Cooke County, TX - Obituaries - A.J. Meriwether

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Don Brownlee   don.brownlee@csun.edu

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21 February 1912  Dallas Morning News, p. 7 

Gainesville, Tex., Feb. 20 - Capt. A. J. Meriwether, 89
years old, and City Police Judge, died this morning after
several days illness from paralysis of the heart. He had
been a resident of this county for forty-five years. He was
educated at the Naval Academy at Annapolis, graduating in
the same class with Admirals Dewey, Schley and Sampson. He
entered the navy as Lieutenant and served ten years before
the breaking out of the Civil War, when he, with 249 out of
250 men, left the United States Navy when their resignations
were refused by President Lincoln and joined the Confederate
forces. 

A French woman named Lizzie De Maurie presented the
Confederacy a battleship with the provision that Meriwether
should be made Captain in charge. This was granted and the
ship was used as a blockade runner in bringing supplies to
the Confederate army from Cuba and South America. The ship
was named Niobe, and while off the Cuban coast near Havana
Capt. Meriwether blew it up to prevent its capture by Federals. 

Capt. Meriwether formulated and carried to successful
completion a move to build a beautiful monument here to the
memory of the Sons and Daughters of the South, and in this
undertaking, which was completed only a few months ago, he
was helped financially by Admiral Winfield Scott Schley. 

A brother, Robert Meriwether, aged 76, of Austin is here. He
was a member of the staff of Gen. A. R. Wright and took part
in the battles of Chancellorsville and Appomatox court house,
in both of which he was badly wounded. The funeral will be held
here tomorrow afternoon.