Jones County Texas Archives - Founding of Jones County - 1927 *********************************************************** Submitted by: Dorman Holub Date: 19 January 2020 Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/tx/jones/jonestoc.htm *********************************************************** The Stamford American Thursday, June 30, 1927 Jones County formed from Shackelford County Forty-Six Years Ago J.F. Huie, in The Chaparral In CommissionerÕs Court of Shackelford County, in called term, on April 18th, 1881, a petition signed by G.A. Spendle, and 185 others, praying for the necessary steps to be taken for the organization of Jones County, and by order of said Court, an election was ordered, to be held at four designated places in Jones County, on June the 13th, 1881, for said purpose and E.M. Johnson was elected county Judge; T.J. Scott, C.J. Chapman, A. Calhann, and J.J. Elliott, Commissioners; W.H. Smith, County Clerk; F.T. Knox, Treasurer; J.P. Cole, Sheriff. On July 17th, 1881, the first Commissioners Court was held at Jones City, and by order of said Court, Fort Phantom Hill was appointed as place of holding Court, until a permanent place could be located. At a meeting of the Commissioners Court, in Phantom Hill in September 1881, an election was ordered for the County Site, Phantom Hill, Brazos City, on the Clear Fork, just above where Hawley now stands; the Lightfoot Survey, just three miles south of Jones City, and Jones City. The date of this election was November 1st, 1881, and on November 14th, 1881, the Commissioners Court, met in Phantom Hill and declared Jones City to be elected as the permanent County site of Jones County, and also appointed B. Frank Buie as County Attorney. Now we old-timers have always recognized the 17th day of July as the anniversary day of Jones County, and on July 17th, 1882, we celebrated our first anniversary on the block now known as block No. 187, B.H. & M. Addition to the Town of Anson, this being the block where Messrs. Steele, Wagley, Reily, Brooks and Huie now live. Now as to the population of Jones City when I arrived on November 21st, 1881, there were: Mr. W.D. Bowyer, Mr. and Mr. Tipton, Ely Spraberry, Alford Spraberry and wife, two grandchildren of Mr. TiptonÕs; Mr. and Mrs. J.M. Anderson, their three daughters, and one son, making a total of 14 on the town section. With me came my father and mother, two sisters and a Mr. C.A. Webb, making a total population of 20, at the close of November 21, 1881. The rural district, for 15 miles around consisted of Mr. T.J. McGee, wife and one child, a mile and one-half to the west; none to the north; to the northeast was Mr. A.J. Carr, and wife, Mrs. Julia Carr, and four children, Claud Carr, Charlie and Henry Partin, B.F. McGeehe, and their families Car Spraberry and his brother, Jack; East was C.B. Roberts and wife; Uncle Jeff Scott and family; to the southeast was H.A. Ward and family; Charlie Blanton and wife, J.W. Johnson and family, Pearce Gray and wife to the South was Anderson Swain and family; J.J. Elliott and family, the Hatchet Ranch, a Mr. McCormack, G.W. and C.B. Scarborough and their families, and Uncle Jack Scarborough and his family, these last four named lived along the Clear Fork below and above Trubee; to the Southwest was L.M., B.F. and Joe Buie, their mother and sister Cale Browning and the C-T ranch. The Ranches in the County and adjoining counties, were the Horse Shoe on the Double Mountain fork of the Brazos, the LIL and Ths, and the Cross C on Tonk Creek, the A7 on Cottonwood Creek, and the J.P.Bs, on the Clear Fork. The T-Diamonds, had a dugout on Redmud, and called it headquarters, but their camp was on Mulberry just above the mouth. There were lots of cattle in the country, world of antelopes, turkeys, coyotes, prairie dogs, and rattlesnakes, some deer, bear and panther, buffalo all gone; any morning of the first winter and spring that I was here you could stand on the public square and see from a dozen to 150 antelopes in some direction. The buildings of Jones City in November, 1881, consisted of one store house, which housed the General Merchandise necessary for this country at that time, the post office, and was the home of W. McD. Bowyer, he being a single man. This building was located on N. Commercial Ave., in block No. 4, O.T.P. The next building was a hotel and known as the Tipton Inn, and located where the Ansford Hotel now stands. I was told that this lumber was hauled from Fort Worth with teams. The next was Mr. J.M. AndersonÕs home, located where the Bue Farmer home is now standing. The Duvall house, located just southeast of the T.L. Holland home, and east of the old well in his lot, which was the water supply of the entire population, this Duvall house was not completed, and the family had not yet arrived. I was told that the lumber in the Anderson house came by wagon and team from Round Rock, Texas, being used in winter of 1878 on the Colorado River in western Brown county, then in July, 1879, brought to Phantom Hill, then to Jones City in November 1881. The lumber in the Duvall house was brought from Commanche county, the ground sills being of post oak from the Shinnery. In 10 days or two weeks Mr. DuvallÕs wife and two children arrived and moved into their new home. Father now bought seven acres of land from Mr. Duvall, same being outside city limits at that time, and being the land that the Anson High School building now stands on, also the Baptist church. The railroad having gotten to Abilene we could get lumber for building much quicker than first four buildings were gotten here, so father made plans, and bought lumber for his home, and then left with my mother and two sisters for his old home at Atlanta, Ga., leaving me the job of getting the lumber from Abilene to Jones City, which was accomplished during the last half of December, 1881, and January 1882, with two yoke of cattle and an iron axle wagon. The only road we had at this time being a winding trail leading out southeast from town crossing the branch just west of where Lake Anson runs in west of where the Shinnery around and down sand hollow to what is later known as the Phone Crossing, and on to Bitter Creek, where the Abilene road now crosses; from there to Abilene the road had been cut out but not enough travel on it to make a road of it. My shortest trips being made in three days, most of the time taking four days to make a trip; during this time, I hauled the lumber for the first court house that the county ever had, also lumber for a two-room house for my uncle, T.L. Kennedy, who had come in from east Texas with his wife and three children. The last of January, 1882, father having returned home he and my uncle and myself commenced and completed the house that Mr. J.J. Dyer now lives in, just south of the Baptist Church. We next built the T.L. Kennedy home, located just southeast of where the Baptist parsonage now stands. J.K. Little now came over from Buffalo Gap, and built where the Plaza Hotel now stands. F.T. Knox next moved his store building and stock of drugs from Phantom Hill and set up for business on a lot in block No. 2 between the present A. & S. Railway and the Methodist Church. At this time J.J. Huie and wife and one child came in from Atlanta, Ga. Miss Amanda Jones, sister of Mrs. Huie, also came with them, (and is now Mrs. F.T. Knox, of Anson). The Buie office had been completed, and we had a law and land office in town. This office was built where the Pittard Drug Store now stands. The court house was now completed, which was a box and stripped building about 24x32 feet with nine feet walls. Clerk Smith moved over from Phantom Hill and built the house that Joe Creel now lives in. Purt Smith (as he was known) next moved his hotel from Phantom Hill and erected it on the lot where the First National Bank now stands. Guss Goodwin now came from Kentucky and built a store where the Grace store now stands and put in a stock of groceries. Peter and Sim Hindes came in and put in a stock of groceries, about where the city Drug Store is now located. A.J. Nichols and wife moved in and built two small buildings about where the Anson Hardware and Wilson and Foster Grocery business are now located. Turner and Harrison, and their families, came over from Phantom Hill and built the Turner Hotel, where the Anson State Bank now stands, (this building was bought by the county and converted into our second court house in March, 1885, and the change of building was done by T.L. Kennedy and the writer and the building is now known as the Culver Hotel). All our buildings were box and stripped buildings with the exception of two or three which were weather boarded on the boxing. Our first preaching services were held in the Buie Bros. office, by Mr. Tipton and Mr. Scarborough, both being Baptist ministers. Then Old Brother Stricklan, an old gray-headed Methodist circuit rider, came over from Mulberry Canyon and held services at the same building. The court house being now finished, we moved our services to it, and organized a Union Sabbath School which was continued for several years as such. During the first part of 1882 there were many newcomers to arrive in Jones City, among whom were the PendleyÕs W.F.P. Pool and family; J.H. Nayle and wife and one child; E.G. Jones and wife, Ed Townsend and wife, Captain Hatchet and wife, Townsend built a home where F.A. Arnold now lives; Hatchet built where Mrs. H.C. Fisher now lives; J.H. Naler rented one of the Nichols buildings and put in a stock of dry goods. Some of the others that came during 1882 and 1883 were Joe Goodwin, W.C.M. Glozner, wife and four children came in fall of 1882, settled at Anderson Chapel in 1883, being the first settlers of this community. T.D. Goodwin and wife, R.S. Goodwin, Dr. I.W. Hollis, and a Dr. Malcom, (these last two being our first doctors to locate here). Our first school was taught by E.G. Jones in the north room of the Huie building (which is now the Dyer home just south of the Baptist Church), commencing in April of 1882 and lasting up into July. The next school was taught in E.G. Jones home, which had been built on block No. 2, near where the Methodist Church now stands. In the summer of 1883, the men folks of the town met in Buie Bros. office, subscribed enough money to build a school house (the Masonic Brethren agreeing to build a room above and cover building), this was our first school building, and was erected on East Fisher Street, just southeast from where Mr. E.G. Jones taught our third school in this building; a Mr. Kinnard was our second teacher, (Our Sabbath School and preaching services were now moved to the school building.) Our first Postmaster was W. McD Bowyer, our first mail carried was Grandpa A.J. Carr, who would make the trip to Phantom Hill twice a week with the mail bag and bring the mail for all this country. As to the organization of the different churches, I am not acquainted with the dates, but have been told that the First Baptist organization was in a dugout at J.W. JohnsonÕs southeast of town. The Methodist organized in the latter part of 1882; I think. The First Presbyterian U.S. organized July 23, 1882, with nine members. The Cumberland Church and the Christian Church were organized several years later. The first church building was built by the Baptists, everybody helping some, and all used it for a while; the next was the Methodist and is now the Primitive Baptist with some changes; the Baptist Church was located at the northeast corner of block No. 3 just east of the present Williams & Miller Gin. The First Presbyterian Church U.S. was built in spring 1892, and locates where the Presbyterian Manse is now standing having been Presbyterian property since the first of 1882. As to the building of the Christian Church and the Cumberland Presbyterian Church I cannot recall the year. Our first laid-out and cut-out road from Jones City, was the Abilene road, just as it now runs, and was laid-out in the summer of 1892. Now, as to the naming of Jones City, (Anson) in 1882 someone suggested that we name the county site and post office, Anson; thereby giving the full name of the last President of the Republic of Texas to our county and county site, and the necessary steps were taken, and Jones City was changed (in name) to Anson. At a very early date it was noised about that someone was contemplating erecting a saloon, and L.M. and B.F. Buie, Martin Duvall, F.T. Knox, and R.M. Huie, and others, petitioned the County Court, for an order for an election on local option for Justice Precinct No. 1. Election was ordered and as I recall the vote at that election, there were 19 for local option and five against, making a total vote in Precinct No. 1 of 24. By this act there has never been any legalized selling of intoxicating liquor in Anson. --February 22nd, 1927.