from willie Isaacks, Cherokee County, Texas *********************************************************** Submitted by: Peggy Brock Date: 29 Jan 2010 Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm *********************************************************** I tried to transcribe this document exactly as it was written except for the width of the page and the comment I have placed inside [brackets]. Scans of the original document are located at http://www.usgwarchives.net/tx/cherokee/documents/history/isaaks-3.jpg http://www.usgwarchives.net/tx/cherokee/documents/history/isaaks-4.jpg http://www.usgwarchives.net/tx/cherokee/documents/history/isaaks-5.jpg http://www.usgwarchives.net/tx/cherokee/documents/history/isaaks-6.jpg Gina 4 September 1956 This is to all that may be interested in the Isaaks family from as far back as I am able to get together at this time. Will say that in the year 1800 in and near the town of Edgefield District South Carolina there was a family by the name of Isaacks. They had a boy born in 1800. They named him William Winston after his Dad and shortly after he was born the family moved to Hancock, Georgia. In 1805 a family by the name of Glass had a girl, and they named her Sallie so in 1824 William and Sallie got married, and shortly after their wedding they joined a wagon train of 16 other families and headed for Texas. All ox wagon some 4 yokes, but William and Sallie only had 2 yokes and a saddle horse. They had a big bell to put on one of the oxens at night so they could find them next morning, but the horses they would put hobbles on their front feet and ankles that made them stay put. They made for 15 or 20 miles a day. I have the bell now it has lots of history. Finally William and Sallie settled near Mylam in Sabine County. They stayed there until 1844 and had 9 children. William visited a sister Mrs. Baize near where Correnth Church now stands. He decided to move up to be close to his sister. So he went back and they got ready. Cattle, sheep, goats, hogs and of course geese and here they came and in 1845 they bought 32 acres of land from the state for $16.00, and built a hued log house. They both spent the rest of their lives there. William died in April 1873. The month before I was born the 13th of May 1873. Sallie died in 1886. Dad was born December the 3rd, 1836. Before going to California in 1855 he bought two six guns cap and ball and a rifle the latest modle colts. I also have one of them. In the summer of 1855, August it was he and 9 other men left old Jacksonville on foot for Lafayet, La. and California to dig gold. I have lost the names of the men that went to the gold mines with Dad but he and a brother and Deveroux Jarrett and Uncle Frank Maniel Page 2 was all I remember that came back. Guess the rest enlisted in the war. While out there my Dad wore a pair of boots and and his Mother made from leather he dressed. They rode a boat from New Orleans and a boat from there to the Istmas of Panima. They walked across the Istmas took a boat and on to California. Dad stayed 4 years came back in time to join Captain Hoods part of the Civil War, and was discharged 3 1/2 miles northeast of Tyler at the old stockade. There he was guarding Yankie Prisoner's [this last word has been corrected with pen or pencil]. While on duty there he met a girl by the name of Rachel Buttler that lived 7 miles from Tyler. So about 10 months after he was discharged they got married, and had 10 children. Dad got married in a buckskin suit. It was made of hide he dressed himself. The vest was made with the little speckled deer hide dressed with the hair on. He kept the suit until I was about 10 years old and the web worms got in Dad's old trunk and ruined the suit. Mr. Ford one of Dad's prisoner's that was a trusty got to know one of Mother's neighbor girls, whose last name was Dean. One of them married Mr. Ford close to the time Mother and Dad got married and they raised their families in 7 miles of each other and were good friends. I am now ready to tell some more about the old bell. Dad had a brother, whose name was Uncle John. He lived on Dad's place several years and in 1879 he decided to go in the bee business, patened guns, and moved to Brownwood, Texas. He had about 40 head of cattle that ran with Dad's bunch and at that time Dad had the bell on a brindle cow named Luck. She was about 17 years old, and had been wearing the bell for several years. Uncle John wanted to borrow the bell to put on one of his cows to lead the bunch. So Dad told him to just take old Luck and her bell. He also had a 12 year old boy to help him. So off they went. I don't remember how long it took to make the trip. Page 3 After they got there they built a camp and spent the winter. Along in May Mother woke Dad up. (He was hard of hearing) She told him she heard old Luck's bell he didn't get up, but all of kids did. We helped Mother dig in the bed of fire coals and finally lit a torch. You see we didn't have any matches at that time. So we got a torch lit, and went out to the front gate and there lay old Luck fat as she could be. When she swallowed her coad the bell would rattle. She was on the road a month and a day. All the streams were from hill to hill. The Brasas river, the Trinity, Cedar creek and the Neches all had to be crossed. Anyway Luck got to her old stamping ground. The following spring she found another calf. She was down on the branch sliped off a bluff and broke her neck and died with the bell on. She was the last animal to wear the bell. So thats the story as far as I can remember. Dad's Father and Mother were known far and wide as Pappy and Mamy Isaacks. Uncle Jim Douglas ran a store and short time before Mamy died he ordered a bunch of coffins not caskets, and when Dad's Mother died he bought one for her. It cost $16.00. She was the first to be buried in a factory made coffin in that neck of the woods. In 1884 I happened to be present when Mid Deason was buried in the woods where the Providence Cemetery is now. My sister, Sallie Pittman and me witnessed the burial. I have helped to dig several graves their for homemade coffins. It must of been about 1883 that the Methodist people built a brush arber and had a revival, and that was the birth of the Providence Church. The lumber in the first building was hauled there from Mr. Hamets saw mill, all ruff hand dressed on the job. I helped to haul the lumber $7.00 per thousand, and there were no knots in the lumber. Now they have a very modern church. Page 4 I am telling about wives and family. In the year 1897 Laura May Lambert and I were married on the 13th of June. On August the 4th 1898 our first girl was born, and we named her Loraine Worth. At 18 she married Fred Acker. They had one child, a boy. His name is Marshall Eldridge. Now Worth's husband is Harry Albright. They live at Houston, Texas and so does Eldridge and his family. They both teach school in Houston. They have a son, his name is Rex. Rex is about 19 years old and on September 6th 1899 our second girl was born. We named her Lyndell. When she was about 18 she and Pete Johnson were married. They have a boy and a girl. The boy Billy Jack. The girl Jo Ann. Billy lives at Lafaetee, La. His wife Lois and 3 boys Jackie 11, Donald 10, and Richard Lynn 6 months old. Billy works for an oil company. Jo Ann married J.P. Morris and they live in Iran, Texas. They have one boy Mike about 5 years old. Lefty is a geologist for an oil company. The third girl was born Christmas night 1910. We named her Hazel. She married Luther Wiggins and had one girl, Shirley. Her present husband is Edward Kinney. Shirley married a boy by the name of Paul Golleher. They all live in Abilene, Texas. So far there has been no deaths in our family of which we are proud and thankful. We are proud of all our family we feel sure all would if necessary devide their last bit with us. In all there are 3 girls, 4 grand children and 5 great grand sons. Since I wrote these last few lines we have another limb aded to our family tree. JoAnn and hubby had a little girl about 5 months old. Her name is Kimberly Ann and of course it will be Kim. Sure hope lots of my old pals can read this. Love to all, Willie Isaacks.