Morehouse Parish Memoir, Morehouse Parish, Louisiana File prepared and submitted by Sherry Sanford (SSanf51819@aol.com) ************************************************* Submitted to the LAGenWeb Archives ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http:/www.usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************ "Biographical And Historical Memoirs of Louisiana", Vol. II The Goodspeed Publishing Company, 1892 Morehouse parish was organized by act of the state legislature in 1844. It was wholly erected from the territory of the parish of Ouachita. A part of its territory was stricken off to form a portion of the new parish of Richland. It now comprises an are of 842 square miles. The alluvial soil is rich, practically inexhaustible, some fields in the county having been in cultivation upward of seventy-five years. The hills and uplands have a light sandy loam soil, very easily cultivated, and produce fair crops of corn and cotton. The first permanent settler, so far as could be ascertained definitely was Josiah Davenport, a native of Providence, R.I., who located on a beautiful prairie in the central part of the present parish about 1805. His deed was secured direct from Abraham Morehouse. With him came James Barlow, and later, about 1812, James Woodburn and A.A.H. Knox. Other settlers who were living at Prairie Mer Rouge in 1849 were Warren Alford, Washington Brown (president of the police jury for many years), David Brown, J.E. Sisson, Thomas Andrews. The next settlement was likely made on Bayou Bartholomew, called Point Pleasant. The first settler at Bastrop was William Gillespie, and the first merchant Archibald McIver. At the organization of the parish in 1844 the present site of Bastrop was selected for the seat of justice, and the name of Bastrop chosen in honor of Baron De Bastrop, the original propietor of a large tract of land in that locality granted to him by France. A single-roomed log house did duty for the first court purposes. In 1870 the next court building was destroyed by fire, and many valuable parish records were also lost. In 1871 the present building was erected, it is an imposing two-story brick structure. The first issue of a newspaper in Morehouse parish was on October 15, 1851, when William Prather printed the first number of the "North Louisianian." In 1865 or 1866, J. Harvey Brigham revived one of the former papers, but he soon sold out to Mr. Prather, the first editor. It was sold by Prather, in 1869, to J.T. Davis, who renamed it the "Morehouse Conservative," and conducted it as a democratic paper. In 1873 it was purchased by C.B. Wheeler, who changed both its name and politics. In 1874 David Todd started the "Morehouse Clarion," and in a few years bought out the "Republican." C.C. Tatum started the "Cotton Plant," but that paper was also soon absorbed by the "Clarion." The "Morehouse Sentinel," started by T.G. Brigham in 1884, as also incorporated into the "Clarion" in 1888-89. The "Clarion" has had various editors from time to time; the editorial chair is now occupied by Robert B. Todd. In October, 1890, a stock company established the "Morehouse Appeal" as a democratic and anti-lottery journal; it was ably edited by A.C. McMeans. On October 1, 1891, "The Mer Rouge Vidette" was started at Mer Rouge. Bastrop was incorporated February 24, 1852, and the first mayor was William Prather. The present city officials are James Campbell, mayor; J.T. Dalton, W.E. McMeans, W.A. Harrington, Moses Wolff and J.G. Heller, councilmen; A.C. McMeans, treasurer. Bastrop has a good public school, employing four teachers, as well as several private schools. There are churches of the Methodist, Baptist, Episcopal and Catholic denominations, and a Jewish congregation. Mer Rouge became a town on the advent of the railroad through Morehouse parish. It is now a busy place, with six business houses, a large steam gin, good school and Episcopal church and a weekly newspaper. There are some 15,000 acres under cultivation contiguous to the town, and in 1890 10,000 bales of cotton were shipped at this point. The first store was started here in 1851 by James B. Davenport. The Houston, Central Arkansas & Northern railroad was completed through Morehouse parish in 1890. Work has begun on the New Orleans & Northwestern, from New Orleans to Fort Scott and Kansas City. It will no doubt be completed soon, and will have a length in the parish of about thirty-three miles. The first county officials were: Aaron Livingston, sheriff; John R. Temple, parish judge; Tom McFee, clerk of the district court.