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FoLtLOIE
LffiJ Cowan, P.
McLennan County, Texas,
District No. 8
No. of Words 1250
File no. 240
Page ro. 1
Reference
Interview with Dr. Ed B. Smyth, Thite Pioneer, Mart, Texas.
R, Smyth, (father of Alva r. Smyth); about the year 1848, my father,
Llins R. Smyth, while a younp man in his twenties, came to Texas from the
''-tate of Alabama and lived for a year or two at Palestine, Texns. About
the year 1850, he married 1A.sa Elizabeth 1`.bod, at her borne near the old
town of r'prinpfield, Texas, three miles from the present town, Groesbeck.
"After my mothers' father died, father took charpe of the plantation
at Lipringfield, and wan the war between the states came, father joined
the nfederste -rmy, ;Ade his heed slave, Henry Mjors, the overseer
and he 10ked after the farming and kept the work on the plantation up
until fathers return when the war ended. There were four boys and three
pine born to my father and mother; Alva Ps, (deceased); myself; Tom;
Lee, (deceased), and Lila, Beulah, and Mabel; all lived to be grown and
to rear families of their own.
*My grandmother ';:ood brought her husband to Texas in a oo ered
wagon, he being too ill to sit up, was brought upon a bed, it was hoped
the change of olimete woul4 restore him to health. They brought their
teams, tools and slaves with them, crossinp the Mississippi River at
i,e6irhir, Tennessee, an reached 'prinpfield, Pre,u,s, after a trip of two
TAiS town at thst time was the county seat of Limestone County.
They settled about five miles from old Parker Fort and near ''prinpfield.
The town of f'pringfiela beinp moved to the present town of Groesbeck,
when the V:ouston and Texas Central Railroad was built in three miles of
'vinpfield in W70.
ViLri.ORE vhite Pioneer
!:iss ffie Cowan, P.
Lennan County, Texas.
flietrict o. 8
Pile NO. 240
Page No. 2
*In the reconstruction days, follf) ing the war between the states,
my father was living near Springfield when the trouble with the freed
negroes took place. I can remember when the white men would come to our
house, seeking my father's 94'1104 in dealing with this situation. T.
reiaetaher, one day several men came and after a lenghty discussion they
told tether "if he said tLe word they would take up arms against the
tr,ublerowe negroes." But, father was a man who did not advise anything
wLioh wouUl cause any more trouble end felt that there was already enough
trouble an' advised a more conservative course.
"In those days the banks were at 7ieco and Dallas, the nearest dis-
tance to sco being forty miles end over bad roads, travel by horse -back.
Father did not like to take these trips so he buried his money hear the
house, I remember how, *hen he sold his ootton one time he buried a
thousand Jollars under a poet whice was around a potato bank. Robbers
woulS rob the stape_coaches and trains but it was seldom that money hid
at thf: house was found.
"I can remember our father buying an old negro woman named lint
Caroline, to tee c!lre of us children. He gave a thousand dollars for
her. he remained with the family until long after the slaves were freed.
Aunt (roline was our delight, it was she who interceded for us, it was
(0e who delirtted us wit ghost stores and tales of hob -goblins end the
like. hen th‘, elevec were freed my father provided for them. He fur-
nised the an let theJ. work the lend, he saw ,thst they were never in
went.
rowoal White Pioneer
Miss Sffie Cowan, P. We
'McLennan County, Texas.
%stria% No. 8
Tile No. 940
Pe80 No. 5
'The plantation was in the flevesote bottom and at that time the
prairie was not considered good for anything but mashes. About the year
of 1879, he' bought whet has become known as the 8myth mob. This was
about twenty miles from Mule and six fro* the present town of Mort. At
that time Mort was celled tallow rpringse
°The ranch consisted of *round six thousand serest four thousand of
this wee in renah end two thousand in farms. The ranch was stooked with
horses and cattle. My oldest brother Alva Pe, was given share of the
reach end lived on it for' 'sons years, until he,moved to Mart. At my,'
fathers death In 1889, this estate was divided between us ehildren and
part of it was out up into ferma,end_solde Swift* of us had married
end lived on the rano* until we Istersolved to other towns for the benefit
of the schools. I moved to Mart where I still reside.
.wThe country where the.rensh wee located wee open prairie, no wire
fences. Then we 'had the round -ups the cattle were rounded up by the
thousands end the cowboys would out the calves off from the cows and brand
them. The'cattle were driven to the northern markets or shipped later by
train. Ae had our roundups for the settle in the spring end summer and in
the fell we rounded up the horses and the branding was dome after 000l
weather arrived.
"The horses were driven to the corral where the breading took piece.
several men worked 'together. A fire was built outside the corral, but.
near the fence. Lech colt was roped and thrown. One men planted his knee
on the colts neck, *ought one of his sere in one bend, so that its heed
was on the ground, with the nose pointing up in the sir. This required
FOLvLO4E White Pioneer
ties "1,,ffie Cowan, P.
McLennan County, Texas.
District No. 8
File Wo.,S40
Page No. 4
considerable skill and was the most effective method of holding the colt
on the preund. A further precaution was taken by tying the two hind feet
end two fore feet together, and held slightly off the ground. As soon as
the colt wee secured in this way -one of the men ems with the red-hot iron
and applied it to the colt's side, shoulder or hip. The application took
only a few seconds. The colt was releseed to join the others. This pro-
cess was continued until all the colts were branded. This brand lasted
the animal throughout his life. Sometimes the brand was altered by
thieves, or if the colt was sold, by changing the original brand into
other letters or figures of brand used by the buyer or the horse thief.
"It was not often that the branding of cattle or horses took picas
in the summer on account of being infected by insects, and if they were,
heroic remedies were used, sometimes by heating a branding iron and
applying to the infected parts, then treating_ with ointment, kerosene,
or turpentine.
It might be of interest to tell how the herd was started. The
hands were sent out on the ranch to pen a bunch of horses. The next
morning other horses were driven into the pen, these were driven to the
nearby gross and a oowboy kept them together. At first there would be
from thirty to forty, and e-ch cloy this was increased until the corral
was full. They were kept near the ranch house and coon learned the way
to the corral when they came ur at night. It was not difficult to hendle
several hundred head of horses in this way. All one had to do was to get
on the book side of the herd 'nr3 rive a few yells, that would start the
leading opres that had been in the herd the summer before, end they led
the rest to the corral. Atter the first two days the herd was referred
ITITLO9B ,xhite,Pioneer
Mirs -Effie Cowan, P. w.
koLennen "ounty, Texas.
District•"Jo. 8
rile No. £40
Pose No. 5
to es the cavey-yard. This word was coined from the rpenish, Caballed*.
Tt comes from the sm.( word ti -t is used for horse, Cabello, Amerioani2ed
in "keveyo. In each herd there were the stallions, they were often rood
herders theA,selves. They rarely allowed any wandering in the herd. On
sight of danger they swiftly lead the herd to safety, if out on the range.
"There is a legend of the early '70's, of a handsome gray stallion
who with his band of twenty ILares, roamed the prairies, at his will. He
was described as a pacer who never broke his gait as he easily out -ran all
his pursuers, as he sailed on and on, always Just ahead, with his mane
flying out on both sides of his neck like wings, his long tail sweeping
the ground he seemed to skim through the sir like a flying bird. Fe was
more a phantom horse than a reel flesh and blood animal. Many and varied
were the efforts made to ()etch him but they all ended in defeat. He could
always be found near his range of the Navasota bottom until the tide of
emigration finally drove him end his herd into the boundless west.
"1 remember the prairie as it was when T came to live there. They
were beautiful in the rprinp vAth the ;11d florers, end when the spring
rains brourht up the bluebonnet and the Aed Indian head, golden -rod and
other wild flowers it was a lendscrpe in as beautiful picture as could
be painted.
*In 1886, I married Miss Belle moLeish of elireveport, Louisiana,
deurhter of eter and li ebeth :col,eish. Mr. MoLeish wee a merchant and
architect, and plantation and slave owner. Mrs. MoLeish superintended
the plantation while ne followed his business. Their plantation was
located where the oity of Monroe, Louisiana now stands. Mr. MoLeish
FOLYLORE *Ante Pioneer 4
Mies 2ffie Cowan, P. W.
McLennan County, Texas.
District No. 8
File No. 240
Page No. 6
built the oourt house and jail. They both are still standing as monuments
of those early days of the beginning of the town of Monroe.
1"There were seven children born to us. All lived to be crown. They
were Alva P.; Bessie; Willie; Clyde; Leon; Azile, and an infant who died
at birth. Bessie, wife of Ernest Strange of Mart passed away in November.
of 1918.°