COLUMBUS C. WILEY AND FAMILY, Smith County, TX ************************************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm Submitted by Bobby Williams - bgwill@cox-internet.com 22 May 2001 ************************************************************************ COLUMBUS C. WILEY AND FAMILY "Some Biographies of Old Settlers." Historical, Personal and Reminiscent. Volume I By Sid S. Johnson, 1900: Sid S. Johnson, Publisher, Tyler, Texas Chapter LXIV - Pages 271 -275 Columbus c. Wiley was born in Columbia county, Georgia, in 1811. His father, Taylor Wiley, was a native of North Carolina, and moved to Georgia at an early day. columbus spent his boyhood in Georgia, and arriving at manhood he move to the State of Alabama, where he married Miss Nannie Williams. He moved to Mississippi, and thence to Texas, and in 1840, settled in Tyler, remaining in Smith county up to his death. It was in 1851 that he moved to Texas and settled on the south side of town. He devoted the greater part of his life to farming; being an intelligent practical man, of course, he succeded. He was a man full of energy, and greatly devoted to his own interest and that of the community in which he lived. He was county commissioner of the old court for years, standing true to the people in his official duties. An honest man in the personal affairs of his own, he could not be otherwise in the discharge of a public trust. Columbus C. Wiley died in Tyler since the war. He was a good citizen, a noble man, true to his God, his country, and his fellowman. He had been married twice. I remember some of his children by the two marriages--Charles T., Thos. J., Will and Jas. O. I believe the two former and the two latter were half brothers. However, they were the sons of a noble sire; one to be proud of. I knew Columbus C. Wiley in life; he was my friend in the early struggles of my young manhood. Chas. T. Wiley married Miss Adaline Matthews. They had several children. He was a farmer, a man of intelligence and a good citizen, true to the obligations he owed in the affairs of life. He died on his farm in the Red Springs community a few years ago; a loss to his family and a sore regret to the community. Thos. J. Wiley has been married twice. The first marriage was with Miss Charlotte Curl, one of the lovely and attractive daughters of Judge Curl, a prominent man of Smith county, and an intelligent citizen. By this marriage they had three children, (only one living)--Walter C., who is a prominent hardware merchant of Tyler, the junior member of the firm of Adams & Wiley. Walter married Miss Favre, of Pearlington, Mississippi, a woman of intelligence and beauty. They have two children. Mrs. Charlotte Wiley died in 1870; she was a noble Christian woman. Thos. J. Wiley's second marriage was with Miss Alice Draughon, of Mans- field, Louisiana. She is a woman of culture, bright-minded and handsome. By this marriage they have one child--T. Claude. He is the Secretary Treasurer of the Tyler Cotton and Oil Mills. The position he holds speaks for him as a business young man. Thos. J. Wiley made an excellent Confederate soldier; returned home at the close of the war; the people were impoverished; young Wiley pulled off his worn Confederate coat, rolled up his sleeves and made the fight of his life, culminating in a financial success by good management, making money, and by careful investments realized good results. He clerked in a store; soon became a partner; changed and formed a partnership with Samuel H. Cox, who did an immense trade in Smith and adjoining counties until their retirement some few years ago. He is now a retired business man surrounded by the comforts of life. By industry and economy he acquired a competency. Will Wiley married Miss Eva McFarland. He was killed in Houston, Texas, by a sad accident, in which his horse ran away with a buggy he was driving. Will lost his life in young manhood, with a promising life of usefulness before him. James O. Wiley married Miss Adams, one of the interesting daughters of W. W. Adams. He is a young lawyer of promise, a member of the Tyler bar. He is a young man of good habits, with energy and push, and will reach the front. The Wileys are good citizens, help make a good community, and build a healthy public sentiment.