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FOLKLORE
Miss Effie Cowan, P.W.
McLennan County, Texas.
District Bo. 8 1
1'
REFERENCE
No. words 1,750
File No; 240
Page No. 1
Interview with Mrs. Lizzie PrOwerr, Mart, Texas. (white pioneer).
"I was born in 18E4 at Bedias, Texas in Grimes County. My father
Dr. George Wyche, with his family, came to Texas about the year 1859
from the State of Mississippi. He was a aantation owner and sold his
plantation with the slaves and came to the new state of Texas, seeking
a better climate for the health of his family.
w My father was one of three brothers who left their native state
The other two were lawyers, one, James, married a Miss Bancroft from
the NortOt hey freed their slaves 'ad moved to California, and fro
there .4 to the state of Washington, where he became a judge. The other
brother, Beverly, went to Philadelphia and became an attorney.
"There were two sisters who remained in Mississippi
hey were
Mrs. Mary Wyche Thomas and Mrs. Fannie Wyche Morrison. Each one was
a refugee. 4lies from the siege of Vicksburg, and the other from
Jackson, Mississippi, when General Grant captured it. Both returned
to their old home in Byrom, Mississippi. I can remember many stories
told of the harc4hips endured during the time they were in the cities
during the war between the states.
aI can also remember the stories told of their trip to Texas
X
after the war was ovez% to sea my father in his last illness a few
years after the war closed.. Especially do I remember their mode
of travel by boat and by stages How they had to wait for the Missies
River to go down from one of its rises when they crossed the river.
FOLKLORE
Miss Effie Cowan, P.W.
McLennan County, Texas
District No. 8
File NO: 240
Page No. 2
"When the war between the states broke out in 1861, my father
joined the Confederate Arms' and went as a surgeony'ome time after
his health failed and he was placed in the Post Office at Galveston,
as I remember,as Post Master, where he served until the war closed.
As a child, I can recollect hearing him tell of how sorely they
needed medicine for the soldiers, such as morphine and whiskey,
bandages and so on; how they had to use hotels for hospitals and when
the wounded soldiers were brought in and they were out of bandages,
they had to take the bed sheets and sterilize them to use in place of
bandages.
"I can also remember the stories of how the city of Galveston
went wild with joy when the blockade was lifted, leaving them free
to secure those supplies they needed; how they celebrated in honor of
General Magruder, both in Houston and Galveston, with banquets; how
the Confederate soldiers, stationed at Galveston, were so royally
treated by the residents since they had rescued them from this block-
ade and driven the Union soldiers out of the Bay.
"During the time my father was in the army, my mother taught a
little school at Bedias
Fred and sister Laura.
and.
rode
horseback, taking her two children,
Sister Laura
later became Mrs. Laura Cowan, a
pioneer of the country around Mart. My older brother, Eugene, and
sister Fannie stayed at home. Brother farmed and sister Fannie kept
house. When my mother arrived at her school, they hid their horses in
the thicket near by to keep the Union soldiers from taking them as they,
passed on their way to Galveston to re -join the Union men stationed
there.
FOIKIORE
Miss Effie Cowan,
McLennan County, Texas
District No. 8
File No: 240
Page No. 3
".After my parents pas,,Jed away, my brothers and sisters moved to
Bremond. Here my brothers engaged in farming and sister Fannie
married Et. Jim Owens of the Reagan community. Sister Laura taught
a little school near Bremond until she married Mt. Henry Clay Cowan,
who had just come to this community from Tennessee with Mt. Owens.
"I lived with sister, Fanny Owens, for a few years and then, after
my sister, Mrs. Cowan, moved to the Mart CommunitA I lived with her
uhtil I married Yr. Sam Powers in 1883. When my sister, Mrs. Cowan,
first came to Mart, they had just begun to raise cotton. When they
took it to Waco to the market, they hauled it by wagon train, a distance
of twenty miles. By the time they reached. Waco, it would be near the
noon hour, so by the time they had marketed the cotton,' bought their
supplies, it was too late to make the geturn trip, as it took four hours,
so they usually spent the night in Waco. Mr. Cowan had a little store
over where the old town of Mart was located.
"In 1880, Mts. Cowan taught the first six months school ever taught
in Mart, in the first B/aptist Church, where the Mart cemetery is now
located. This was a long building made of rough box lumber with old
home made benches. All the ckildren old enough to attend school in
the whole community east of Big Creek came to this school. There were
twenty-eight pupils. The name of both the school and church was
Willow Springs; it was later changed to Mart. The following families
were represented in this little school —these names were taken from
an old roll book kept by Mrs. Cowan; one page of the roll book is
missing and only the names of twenty-two pupils can be given:'
John Suttle, Daniel Suttle, Ike Suttle, Gus Douglas, Kate Dougla!"
A. E. Young, Daniel Young, Hattie Pevyhouse, Mamie Shelton,
FOLKLORE
Miss Effie Cowan, P.W.
McLennan County, Texas
District No. 8
File No: 240
Page No. 4
Clarence Stephens, George Tidwell, Tommie Douglass, Eddie Hunter,
Joe Hunter, Mary Vaughan, Nora Vaughan, Watts Vaughan, Wattle Douglas,
George Douglas, Annie Chancelor, George Arnold, Philip Arnold. The
Suttle children were sons of the pioneer Baptist ministe0E31211.
Many of these and the teacher, Mrs. Cowan, have answered the last
roll call.
In my sister's notebook are the names of the first ten families
to settle between 1877 and 1880 at Big Speek at Willow Springs. These
were Albert Breland, W. H. Crisitell, Perry Douglass, Pines Shelton,
W. B. Stodghill, K. C. Cowan, W. H. Francis, H. T. Vaughan, Mr. Arnold,
Mr. Brooks and a young man named Willie Easter, who lived with
Mr. Brooks. To the best of my knowledge, all these men have also died.
"I have often thought of the difference in the country here in 1877
when my sister, Mrs. Cowan, came to this community and now. Then, this
was just after the Indian depredations had ceased, the range was free
and open as the crow would fly, abounding in deer, wild turkey,
wild hogs and all the wild animals that lived in this country. The
cattle, horses, sheep and goats grazed on the hills and prairies near
the water holes, and old Willow Springs over near the cemetery was
one of their favorite watering places.
"In 1883, I married Mr. Sam Powers, who was a ranchman and lived
ten miles north-east of Marlin, in the vicinity of Big Creek. Ht was
a grandson of grand -father Elijah Powers who joined the Robertson colony
in Tennessee and came with General Robertson to old Nashville in 1834,
where he lived for a year and then moved .to East Texas, and in 1844,
came to Falls County and settled on a league of land which the Mexican
government gave him, when Mexico was giving the colonists land for the
FOLKLORE
Miss Effie Cowan, P.W.
McLennan County, Texas
District No. 8
File No: 240
Page No. 5
settling of the state.
"Grandfather Powers had five sons, William, who died in Falls
County; Lewis B., who took part in a number of Indian fights and died
in Fall County, also; Andrew Jackson, who was killed in the Indian
fight following the Marlin -Morgan massacre. I will tell you about
this fight as it has been handed down through the times to us, from the
other two brothers who were also in this fight. In the excitement of
the battle, Jackson was wounded and fell off his horse. His brothers
and companions stopped and tried to put him back on the horse.
The horse was so frightened that he plunged so they could not
get him on the horse. He told them that he knew he was killed and
for them to leave him and save themselves, before they too were killed.'
The two brothers were William and Lewis who were in this fight, and the
story has been handed down by them. Jackson was killed, but his self-
sacrifice for his companions will live as long as there is a Powers left
to tell the story.
"This fight was between the settlers and the Indians, on the high-
way between Waco and Marlin, ten days after the Morgan -Marlin massacre;
the whites were led by Captain Benjamin Bryan of Bryans Station and
the noted Indian chief, Jose Maria, led the Indians. This fight occurred
in 1839.
Other sons of Grandfather Powers were Elijah and Francis, the
father of my husband. Francj.s settled in Falls county and engaged in
ranching until he enrolled in the Confederate army. He served the
duration of the war. He returned and helped in the organization of Fella
County. He died in January of 1877. He reared a family of six children.
LA
His eldest son, Joe, was a stockman of Falls county who moved to .4,Ioner
FOLKLORE
Miss Effie Cowna,
McLennan County, Texas
District No. 8
File No: 240
Page No. 6
county, where he died. Tom, another son, moved to Archer county.
My husband, Sam, lived near Mart. A daughter, Mary, married
William Waite of Reagan; another son, Frank moved to Falls County and
still another son, John, lived at Reagan. All these are deceased.
After I married, I lived on the ranch in Falls County, which was
ten miles north of Marlin. I lived there about twenty years. By this
time, the railroad had reachedtarlin and we sent our cattle there to
be shipped by train to the Northern markets. The Powers brothers who
remained on the ranch, worked together and marketed their herds together.
The range was owned by individuals; but there were wild cattle that
were rounded up with the ranch herds. Sometimes a small bunch of ranch
cattle were herded out in the open range on moonlight night to draw
the wild cattle, scattered in the timber, into these herds. The wild
cattle belonged to the one who first put a brand on them.
A man did not need much money to buy a herd in those days, for
cattle were cheap. A big beef steer would sell for around ten
dollars. Only enough money was needed to bear the expenses of raanding
up the cattle and taking them to market. I have heard how when they
were driven up the trail, the inspector was first notified. After he
came and inspected them, he would tally them and the road brand would
be placed on each cow. The inspector gave the trail boas a pass on his
herd to show they had been inspected. The inspector put the tally on
record in the county clerk's office. Other cattle men could look at
this record, and if they found any cattle with their mark or brand,
the owner of the herd would pay him for what he had rounded up and that
belonged tot he other fellow, if he was an honest man.
About 1901, we moved to Edwards County and lived fifteen miles
FOLKLORE
Miss Effie Cowaa,
MaLennan County, Texas
District No. 8
File No: 240
Page No. 7
from Rock Springs, the nearest post office. Our nearest market was
Kerrville, a distance of ninety miles, over very rough, rocky roads
and mountains. Kerrville is about 75 miles north—west of San Antonio,
on the Guadalupe River. To this town, we had to send our produce by
wagon train, to which from 4;ix to eight head of horses were driven.
In making the trip, the Guadalupe River was crossed eleven times, due
to the winding of the road. The country was wild and beautiful.
"We had a stock ranch, and raised sheep, goats, cattle and hors”.
Some grain, mostly enough to feed the stock. It was a common thing to
meet people who had never seen cotton grow; or had seen a train. As for
negroes, one time one came to Hock Springs, and it was like a circus
with the people coming to see him. Rattlesnakes were numerous. There
were many, under every rock, but few fatalaties, for people knew their
hiding places and kept away.
"When our children were old enough to enter school, we returned to
Central Texas because it was fifteen miles out west to the nearest
school. I have lived on the ranch for months without seeing another
woman.