Navarro County Texas Archives History - Books .....Introduction 1933 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/copyright.htm http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/tx/txfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Cecile Coonrod cecile.coonrod@mac.com and Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com May 4, 2007, 9:38 pm Book Title: Chapter IV Young Corsicana CHAPTER IV YOUNG CORSICANA One of the first requirements of any town is a place for boarders, visitors and travellers to rest. The first hotel opened in Corsicana was operated by the family of Hampton McKinney. It was a log house, with two big rooms, and a long gallery in front; in addition to the two big rooms, there were two small rooms added at one corner, and a long "L" at the back for a kitchen and dining room, and for store room. The upstairs was simply one big room. Nearly all of the rooms had fire places. The first cook stove seen in Corsicana, was said to have been in the "McKinney Inn." Rev. McKinney, who operated the hotel, was a minister who came with his family to Texas from Illinois. They arrived in Navarro County before Corsicana was in existence, living first at Richland or Dresden. The old McKinney tavern was an example of the carefully built log house. The logs forming the main part of the building were first put in place, then these were covered with riven boards. These riven boards were made by splitting blocks first into halves and quarters and later with axes and wedges, splitting out boards which were piled in square stacks and allowed to season for a time before being nailed into place. These boards were oftentimes smoothed with carpenter tools and then nailed onto the logs and the interior spaces filled in with mortar. In some cases these boards were whitewashed but in most instances they were left in their natural weatherbeaten color. During the winter quilts and buffalo robes were often tacked up inside to keep out the cold. The McKinney Inn was located on or near the present location of the jail, and was a busy place, as there were regular boarders, besides a continuous stream of travellers. When the courts were in session, many of the legal visitors had the McKinney Inn as headquarters. The photographers' galleries were located there at times. For a while Daguerreotypes were made, and a very good kind they were. Several young lawyers boarded there, among them Alexander Beaton, who married Miss Jane McKinney, and John L. Miller, who became the husband of Miss Mary McKinney. The Miller home for many years was on the corner of Jefferson and Church streets, and now on the corner of Fourth Avenue and Fifteenth street, is the home of their daughter, Miss Ursula Miller, and their son, Beaton Miller. Major Beaton and his wife for many years lived on "Gem" Hill South of town about a mile. The post office in Corsicana was not established before 1849. R. N. White was first appointed postmaster, but as he was County Clerk, Hampton McKinney was made postmaster, and the post office was in his Inn. Contemporary with the McKinney Inn was one kept by D. R. Mitchell, located about midway of the South side of Block 263, of the "Old Town Plot." This was called, sometimes, the "Lower Hotel." D. R. Mitchell was at one time surveyor for Robertson County. After he had chosen Navarro County as his home, he was a prominent and popular citizen. After his death appreciative citizens of Corsicana placed a monument over his grave in memory of his loyalty and generosity. His daughter married Dr. W. F. Seale, who lived in Corsicana. Mrs. F. J. Lindsay, a daughter of Dr. Seale, and granddaughter of D. R. Mitchell, and many other of his descendants now live in Corsicana. ----------------------this is inserted as a note with no reference ------------------- Following is a list of Corsicana postmasters in the order in which they served: Hampton McKinney, June 21, 1852; Joel D. Hicks, February 7, 1853; M. V. Powell, February 18, 1854; Lucious T. Wheeler, August 15, 1854; Robert G. Leetch, September 17, 1857; David B. Smith, March 19, 1858; John Miller, January 24, 1859; R. A. Van Horn, August 17, 1859; Turner W. Garner, September 29, 1859; William M. McKinney, April 9,1860; Julius A. Oakes, June 16, 1860; Harriet A. Trent, January 26, 1866; Alex H. Davis, October 8, 1866; John T. Parrish, April 23, 1868; William P. Parrish, December 3, 1868; David I. Page, June 9,1871; George W. Smith, November 10, 1871; R. J. Shelton, June 12, 1872; L. P. Barton, July 12, 1872; Robert J. Shelton, August 12, 1872; Isaac Baum, April 3, 1876; Mrs. Pauline Wood, January 29, 1879; Henry M. Ryan, June 15, 1881; Adolph Zadek, November 18, 1884; Andrew F. Wood, April 20, 1886; Adolph Zadek, August 29, 1889; Nathaniel J. Mille, December 21, 1893; Louis C. Revare, February 2, 1898; James W. A. Clark, January 13,1902; H. E. Kinsloe, February 5, 1906; Archie N. Justiss, March 10, 1914; Pierce Mayer, February 14, 1923, still serving. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- The graves of Hampton McKinney and his wife, and that of D. R. Mitchell, are just within the Oakwood Cemetery, near the front gate. They are on a part of the original one hundred acre tract donated by Thos. L Smith and D. R. Mitchell, to the City of Corsicana. About the year 1850 much of the social life of Navarro County and surrounding territory centered in the Haynes Hotel and a copy still exists of an old invitation to one of the Christmas Balls held in this frontier hostelry. "The pleasure of your company is respectfully solicited at a ball to be given at the Haynes Hotel in Corsicana on the 24th inst., at 5 o'clock p. m. Corsicana, December 13, 1852. MANAGERS P. M. Monnell D. B. Hartzell P. H. Carethers W. B. McCabe P. B. Hicks A. F. Bartlett D. R. Mickie E. H. Root J. H. Martin Mr. B. Barry, Present*" -----------------------------footnote----------------------- *Indicating that Mr. Buck Barry was guest of honor. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- As was usual with the frontier town the greater portion of the business activities centered around court house square and on the Northwest corner of the old Corsicana business district Alex Michael built a two-story brick store building which was the first brick edifice in Corsicana. Michael's store was a forerunner of the present department store, judging from the sign which read "Dry Goods, Groceries, Hardware and Drugs." The second story of Mr. Michael's building was a newspaper office and both the store and the newspaper changed hands from time to time, through the years. Dr. Martin had his office just across the street North from Michael's store and there were also other offices on the East side of the square; S. L. Tatum operated a tin shop and hardware store on the South side of the square and his descendants still are engaged in the hardware business in Navarro County. A. Fox & Brothers had a store on the square until the coming of the railroad after which this was moved to Beaton Street. Mr. Fox was widely respected for his business ethics and he was given not only the patronage but also the friendship of the inhabitants of Navarro County. He lived on Fifth Avenue in Corsicana until a few years ago, dying at an advanced age after a lifetime of serving the community. Thomas Haynes had a carpenter shop on the South side of the square and in addition to being a carpenter also served as County Judge of Navarro County. One term of District Court was held in his carpenter shop due to the court house having burned down. Records indicate that Mr. Haynes was allowed 50c a day recompense as rental on his carpenter shop for use as court house. William Hamilton operated a store on the West side of the square and slightly back of his store erected a log house of one story and an attic This log house was replaced by a plank or framed house, lumber for which was hauled from East Texas in ox wagons. This house stood for many years, was torn down and later rebuilt in East Corsicana where it now stands. S. H. Kerr had a wagon, buggy and furniture shop on the spot where the Mulkey home now stands. Mr. Kerr's activities were varied and in addition to operating his business he also taught school for a time and later in life was County Clerk. Wybrant and Ransom operated a drug store on the square. Jernigan's saddle shop was on the Southeast corner of the square. He later sold out to C. W. Jester. Jacob Hartzell operated a business on the square but he left Corsicana and moved to Dresden. Capt. Wm. Peck was also in business on the square for awhile. It is usual that a business man is remembered for his business attainments but one of those, who occupied a prominent part in the early business life of Corsicana when it clustered around the square, was famous for an entirely different thing. There was a Mr. Kuchoffer whose two beautiful daughters were known far and wide for their comeliness. In a frontier town two important things were the jail and the saloon. In the case of Corsicana, the saloon was in the middle of the South side of the square and was operated by Bob Morrell. As was usual with the saloon of olden days, a rough crowd congregated around the barroom and Saturday nights were enlivened with either fighting or frolicking, according to the effects of the spirits imbibed by those under the influence of liquor. The jail at that time was a log cabin located near the present Aaron Ferguson home on the corner of Thirteenth Street and Fourth Avenue. The log cabin was not considered sufficiently secure to assure the proper detention of prisoners and when a culprit was in the city lock-up the additional precaution of a guard was taken, this guard being paid $1.00 per night for acting as warden of the jail to assure the prisoner's safe keeping and to prevent the culprit from kicking the walls out of the jail and escaping. There was a regular jailer who stood guard during the day and it can be readily seen that the cost of guarding a prisoner would soon amount to enough to build a jail. Doubtless the city fathers also realized this fact and in 1855 a contract was given to Harvey Beeman to build for the embryo city a place of safe keeping for prisoners. This jail was built at a cost of $1800 and was located near the site of the present jail. During the slave days a resident of early Corsicana took advantage of the qualifications of two of his slaves to further his business. This was Tom Van Hook who had two slaves that were expert blacksmiths and their reputation was gained not only for the quality of their work but for the speed at which it was turned out. This blacksmith shop was just across the street from the L. H. Lee home on Second Avenue. Solomon Van Hook was an early resident and lived on a farm a short distance from town, and a Col. Pillar owned a home during the early days which was located on what is now Jester Place. Early, residents recall that a Sam Brooks, who lived in the Eastern part of the county, was one of the first to develop the fruit growing industry in Navarro County and his success in this line caused him to be given the nickname of "Peach" Brooks, by his Corsicana friends. There were two Baird brothers who were early residents of Corsicana whose appearances were at great variance - one had bright red hair and beard, whereas the other was equally noticeable for his raven black hirsute adornments; naturally they were immediately known by the cognomen of "Red" and "Black." It is interesting to notice that the idiosyncrasies of certain individuals have left their mark on various communities and this is true of Navarro County as well as any other section of the country. One case in point might be recalled: an old man lived on a creek South of Corsicana and he conceived the idea of domesticating the buffalo by a very novel plan. His idea was to go among a herd of buffalo until they became accustomed to him and then impound a certain number in a large pen which he had built on the above mentioned creek. This old man was a great believer in mesmerism and he felt sure that his powers were such he could, by this mesmerism, tame the buffalo to where he could milk them or work them to a plow or wagon. The pen was duly erected and the early settlers say that he managed to get some buffalos within this stockade; but either the log pen was not sufficiently strong or his power of mesmerization weak, for the herd of buffalo proceeded to tear down the logs and go about their way despite all his effort to the contrary. The scattered logs remained for many years until hauled away for fire wood, the old man died and went to his reward but land deeds in the Court House still refer to this creek as "Mesmeriser's Creek." During the early days many ideas were formulated which today may seem novel but at that time appeared perfectly logical. The great number of bones and horns scattered throughout the country caused one man to dream of an immense factory in Corsicana for the manufacture of buttons and his first move was to gather wagonload after wagonload of horns and bones and pile them into one huge mound with the hope that he could interest capital and thus erect his dream factory, which would revolutionize the manufacture of buttons and upset the entire button industry. This pile of bones was near Elm Creek South of town. Unfortunately for him capital did not take so kindly to his idea and the pile of horns and bones was scattered by cattle and disintegrated by the elements. Not far from this' pile of horns and bones was a tree which had a certain grim attraction due to having been the gallows upon which a notorious horse thief was hung by the Vigilantes. Horse thieves were dealt swift justice in the early days due to the fact that a man's horse was one of his most prized possessions and horses were carefully guarded against both white and Indian horse thieves by their owners. The horse thief who was hung on the particular tree dangled from the limb until his body, swinging in the wind, wore the rope thin and caused it to break where it was passed over the limb of the tree and the body then fell to the ground. His old felt hat lay underneath the tree for a long time as a mute reminder of the tragedy which befell the evil doer. The hanging of a horse thief or the catching of a band of Indians, which would try to steal horses on a moonlight night, offered some excitement to the community. The early settlers did not have so many variations since there were very few holidays and until the coming of a more organized social and community life, Christmas and election day were the only generally accepted holidays, although circus day was a day of recreation and excitement after the year 1857 at which time the John Robinson Circus first came to Navarro County. The circus of early times was tortuously transported over land by wagon or ox team and it carried no such accompaniments as red lemonade, balloons, whips or all-day suckers to bring excitement and intense joy to the young folks. The circus was sufficient excitement to afford a matter of conversation and pleasurable thrill for days prior to its arrival and weeks after its departure. Among other things which added to the joy of living in the early days of Navarro County was the occasional dance, or ball, which was usually held in the court house. Inhabitants far and near gathered at these functions and they were the beginning of many romances and many of the early love affairs had their inception at these county-wide social functions. The first Masonic Lodge was organized by J. D. Martin and the Lodge room was the upper story of the old academy building which was made of cedar logs. The Masonic Brotherhood was strong in the new county. All of the towns and communities had a Masonic Lodge, and the members were urgent and regular in attendance. Besides other influences for protection, it was said that the Indians would not steal from or mistreat a Mason. Corsicana was given legal status February 8, 1854, and recognized as a town with the right to sue and be sued, to buy, hold and dispose of real estate and the first form of government was by Mayor, six Aldermen, City Treasurer, City Recorder and Constable. A town was created and the Mayor was Judge with criminal and civil jurisdiction. The Texas Almanac of 1857 has an interesting description of Navarro County and among other things mentions the fact that there were large numbers of cows, sheep, hogs and other livestock raised in the county and also mentions that there were a number of saw and grist mills, as well as churches and schools. It is also interesting to note that at that date the markets were Galveston and Houston and transportation was by way of the Trinity River, when navigable, otherwise by ox wagons, and casually mentions that the distance to Galveston was about two hundred and fifty miles. There were contractors who did regular hauling of lumber and supplies. The Texas Almanac for the year 1857 also speaks of the fact that most of the buildings in Corsicana were "neat and tasty" structures of wood. This same authority also mentions an interesting fact in that Taos, or Porter's Bluff, was a shipping point for Corsicana and was a place of considerable trade during navigation. The Texas Almanac referred to also mentions that the H. & T. C. Railroad "will probably pass through Navarro County." During this era, the pioneer was not content with fighting the hostile Indian but some of the rough element incited feuds and for a time Corsicana had a rather-bad reputation for the hectic conditions which existed. A Vigilance Committee was maintained for a number of years and this committee was kept busy keeping down feuds, controlling various unruly factions and dealing swift justice to horse thieves and bad characters. The rapid shifting of population and the necessary adjustments which are to be found in any new country were responsible for this condition and records indicate that culprits were shown that Navarro County tolerated only law abiding citizens. The pioneer also found himself confronted with other trials besides those brought about by the savage Indian and the unruly white. In 1853 grasshoppers descended upon Navarro County in such numbers that they resembled a black cloud coming from the North and every living green sprig, grass, leaf or crop, was destroyed by the hungry insects. The reddish-green cloud of insects rolled over the country like a flood until there was a heavy coating of the insects upon the ground and after the third day Navarro County looked as though a fire had swept over it and singed every living plant. The grasshoppers entered houses, cutting holes in clothing hanging in the closets and devouring wheat, corn or any food left within their reach. This scourge passed in about two weeks. Vast quantities of grasshoppers were devoured by hogs and fowls which fattened on this diet. Unfortunately the chickens which ate the grasshoppers were unfit for food because of the taste and odor which the grasshoppers imparted to the meat of the chicken; they did not affect the hog meat, however, since hogs were not killed until cold weather. Another visitation was made by the grasshoppers in 1857 and 1858 but it was not so serious. In the winter of 1848 an extremely cold spell caused a great deal of hardship and suffering and the following year brought a summer so hot and dry that eggs were cooked in the sun and prairie fires, which were always dreaded, added to the suffering. Many mysterious fires broke out in residences and stores and negroes were blamed for them until by an odd coincidence the truth was apparent. At a store belonging to Uncle Billy Oldham, in what is now Waxahachie, some matches ignited while clerks and proprietor were near them. To further test the heat, and in order that all might be convinced of the source of the mysterious fires, matches were placed in various places and in a few minutes burst into flames. The short buffalo grass when dry was a constant danger and the following account of a prairie fire will indicate to an extent at least, something of the terror inspired by one of these conflagrations; "The most exciting of the early days on the frontier were those when the prairies were on fire. It being very dry during the summer the grass dried up as though it had been mown and was excellent forage for the stock. They kept fat on it when they could get plenty of water, which was obtained by digging holes in the ground in the bed of the creeks after they dried up. Sometimes the water had to be drawn for them, which was done in turns by the settlers or someone was hired by the community to attend to the matter. "Fires would break out from camp fires of travelers or were started by smokers emptying ?their pipes and occasionally some reckless fellow would set fire to the grass to see it burn. The wind was generally strong at that season of the year, so strong that there were but few days when one could carry an umbrella. When the fire got headway so fearful was its march that it was difficult to keep out of its way. It leaped branches and creeks and to save homes and range for the stock about the only remedy was to 'fire against it', as it was termed, which had to be done in time. The feat was accomplished by using plows, wet blankets, etc., and then after it was headed in this way the next thing was to drive the stock out of the ring of fire which was fearful and hazardous, for the flames would be eight and ten feet high if the wind was not strong enough to keep them closer to the ground. The fire roared like low rumbling thunder. Weeds and grass stems whirled in the air, rabbits and rats passed and birds screamed in the air. Birds of prey, thick as buzzards over a carcass, took advantage of the terrible situation to catch their prey and seemed to add consternation to the scene. Cows lowed and horses neighed and ran helter-skelter. Amid this excitement men well mounted would enter the arena equipped with spurs and whip and by halloing would get the stock on a run at full speed and crowd the rear ones on to the front ones so that when they struck the fire front ones could not stop but would be pushed through the fire and the rear ones and men following all together at a fast speed the flames would be pressed to the ground by the herd. "But while it could be and was done yet amid such a scene the men would tremble for it seemed that not only the fire but all nature joined in a carnival of destruction." During the hardships, however, there were interspersed days and nights of joy. The old time square dance, the box supper at the church, and gatherings at neighboring houses broke the monotony of daily strife and life went on. Those who enjoyed hunting found themselves in a hunter's paradise; wild game was on every hand and so plentiful that much of it was wasted and wantonly destroyed. Buffaloes were killed for their hides and the carcasses left to decay and the bones to bleach. Additional Comments: Extracted from History of Navarro County by Annie Carpenter (Mrs. W. F.) Love Southwest Press Dallas, Texas Copyright, 1933 by Annie Carpenter (Mrs. W. F.) Love File at: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/tx/navarro/history/1933/chapteri/introduc31gms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/txfiles/ File size: 23.8 Kb