooks (Robt. Brooks) Texas, Goliad, Fort Defiance, March 10th 1836 My Dear Parents, I write again to inform you that the Mexicans have not kiled me yet and that I am in good health and that I have become so much hardened by hardships, privations and fata----that nothing short of powder, lead or steel could sour me. Hard as for proof I had the measles. They broke out on me while marching. I walked all day and at night took my blanket and lay down on the sand all night in the dew. I did not loose a single hour of daylight. I wore them spang out in four days. I wrote you last from the Bay of Aransas. I then thought we would into Mexico but the commanders thought best to abandon the expedition and to come and fortify this place. Accordingly we came and have done so. This is a small Mexican town on the St. Antone River, 45 miles north of Aransas Bay. We have had no fights yet but we expect it constantly. 2 Companies or about 70 men were surprised and cut to pieces by the Mexican Cavalry---miles below this. They were about 9 miles apart and had lain down without any guard out to made their escape and we learn this evening that then are prisoners and the balance we suppose are kiled. St. Antone, a fortified town about 90 miles up this river has been attacked by 2 or 3 thousand Mexicans and has been defended spartan-like by 170 men for some days past. They have been about 200 Americans and they can now keep the cowardly rascals at a respectful distance. The Mexicans, the last account states, had thrown a thousand bomb shells into the fort and had wounded only one man and him only slightly. Then it came to this place that ---------had been taken prisoners by the hostile Mexicans and stated that the Cavalry consisting of 150 men were still near the place where they cut the Americans to pieces and expecting to be joined by a thousand troops of Infantry from St. Antone and march against this place. I rather expect that 200 Americans will be sent from this place tomorrow to supprise those 150 before the infantry joins them. Since I wrote you last I have seen about sixty miles of the country round this place. The lands down here are generally poor except on the _______and nearly all prairie. I should not like to live in this part of the country but I understand that there is plenty of good land higher up the country and as soon as my time is out, which will be the 17th of May next if I live I shall quit the army and go and get my land. If they pay me which they say they will do I will have something near four hundred dollars coming to me including back rations. I can get but few more acres by remaining in the army and I am already entitled to 4,444 acres. I think I can make lots of money by speculating in this country while it remains so unsettled. If I find I can I shall not be home before next December. In fact I do not expect to be there much sooner any way unless I could hear very flattering news from my little wife. If Caroline and me never live together again I shall most certainly settle myself in Texas and bring my child with me. If we do I shall then leave it to her pleasure to say where we shall settle. I shall not sell my land until I know fully. Write to me soon and direct your letter to : Capt. Philip De Austin Company (?) in care of Col. Fannin. Excuse this bad written letter for my ink is gun powder and water and my desk is a shaking board and constantly hurried. Respectfully your son, D. B. Brooks Envelope was postmarked 19 April 1836 in New Orleans, Addressed to Robt. Brooks, Esq., Georgia, Talbot County, Talbotton ================NOTES======== This letter is from one of the Georgia Volunteers with Col. Fannin in the Texas War for Independence. Daniel B., was killed at Victoria, TX on 21 March 1836. The letters above (transcription) were written from Goliad (Fort Defiance) to his father in Talbotton on 10 March 1836. He speaks of his daughter, Amanda, and how he would like to bring her to Texas to live with him on the land that he will get as payment for his service to Texas. For more complete history see: http://www.tamu.edu/ccbn/dewitt/goliadgeorgia.htm They arrived at Velasco, at the mouth of the Brazos, on Sunday, December 20, aboard the schooner Pennsylvania, which they had boarded at New Orleans. Daniel Brooks died and the land went to his heirs. I don't know if the mother, Caroline Brooks came out to Texas to claim the land, but I also have a copy of a letter from an attorney in Columbus, Ga. to Caroline in care of some man named Barclay, in Macon City, AL. It was written on 1 July 1839 telling the widow that she had to come to Texas to claim the land by Jan of 1840. We just have bits and pieces of history and letters to try to put these times and dates together. The records show that Daniel Brooks father was Robert R. Brooks from Talbotton. I found another record on FHC that shows Robert Brooks as married to Francis Baugh, which is Daniel's middle name. I believe the records are one in the same. Georgia C. Paul is father is shown to be a William Paul, b. 1782 in NC and the mother as just Mary B., b.cir.1800-1810. Record also indicates that Georgia had a brother named Burton Paul.. then the records goes on to show his marriage and family, etc. In the 1850 Al Census for Macon Co. AL I found a listing for Amanda Brooks, daughter of Daniel and Caroline, living with a Robert B. Paul and wife. She was 16.