Biography of Rev. Henry D. Nichols, Bowie County, Texas *********************************************************** Submitted by: V Richardson Date: Apr 2000 Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/tx/bowie/bowitoc.htm *********************************************************** Watlington Manuscript The Rev. Henry D. Nichols The subject of this little sketch was born near Ft. Gaines in the State of Georgia, pn October 12, 1849. This father, Theo Nichols, was engaged for several years at Eufola, Alabama, in Merchandising, and moved with his family In 1852, to Jefferson, Texas, where he again entered the Mercantile field. He continued in that line of trade until The beginning of the Civil War, when he entered the Confederate Service as an Ordinance Chief, and remained In that branch of the service until its close, and then resumed His former business at Jefferson. Henry was reared in Jefferson, attended the local school and Academics of the country, and in 1869-70, went to New Orleans and studied Civil law and literature under Col. Charles Bucks And Dr. Whitaker of Philidelphia. On December 28, 1871, he married Miss Zenobia Hooks, A daughter of Capt. W. H. Hooks, and granddaughter of Col. Warren Hooks, a prominent pioneer of Bowie County. Mr. Nichols was one of the youngest soldiers in the Confederate Army, and while he does not admit it, one can almost believe that in his zeal and impatience to "do his bit", he must have left home without so much as a "goodbye". He was sworn into the service at the age of fourteen, but on Account of his youth, was only assigned to hospital and guard Duty. From Rev. Nichols' marriage to Miss Hooks, nine children were Born, of whom six are living, three being residents of Bowie County. He has given about forty years if his life to Bowie County, And as a farmer, or rather as superintendent of farming Interests, he modestly admits that he has been reasonably successful. He has been for many years, a minister in the Baptist Church, And proudly boasts that, he has baptized, married, and buried many people of two generations, and though now seventy years old, expects to marry and baptize another generation. It is worthy of note, a fact of which he is justly proud, that he never had a case in court or a quarrel with a neighbor, but has been instrumental in settling out of court, hundreds of civil and other cases for his friends,both white and colored. Mr. Nichols has ever taken an active part in politics, but has never Asked for an office, and has assisted in holding a majority of Primary and other elections in his precinct for thirty-five years. His father was a boyhood friend of the late Dr. I. M. Ball, and the Ellis, Runnels, Hooks, Moores, and other old Bowie County families, Long before the civil war, and life among their descendents, he says, Has been very pleasant for him. His wife is still active and cheerful, and has many friends and Relatives in Hooks, and in other sections of the county. They Reside in Hooks, where they have a pretty home, besides Valuable Red River farming interests. He is a great booster for Bowie County, and regards it the Best all 'round county in Texas. Mr. Nichols is an entertaining talker and like many old people, Likes to recall incidents and happenings of other days, and in The course of our conversation, he reverted sometimes, to early Times in Bowie, as learned from Col. Hooks, much of which would Be interesting to my younger readers., the habits and customs of The people, the hardships endured by them, and the vast number Of wild game - deer, turkeys, bears, bob-cats, and other smaller game. Col. Warren Hooks, as related in a previous chapter, came to Bowie In 1848, and while on the subject of wild game, Mr. Nichols Mentioned that Col. Hooks and his son, W. H. Hooks, in the course of one year, killed eighty deer without the trouble of hunting for them. It was some few miles from his home in the hills to his river plantation, the road winding through the woods lying between and as everybody in those days invariably carried their gun, these deer were all killed from the buggy, or from horseback without leaving the road. As late as 1870, deer were numerous, and the writer has seen and Counted as many as thirty odd in a single herd, and he can safely Say, that during the first ten or twelve years of his residence in Bowie, he killed more that 500 deer. Probably one-third of the number was killed "Fire-hunting". Blair McGee could justly claim a much greater number, often boasting of Having killed more than thousand, besides wild turkey innumerable. Wolves, too, were numerous as late as 1876, and were destructive to young stock - calves, sheep, and pigs, but were very rarely hunted with dogs, as they were generally in droves, and the common deer hound was no sort of match for the wolves, and in fact had learned from experience to give them all the range they demanded. Hundreds were poisoned with strychnine and as the country Gradually became more thickly settled, what few were left, like the deer, became almost extinct only at rare intervals, neither now, being heard of. But to go back to the original subject, Rev. Nichols recalls with fond recollection, the preaching days of his old friends and brothers In the ministry - The Revs. John Alexander, Merchant, Post, Echols, and others, and well remembered many pleasing incidents connected with those grand old preachers of by gone days. He has retired from the more active business pursuits, but still Maintains his office in Hooks, where, for several years he has had a monopoly of Notarial and other legal business. His health is fairly good for one of his age, and the hope is indulged by his many friend's, that he may be spared many more years of a happy, useful life.