Robert Harve Matthews
TENNESSEE'S TEXAS RANGER

by Carl Matthews
Used here with his permission

Notes: 1880 Census pg. 417a.tif

LIES, LEGENDS, AND A LITTLE GOSPEL TRUTH

• The "Birthin"
• Come to Texas
• Rangering on the Texas Frontier
• Francis Slaughter
• Dr. George Washington Hill
• Uncle Harve Got Married  
• Uncle Harve and the Mexican Bandit
• The Funeral
• Will of R. H. Matthews 1894
• Probate of Will

THE " BIRTHIN'"

Mary Ann Stewart Matthews and her small children were alone in the tiny cabin Robert Matthews had built in the canebrakes of Southern Middle Tennessee.  November 18l4 had come with a chill in the air, but the cabin was made warm by the crackling fire that burned in the large stone fireplace.

Mary Ann had been expecting the arrival of her sixth child for several days and had spent the time making preparation for what was about to happen.   The large oak barrel had been filled with fresh water from the spring and a generous supply of wood had been stacked near the fireplace.  A large pot of beans and ham hock simmered in the heavy iron pot that hung over the fire
and she had baked several large skillets of corn bread the night before.  Mary Ann had milked the cow soon after the sun rose and had strained the rich milk through a white cotton cloth into the large crock pot her mother had given her when she and Robert left North Carolina. The milk and two large molds of butter sat in the "cooler box" that Robert had ingeniously created on the north wall of the cabin.

The cabin and its contents were a constant reminder to Mary Ann that she was fortunate to have her Robert. They had been married almost fourteen years and Mary Ann often thanked the "Good Lord" for every minute of the relationship.  Robert had learned woodwork from an old cabinet maker in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina and had made Mary Ann a beautiful bed as a wedding present.  And..just before their "Patty" was born, he made a combination cradle and rocking chair that was the marvel of the community.  Robert had said that Mary Ann could work on her embroidery and rock the new baby at the same time, her two favorite pastimes.

Robert had constructed the cabin with the same "keeness of design" that had been employed on the bed and the cradle.  The cabin was small but other wives in the settlement were constantly commenting about the little details that were present.  No other cabin had a "Cooler Box" where milk and butter could be stored in winter months.  Most cabins were drafty, but Robert had
taken care to position each log tightly against the other.  He had shown Mary Ann and Patty how to mix grass and moistened clay..."chinkin'" that was used to "chink" openings where the logs did not meet.

Robert had taken great pains to make the heavy door weather tight and the wood hinges permitted it to be opened with ease. It was a "Dutch" door that some of the German families in North Carolina had made for their cabins.  The top could be opened for light and ventilation.   The bottom would remain closed to keep children "in" and varments "out."

Mary Ann's fireplace was the envy of every wife in the settlement.  Robert had carefully selected every stone and joined the stones with clay mortar.  There was an oven for baking and a large iron swing supported pots that were hung over the fire.   Robert made the mantel from the wood of a maple tree that he had felled nearby and carefully sawed into heavy boards.  The mantel looked like fine furniture when Robert was finished with it.  He had hung his musket there and there he hung the powder horn that her father, Sampson Stewart, had carried in the American Revolution and had given to Robert.  Both were now absent from their places of honor on the mantel.

The musket and powder horn were with Robert and Robert was somewhere to the South serving his country in the War of 1812.  Someone had said that he was with Andrew Jackson down in New Orleans protecting the mouth of the Mississippi from the British.

Robert had been home for several weeks in the summer to help gather the crops, but he had returned to his militia unit the last of August.  He was reluctant to leave, knowing that the birth of another child was expected in the fall, but Robert Matthews had given his word to his country and, to Robert Matthews,...it was important..to keep one's word.   Keeping one's word was one of many Christian duties that had been instilled into the mind of Robert Matthews by his parents, James and Mary Doak Matthews.

Robert did, however, have some comfort in the fact that Mary Ann's sister, Martha Patricia..."Aunt Patty"...would come when the "time was near."   "Aunt Patsy" had married Edward Gullet and they had made the move from North Carolina with Robert and Mary Ann.  Patsy and Edward Gullett had cleared some land and built a cabin several miles north of where Robert and Mary Ann had settled.

Mary Ann had planned well for the "birthin'" of the new baby.  The cabin was clean.  Water, firewood, and food were in good supply.  And .. Patsy would arrive on the fifteenth .. just one day away.

Sampson placed another log on the fire and while Patsy worked with Jane and Sampson on their "learnin'" Mary Ann took opportunity to relax with her embroidery...sitting in the rocker-chair.  Minerva Catherine and William Newton were playing on the furry rug made from the skin of a bear Robert had killed the year before.   Mary Ann was almost finished with a "sampler" that
she planned to give her sister Patsy. Embroidery had been Mary Ann's specialty since early childhood and she had received high praise from her elders.  The "sampler" she was creating for Patsy spelled out "The Lord is My Shepherd."  She knew that Patsy would appreciate it.

Mary Ann was thinking of Robert..wondering where he was, when he would come home.   She was proud of Robert and of the children she had borne him. She smiled as Minerva Catherine played on the rug.  She was almost two.  Martha Patricia..her Patsy who was named for Mary Ann's sister...was ten and what a mature young lady for her age.  Mary Ann had taught Patsy to read and how to do numbers.  Now Patsy was teaching Jane and Sampson. Sampson was eight and such a handsome boy.  He had assumed responsibility for many of the outside chores.  Jane was now nine and wanted to learn to cook just like Mary Ann. 
William Newton was four.  He was still her chubby "baby boy", but he was growing fast.

Mary Ann was rocking comfortably as she watched her children, her fingers moving the threaded needle quickly and artistically through the cloth she had woven the previous summer. Suddenly, Mary Ann experience a pain that had become familiar...a contraction that was a signal that the birth of a child was approaching.  Patsy would not arrive until the following day and it was
too late to send her Patsy to a neighbor for help.  Mary Ann would have to depend upon Mary Ann.

Mary Ann Stewart Matthews remained calm as she moved about the cabin without alarming the children, gathering items she knew would be need for "Birthin'."  Labor pains were occurring in much faster succession than she had remembered in previous births.   She gave instruction to her Patsy and was comforted in the knowledge that her children would be safe in the cabin.  She could depend on Patsy.

The labor pains were coming closer as she made fast the heavy wooden door of  the cabin.  The day was cold, but the sun was shining brightly and the wind was calm.   Mary Ann gathered her long skirts as she made her way passed the shed where the milk cow and her new calf were penned...passed the haystacks Robert had created when he was home for the few days in the summer.  She remembered how hard Robert had worked while he was home and how lucky she was to have Robert for her husband.

Soon she was on the edge of the dense canebrake...tall hollow canes with sharp leaves..some as high as a man.  Canebrakes had covered the area when they arrived, but Robert had cleared almost fifty acres to plant crops, but there were many acres of canebrake remaining.

The pains were even closer as she found a clearing in the cane that was covered with tall prairie grass.  The first frost had killed the tall grass.   It had been washed clean by the fall rains and bleached by the sun...a perfect straw colored "birthin'" bed.

Mary Ann was experienced at "birthin'" babies, but this was the first time she had faced the experienced alone. She remembered how frightened she had been when Patsy was born despite the presence of her Mother, Catherine Stewart, and the old Slave Woman who had been  in her family for as long as Mary Ann could remember.  The Old Slave Woman had told Mary Ann that her "birthin'" would be "gist fine"...and it was.  Subsequent "birthin'" experiences had become almost routine and when her Catherine was born two years before Mary Ann barely interrupted her daily routine.

The pains were arriving in quick succession, but Mary Ann remained calm.  She had made preparation.  She knew what to expect.  More..she knew what to do.   She recalled the processes of past births, made mental notes, and each contraction made her happy as she gave thought to having another precious baby when her Robert was able to return home.

Mary Ann was settled comfortably on the soft grasses when the final pain was experienced.   The baby was now coming fast.  Suddenly, Mary Ann was holding the baby in her hands.  It was a boy!  Mary Ann held him by his feet and gave him a loving "whack" on the backside..just like the Old Slave Woman had done to Patsy. There followed a cry that shattered the silence of the
canebrake and Mary Ann laughed aloud..shocked that such a tiny body would produce such sound. Next, there was the tying of the umbilical cord. Then Mary Ann reached into her apron pocket for the embroidery scissors she had remembered to bring to sever the cord.

Mary Ann smiled as she dried the tiny body with clean, soft, cotton cloths she had brought from the cabin.  She noted the perfect little body and the full head of dark hair.   Mary Ann remarked to herself, "This is a beautiful baby."  But.. Mary Ann thought all babies were pretty.

The sun was shining brightly on Mary Ann's primitive "birthin'" bed and the canebrake broke the little breeze that blew in with the cold.  Mary Ann was exhausted and she took advantage of the opportunity to rest awhile...to enjoy God's newest blessing in her life.  She thought of Robert and the day they were married at the Almance Presbyterian Church in North Carolina.  She
thought of her parents, Sampson and Mary Wiley Stewart...four hundred miles away. How glad they would be to know they had another fine grandson.

His name?  That was important.  She would call him Robert Harvey Matthews after his father.

It was then that Mary Ann realized what day it was.  It was November 3, 1814.   It was the birthday of Robert Harvey Matthews. It was..as well..the Fourteenth Anniversary of the wedding of Robert Matthews and Mary Ann Stewart.  Mary Ann had presented a fitting anniversary present to her Robert who was far away serving his country.

(Note: The powder horn mentioned above was given to Robert Harve Matthews prior to his leaving for Texas in 1835 and was in his possession when he died at his large home in Dawson in 1894.   It was, probably, in the large home when Bettie Prddy Matthews lived, but disappeared after her death.   No picture of Robert Harve has been located at this date.)

"TENNESSEE'S TEXAS RANGER"
Robert Harve Matthews 1814-1894

"COME TO TEXAS!"


Sterling Clack Robertson was a huge man in stature, but he was equally large in the minds of the small Duck River boys who had observed him as he engaged in land transactions there for many years.  His father and uncles had been among the first to enter The Tennessee Territory, some as early as the 1750's.  He had been named for a soldier from South Carolina who had served with distinction in the American Revolution.

Sterling Robertson was no stranger to Maury County, Tennessee in the early 1800's.   Elijah Robertson, had received a huge land grant in the late 1700' that included a large part of the area and many Maury County land deeds make reference to the grant as the beginning of the title.

Sterling Robertson did not live in Maury County, but his name appears time and time again in various land transactions there.  He often served as a land broker.  There were times when he bought land outright.  He often foreclosed on land he had sold and financed.  Other members of the Robertson Clan were, also, involved in land transactions in the area.  James Robertson from Davidson County (Nashville) and Mark Robertson were active land brokers.

The early arrival of the Robertson family in The Tennessee Territory permitted them to acquire huge tracts of land by various means.  They were on the frontier and they quickly became true entrepreneurs of the wilderness...always ready to seize the opportunity of a lifetime during the lifetime of that opportunity.  The family became extremely active in Tennessee politics and  accumulated considerable wealth.

Tennessee had, indeed, become a veritable Gold Mine for the Robertson Family.  They had arrived early and by the 1820's the area was filled with thousands of families who come arrived to settle the relatively inexpensive land.  Sterling Clack Robertson had done well financially buying-selling land, but there was no opportunity for him to become the true power broker that his father and uncles and grandfather had been.  Sterling longed for an opportunity to make a similar mark on his own and it was bound to happen...in Mexican Territory.

Mexico included a large and largely desolate area which began west of the Sabine River...South of the Red River and north of the Rio Grande.  Mexico had attempted several settlements, but none flourished more than the establishment of Catholic Missions and a few unproductive ranches.  When land prices began to soar in the United States, many Americans who had failed to obtain land of their own began to look across the Sabine River into the Mexican Territory.  It was a new frontier.  It was called....TEXAS!

Moses Austin applied in 1819 to become the first of several "Impresarios" to receive permission from the Mexican government to settle American colonist in the province of Texas.  Moses Austin died in 1821, leaving his dream of building an empire to his son, Stephen F. Austin.  Mexico permitted settlers in the "Impresario" colonies to receive 4605 acres of land for as little as $50.00.  The "Impresario," when quotas of colonist were filled, received personal grants of many,many thousands of acres.

The "Impresario" thing was exactly what Sterling Clack Robertson had in his dream for the future and he was not far behind Austin in becoming an "Impresario" in his own name.  The idea had begun in 1825 in his Uncle's bank in Nashville and the formation of a group of leading Nashville professionals known as The Texas Association.  The group made several unsuccessful attempts to begin a movement to settle in Texas, but it was Sterling Robertson, one of the incorporators, who moved the idea into reality.

The group had purchased an "Impresario" contract for $8,000.00 that included a huge tract bounded on the south by the El Camino Real (Old San Antonio Road),  on the east by the Trinity River, and on the west by the Brazos River.  The north boundaries were vague and, apparently, extended as far as colonist had courage to settle.  Robertson established his community just north of the El Camino Real and a few miles east of The El Camino Real landing on the Brazos River.  He called his community Fort Franklin after a town southeast of Nashville, Tennessee.

Robertson led several Middle Tennessee families to Fort Franklin in 1830.  They rode horses from Maury County to the Little Rock, Arkansas area, south to the Texas Territory town of Nacogdoches, and west to the Robertson grant.   Robertson returned to Tennessee several times to recruit settlers.  He had returned in 1835 on another recruitment trip to Giles and Maury Counties and he was constantly proclaiming the boundless future that existed for those rugged individuals who dared make the move to Texas...and Fort Franklin, in particular.

It was almost noon when he made his appearance at the home of Robert and Mary Ann Matthews who lived in the Hurricane Switch area.  Robertson  was greeted as the old and trusted friend that he was and he expressed his appreciation for having an invitation to the noon meal.  Mary Ann and Hannah, the female slave given to Mary Ann by her father, Sampson Stewart, stayed in the kitchen to make sure that the "extras" always added for prominent guests were carefully prepared.

The large bell that hung near the font gate was rung with vigor and the sounds rushed across the fields and canebrakes to the far reaches of the Robert Matthews farm.  One by one the family members working the fields arrived, each greeting Sterling Robertson with a hearty "Hello" and a "Welcome Back!"  Laughter filled the large kitchen of the new house Robert had built for Mary Ann to replace the small cabin he had constructed thirty years earlier.

Minerva Catherine Matthews, one of their daughters, had married Francis Slaughter the previous July, and they had come over for the day.  Francis had assisted Sterling Robertson in his recruitment from time to time and he had first planned to go to Texas in 183l, but was unable to make the trip due to the birth of his third child and the death of his first wife.

Prudence, another daughter, was dating a young man whose name was Samuel Wright.  Sam Wright, who lived on an adjacent farm, was interested in what Robertson was to say and had been invited for dinner.

Presently, young Robert Harve rode up on his horse.  He was working as a surveyor to establish legal boundaries for a farm recently purchased by a family from North Carolina, but knowing that Sterling Clack Robertson was coming, had rushed to finish his work so he could be home for dinner.

Sterling Robertson had always liked Robert Harve.  Robert Harve was twenty and Sterling Robertson, who had not seen him since he was fifteen, could not believe that the young teenager he had left was now a tall, lanky, good-looking young man.  He noted that Robert Harve had retained the boyish grin and warm smile.  Robertson remembered Robert Harve carrying the chains for surveyors as they did their work.  Robert had begun carrying chains when he was ten or eleven and when he was fourteen he was solving mathematical equations required for complicated surveying efforts.

The long table located in the huge kitchen was covered with a blue and white checkered cloth that was almost hidden by the many platters and bowls of freshly cooked food.  Hannah had picked some zinnias from the flowered bed near the well and their color splashed over the top of the old white crockery pitcher that served as a vase.  Sterling Robertson, the guest of honor, sat at one end of the table.  The food was delicious, but everyone who sat at the table waited anxiously for the end of the meal and the opportunity to hear the latest news from that fabulous place called TEXAS.

Sterling Robertson bragged on the fine meal to Mary Ann, telling her that Hannah was the finest cook in all Middle Tennessee.  Hannah smiled like a sixteen year old girl despite her age that neared seventy.  When the last of the berry cobbler was finished cigars were distributed to the menfolks and the dishes cleared from the table.  Mary Ann, Catherine, and Prudence helped Hannah put away the food and stacked the dishes.  Dishes would be washed later.  The women wanted to enjoy the conversation that was sure come.

And the anticipated conversation did come...first with the small talk about the crops...then the economy of Middle Tennessee...and..then...quickly..to what was happening in TEXAS.  Robertson brought his hearers up to date on the latest word concerning the Mexican political situation.   Mexico had begun to have second thoughts about permitting so many Americans to settle in Texas.  He expressed his concern over the increasing discontent between the American colonists and the Mexican Government.

Robertson made himself remember that he was there to recruit settlers and moved quickly from politics to emphasizing that no change had been made with regard to distribution of land.  Each colonist was still able to receive a grant of 4406 acres of land with an investment of $50.00.  He pointed out that the colonists, to obtain the grant, were required to sign a pledge of allegiance to Mexico and become a member of the Catholic Church.  Mary Ann bristled as Sterling made the comment about becoming a member of the
Catholic Church.  Mary Ann was a staunch member of the Presbyterian Church.  She had brought her children up with Presbyterian practice and strong Calvinistic morality.  She wanted none of her children to become Catholic.  And she forcefully voiced her feelings to Sterling Clack Robertson.

Robertson laughed in response as he reared back in the straight chair and puffed again on the long black cigar and assured Mary Ann that the thing about the church was nothing more than a formality that the Mexicans insisted, but no one took it seriously.  Besides, he said, there was not one Catholic Church in Fort Franklin and that the only time he had seen a priest was on the road from Nacogdoches to San Antonio.

Robertson continued, saying that many Americans had settled in Texas and that many, many more would be arriving in a few years, that, in time, the Americans in Texas would renounce their allegiance to Mexico and become a Republic.   He added that there was much talk of the matter circulating throughout the Texas settlements.

Robertson pointed out that life was hard on the Texas frontier...sometimes cruel, but he turned to Robert and reminded him that Middle Tennessee was no "bed of Roses" thirty years earlier when Robert and Mary Ann had arrived in their wagon.  Robert acknowledged Robertson's comment and remembered just how hard and difficult those first years in the canebreaks had been for him
and Mary Ann.  But..he thought...thirty years had made a difference...a big difference.  Now there was a new house, the fields were cleared and productive, additional land had been purchased, and the Matthews farm produced more cotton than any other in the Duck River area.

The thoughts by Robert Matthews were halted as Robertson continued with his informative dialogue.  Robertson said that many of the Americans living in Texas had begun to talk of the day when Texas would be part of the United States.  After all, he commented, there more Americans living in Texas than Mexicans and the Americans possessed most of the real wealth.

Robertson began to mention some of the families already living at Fort Franklin.  He named the McCandless family from Giles County.  Robert and Mary Ann knew them well.  There were other familiar names mentioned...Lawrence, Wheelock, Berry, and Hill.  These were names familiar to Maury County residents.  Robert and Mary Ann could remember when some of those families had left the county to go to Texas and she was pleased that they had done so well there.

Sterling Clack Robertson mentioned that he had already secured a large list of new families who had agreed to return to Texas with him and he indicated that the list would eventually include more than one hundred families. Most, he commented, were young families with prospects of being nothing more than share-croppers in Tennessee, but who could..possibly..own a plantation in Texas.  Robertson pointed out that Texas needed hard working families who would be willing to overcome the hardship and dangers and privations of the frontier.  "Indians?" asked Minerva Catherine.  Robertson commented that Indians did live in Texas, but that they were, for the most part, peaceful.  Local Indians were as peaceful as the old "hound dawg" sleeping on the front porch.  He added that, now and then, the Comanches and the Kiowas get "riled" up and create problems at isolated ranch houses, but never settled
communities like Fort Franklin.,

Francis Slaughter and his bride, Minerva Catherine Matthews, had talked seriously about Texas before the wedding in July.  Francis had worked with Robertson for several years and would have gone to Texas with him earlier had it not been for the illness and death of his first wife.  Now he wanted to take his bride and his three children there.  Minerva Catherine had agreed to share his dream as well as his life, but they had not revealed their plans to Robert and Mary Ann.

Presently, Sterling Robertson turned to Robert Harve and inquired as to what plans Robert Harve had for his life.  Robertson was unaware that Robert Harve Matthews was already excited about that faraway place called Texas.  He had a bad case of that frontier "itch" that had affected just about every Matthews generation for more than two hundred years.  He often imagined as he rode his horse across his Father's farm that he was riding across his own plantation that stretched as far as he could see in every direction.  That was fantasy.  Reality reminded him that such a dream would never be possible in settled Maury County Tennessee.   The Nashville paper had carried accounts of what was happening in Texas and now...hearing first hand reports from Sterling Robertson...created the worst case of "frontier itch" he had ever experienced..and it needed scratching...real bad.

"Robert Harve,"  Robertson continued, "I desperately need a surveyor at Fort Franklin and I think that I can make it worth your while if you would see fit to help for a couple of years."  Mary Ann flinched as she realized what Robertson had said to her son.  She wanted Robert Harve to be successful, but she had never envisioned Robert Harve seeking success in such a primitive place as Texas.  Robertson saw the concerned looks in the eyes of Mary Ann and Robert and quickly assured them that if Robert Harve wanted to come with him that he would take personal care to watch over him and make him an associate.  He pointed out that Robert Harve would be permitted a sizable grant of land as a single person and that he would receive additional land each time he surveyed property.   People in Texas didn't have much currency, but were willing to make payment for service with land.

Robert Harve had listened, but he made no comment.  He would make no decision...as good as the opportunity appeared...until the matter had been fully discussed with Robert and Mary Ann.  Sterling Robertson was aware of what was going through all minds gathered around that noonday table and he stressed that Robert Harve should not make a decision at that time, that he should talk to his parents, and that he, Robertson, would contact him in a few days.  Robertson announced that he was to meet with another family for supper, thanked Mary Ann and Robert for their hospitality, bade the group good-bye, and rode away on his horse.

Family conversations continued through the afternoon and into the evening.  Every word and every thought focused on Texas and what Sterling Robertson had said.  Robert Harve had made his personal decision.  He desperately wanted to be with Robertson on his return to Texas, but he would not do so against the wishes of his parents.  He listened carefully as they spoke of consequences of various decisions relating to the the matter, but at no point did either Robert or Mary Ann voice any opposition to any member of
the family going to Texas.

Minerva Catherine and Frank Slaughter went for a long walk.  Those who remained at the house knew that the walk involved more than the need for exercise.  It was talk time.  Frank and Minerva were barely married, but they were ambitious...they were both hard workers.

The battle of the pros and cons of family members going to Texas raged on and, as the logs began to flicker in the fireplace, Robert placed his hand on the shoulder of Robert Harve and told his son that he knew that he wanted to be with Robertson on the return trip to Texas...that if that was his desire he would have the blessing and support of Robert and Mary Ann.

Robert Harve hugged Robert and Mary Ann, grabbed his hat and coat, and was through the door.  He jumped from the porch to the bare ground with a "YEE-HA" that could have been heard all the way to Giles county.

Robert Harve Matthews, at age twenty, was on his way...to adventure....to success...to a new life.    

HE WAS ON HIS WAY TO TEXAS!

Rangering on the Texas Frontier
Robert Harve Matthews

Some reports indicate that Robert Harve Matthews first joined Barnes' Rangers in 1837 under the command of Major Smith and,later, joined Eli Chandler's company where he served until 1845.

He..MAY..have first joined the Rangers in 1837, but the Rangers were formed in November 1835. Harve arrived at Franklin on Dec. l, 1835 when Rangers in his area were being recruited.  Harve's name is listed as an "Original Texas Ranger" on the stone marker at the Ranger Hall of Fame in Waco, Texas.  Reason would indicate that he must have first joined the Rangers sooner than 1837.

Few details have been discovered that shed light on the efforts of Robert Harve Matthews with the Texas Rangers.  The Texas Rangers in 1835-1840 was a new, and probably, loosely organized group, that kept few records, many of which were destroyed or misplaced through the years.

The "Rangers" were established in the fall of 1835 just a few days before Harve and his sister's family arrived in Franklin. (Minerva Catherine Matthews had married Francis Slaughter in Maury Co.TENN in the summer of 1835.  Francis' first wife had died and left him with three small children.) The Rangers needed young men with spirit and Robert Harve Matthews was just such a young man.

He was single, had not established himself in the community, was excited about life on the frontier, and wanted to do his part for the betterment of the community.  Harve had arrived in Franklin on December 1, 1835 and recruitment of individuals to "range" the area between the Trinity and Brazos Rivers north of The Old San Antonio Road had begun.

Harve needed something to do and "Rangering" seemed to interest him.

Stephen F. Austin initiated the first Texas Rangers in his colony, but he was not the first the employ "Rangers."  The local militia of Augusta Co Virginia included a group called "Rangers." And...some of those Virginia "Rangers," probably, bore the name of Matthews.   Samuel Doak served as a Virginia Ranger in 1742 and James Matthews..b.1739...married Mary Doak.

Rangering was not a full time position.   Rangers were hired on a per day basis to "range" the area as needed to maintain some semblance of law and order.   There were no uniforms.  Each man was required to furnish his own horse, saddle, bedroll.  Each man was required to furnish his own weapons.


The "Look" of The Texas Ranger evolved out of the needs that soon became evident to those who served. Rangers needed large hats to keep the hot Texas sun off their faces during the summer and to keep the heads warm in winter. Tall, heavy leather boots were needed to protect the feet and legs from mesquite thorns as they rode through the brush and from the bite of the rattlesnake on the ground. The repeating rifle and the revolving pistol had not been invented.  Rangers soon learned to carry a muzzle loading rifle on their saddle and a cap and ball pistol in a crude holster or, sometimes, just secured at the waist by a wide leather belt.  A powder horn and shot bag completed the requirement for firearms.

Most Rangers soon learned the need to carry, as well, a large knife, usually secured on the belt with a leather holster.  The knife was used for dressing wild game which became part of their diet when away from home, but, also, the knife came in handy when Rangers were forced to engage in hand to hand combat.

Delegations from all over the Mexican territory of Texas had assembled at San Felipe, seat of government for Stephen F. Austin's colony, to discuss the needs of the settlers.   Viesca, seat of Robertson's colony, had the largest group.  One of the acts of business was to authorize Silas M. Parker to employ twenty-five Rangers "to range and guard the frontier between the Brazos and Trinity Rivers."  Ten more were to "range" east of the Trinity and twenty-five more would "range" west of the Colorado River.

Each man and horse would be paid $1.25 for each day actually served.  Rangers would be under the command of a Major and consist, eventually, of one hundred fifty men.   Those so employed were to draw ammunition from John Lott at Washington-on-the-Brazos.  Privates would enlist for one year and receive "full compensation for pay, rations, clothing, and horse service."

Rangers were "required to always be ready...armed and equipped with one hundred rounds of ammunition (powder and ball)...good horse properly accoutered (saddle, bridle, bags, etc.) at their own expense.  If any man had none, Superintendent could purchase one for him and take it out of his pay"

The above was presented to the delegates on November 21, 1835 and adopted three days later.  R. M. Williamson was elected "Major of the Corps of Rangers and Sam Houston immediately ordered Rangers to Mill Creek where Indians were "lurking," probably to steal horses.

1836  -  The Texas Congress passed a Law to "Raise a Battalion of Mounted Riflemen"...280 men..."To protect the Frontier."

Major George B. Erath and other authorities prepared a list of "Rangers" who were included on the Ft. Milam Muster Roll in 1836 and who were sent in 1837 to Waco Village to establish Ft. Fisher. The list, presented on a bronze plaque located in the entry courtyard at the Ranger Hall of Fame at Waco, Texas, includes the name of R. H. Matthews.

The list presents Capt. Thomas Barron as Commanding Officer.  Lieutenants were Charles Curtis, David Campbell, and George B Erath. Sergeants were Hardin Nevil, William Neale, Lee R Davis, and James McLochlan.

Privates were:

Jesse Bailey Thomas James
Silas Bates Sam Johnson
John Barron Ben Long
David Clark R H Matthews
James Coryell Thomas Matthews
William R Cox William Matthews
Aaron Cullins Green McCoy
Daniel Culling Jerry McDonald
Anson Darnell Lewis Moore
Charles Duncan Morris Moore
Alfred Eaton H R Parsons (Persons)
Thomas H Eaton Joseph Proctor
Bradley Emmons Sterrett Smith
David M Farmer Empson Thompson
Robert Furgeson John Tucker
Benjamine Fitch John Folks
Stephen Frasier Jacob Gross
Jack Hopson

1839  -  Robertson County:  Authorized recruitment of fifty-six men to serve six months.  Thirty-four were recruited and led by W G Evans, marched to Ft. Milam (two miles distant from present day Marlin Texas).  It was on April 26, 1839 that Indians stampeded a herd of buffalo through their camp.

Harve Matthews must have been party to many of the early activities of the Ranger group operating out of Franklin, but only two written accounts of his involvement have been found.

SERVICE DATES  - EARLY TEXAS RANGERS

Enlisted                 Rank   Organization   Com. Officer

ANDREW MATTHEWS
Mar 5, 1839-June 8, 1839      Mtd Rangers    Capt Jas D Matthews

ROBERT HARVE MATTHEWS
Mar 8, 1839 90 Days   Pvt Mtd Rangers Capt Jas D Matthews
Jan 4, 184l l5 Days Pvt Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
June 4, 184l 15 Days Pvt Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
July 20, 184l 15 Days Pvt Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
Aug 6, 184l 10 Days   Pvt Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
Aug 24, 184l l0 Days Pvt Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
Oct 29, 184 l6 Days Pvt Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
Feb 16, 1845 Pvt Rangers Lt T J Smith
Sept 15, 1845 l00 Days Pvt Robertson Lt T J Smith

JAMES D. MATTHEWS
Mar 8, 1839-June 8, 1939 Mtd Rangers Comm. Officer
Jan 4, 184l l5 Days Pvt Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
May 17, 1841 9 Days Pvt Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
June 4, 184l l5 Days Pvt  Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
July 20, 184l l5 Days Pvt  Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
Aug 6, 184l l0 Days Pvt Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
Aug 24, 184l l0 Days Pvt  Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
Sept 5, 184l 6 Days Pvt Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
Oct 3, 184l 6 Days Pvt  Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler
Oct 29, 184l 6 Days Pvt  Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler

One account occurred near January 1, 1839 and was recorded by an early Texas frontiersman whose name was John Henry Brown. James Marlin's home was the northernmost on the Brazos River.(Marlin, Texas area)  Beyond the Marlin place was nothing but wilderness and Indian country.  The Marlins and several other families were together, perhaps celebrating the arrival of the New Year, when Indians suddenly broke into their cabin.   Several of the Marlin children were outside the cabin and escaped the bloodshed and slaughter that occurred inside.  Young Isaac Marlin came from his hiding place after the Indians left, surveyed the situation, and ran five miles to the home of his uncle, John Marlin.  John and several friends who were visiting at his home, quickly rode to the horror scene. They found one young girl alive.  The other were dead and scalped.

Ten days later, the Indians, seventy in number, attacked the home of John Marlin.   John and several friends were inside the house and repelled the attack, killing seven of the Indians.  The two Indian raids prompted a decision upon the part of all settlers in the area that the Indians had to be pursued and fought or the settlement would, of necessity, be abandoned.

Forty-eight men gathered from throughout the area, including the town of Franklin,( Sometimes referred as Fort Franklin), and began pursuit of the Indians.  They quickly found their trail and followed it to the Brazos. They crossed the river and found a deserted camp with the fires still smoldering.   The Indians were close by.

On January 16, 1839, they discovered an empty cabin that the Indians has plundered.   The pursuers located the indians six miles away at Morgan's Point on the Brazos.   They were in a ravine that ran through some Post Oak woods.

Jose Maria, an Indian chief of some notoriety, was leading the group and, upon seeing the men rushing toward him, pulled his gloves from his hands, aimed carefully at the leaders.   The first bullet cut through the sleeve of  Joseph Butler.  The battle raged for some time and it appeared that the Indians were near being defeated.  A command was issued by the leader of the pursuers to fall back, but was misinterpreted as a signal for retreat.  The Indians took advantage of the situation and charged the Texans.  The Texans were pursued for four miles when the Indians gave up.  Dead and wounded were said to have been equal on both sides.  The Indians continued their rampages until they were signally defeated at Little River in Bell County.

The names of several of the Texans involved included William Fullerton, G. W. Morgan, Joseph McCandless, Britton Dawson, R. H. Matthews, and Eli Chandler.  Eli Chandler was one of the early officers in the Texas Rangers under whom Robert Harve Matthews served.  Names of McCandless, Morgan, Fullerton, and Matthews are to be found in the early history of Maury Co. TENN)

Jose Maria, long a threat to the Texas frontier, later became peaceful and civilized and lived a long life.  He often acknowledge that the Texans had whipped him at the battle at the Post Oak Woods and that he was retreating until he saw the panic and confusion which prompted his charge.  He visited Bryant's Station in later years, offering his pipe to Bryant.  Bryant insisted that Jose Maria smoke first since he had won the fight years earlier.  The old chief smiled and puffed away.

A second recorded incident was contributed by a Major H. D. Prendergast.  The year was 1840 and a group of men from Franklin was sent to pursue some Indians who had stolen horses in the area. The group included G. H. Love, Judge S. B. Killough, Harvey Matthews, A.C. Love and D. Hill, two medical students. It is assumed that "D. Hill" was Dr. George Washington Hill, who, later, married Minerva Catherine Matthews Slaughter.   One writer stated that "D. Hill" was David Hill, but a David Hill who was a medical student has not been identified.

The Texans began pursuit and came upon the Indians where two ravines converged.  The Indians were surprised and began fleeing in all directions.  A.C. Love fired the first shot and killed an Indian squaw riding double with an Indian warrior in retreat.   Several other Indians were hemmed in the ravine and one attempted to ride through the band of Texans.  A shot from Hill's rifle downed that Indians horse but as the Indian dropped from the horse he fired point blank at Hill's face, shattering Hill's jaw bone.

A hand to hand battle followed. A.C. Love chased one of the Indians, each carrying an unloaded rifle.  Love caught the Indian and each attempted to club the other with his rifle.  Love's collar bone was broken, one finger on his left hand crushed. Eventually, the two began to struggle hand to hand.  Love's fingers caught the Indian's hair...the Indian reacted..and gave Love time to pull his large knife and plunge it into the Indian.

Early history of Navarro County records the presence of William M. Love and a W. F. Love.   Both were in Navarro County in the 1850's. These two men may have been sons or nephews of A.C. and G. H. Love mentioned above.

No record exists that makes note of Robert Harve shooting Jose Maria, Chief of the Anadarcoe Indian Tribe and sometimes referred to as "The Iron Eyes."   However, several stories have been told of the friendship that existed between the two when they became old. It was told that Jose Maria came to visit Robert Harve at one point when Harve had become ill. His sister Prudence (Mrs. Samuel Wright) was with Harve at the time and told of Jose having her feel the bullet that Harve had shot him with..still lodged under the skin of the old indian's back.

Bountyty & Donation Land Grants of Texas"    1967
Vertical File, Texas Collection, Baylor University,
by Thomas Lloyd Miller  MATTHEWS, ROBERT H    One of the rangers who was at
Fort Fisher in 1837, was also in the service of the Republic of Texas from
June 4 to September 14, 1836.

MATTHEWS, THOMAS   a member of the ranger company at Fort Fisher in 1837,
was in the service of the Republic of Texas from December ll, 1836 to Oct
11, 1837

MATTHEWS, WILLIAM O.    one of the rangers who founded Fort Fisher in 1837,
was also in the service of the Republic of Texas from April 28 to July 28,
1836


TEXAS LAND BOUNTY RECORDS

MATTHEWS, E W 640 Ac  Travis Cty for service 1837  Pd 1874
640 Ac  Bell Co   paid 1857

MATTHEWS,  M W 320 Ac  for 1836 Service
160 Ac  Hopkins Co pd heirs Jas Gahagan 1872
160 Ac  Delta Cty...pd heirs Jas Gahagan 1861
Filed Lamar County

MATTHEWS, R H 640 Ac  Navarro Co, Pd 1845 for service in 1837
320 Ac  Robertson Co for service in 1836  Pd to
Martha P Matthews 7 Sept 1852

MATTHEWS, THOMAS 1280 Ac  Colorado Cty for service 1836, pd to Samuel
Redgate  1841

MATTHEWS, Wm O 320 Ac  80 Ac  Hopkins Co pd 11858
     240 Ac Denton Cty

"Indian Wars of Texas"     Mildred P Mayhall
Texian Press 1965  Waco Texas POB 1684
Lib Congress Card # 65-29l62

W A Wortham came to Texas from Maury Co, Tn  ll-3-1830

----------------------------

JO J. MATTHEWS

12 Days Lamar Co. MM Capt M W Matthews

JOHN C. MATTHEWS

Nov 20, 1838 96 Days Pvt Red River Capt. H B Stout
Apr 20, 1845 Pvt Austin Capt. D C Cady
May 20, 1845 90 Days Pvt Austin Lt. D C Cady

JOSEPH MATTHEWS

July 20, 184l l5 Days Pvt  Robertson MM Capt. Eli Chandler



CAPT. MANSEL W MATTHEWS

Lamar Co MM           Commanding Officer


SIMON MATTHEWS

Feb 6, 1839 90 Days Pvt Houston Co Capt S Adams
May 9, 1939 90 Days Pvt Houston Co Capt. Solomon Adams

W. O. MATTHEWS

Nov 30, 1838 6 Mos Pvt Red River Capt H B Stout

Slaughter - Slauter Family Biography
by Carl W. Matthews
Submitted for use at this Website on Dec 1999

A Biographical Account of the Life of
FRANCIS (SLAUGHTER) SLAUTER   1795 - 1842

Francis Slauter is a name not often recognized in Navarro County, Texas history, but his name appears on many early land records of Navarro and several other Central Texas Counties.  Francis Slaughter arrived in Texas December l, 1835 and was named "Chief Justice" of Robertson's Colony, responsible for filing deeds for land in more present day Texas Counties than one could imagine.

Robertson County was formed in 1837 and organized in 1838.  Almost every land transaction recorded in Robertson County from 1838 until January 1842 bore the official signature of Francis Slaughter.  Those land transactions covered more than a little of frontier Texas.  The deeds recorded by Slauter at the Courthouse at "Old Fort Franklin" represented the dreams of families who had left the comforts and safety of homes "Back East" to begin a new life in a raw and savage and unforgiving and hostile land area which was in Mexican Territory in 1835 and became The Republic of Texas in 1836.

TEXAS COUNTIES ORIGINALLY PART OF ROBERTSON'S COLONY

l. Brazos  l841 Part
2. Dallas l846   Part
3 Limestone 1846
4. Leon 1846
5. Navarro l846
6 Tarrant 1849 From Navarro
7. Ellis 1849 From Navarro
8. Falls 1850 From Limestone
9. Freestone 1851 From Limestone
l0. Johnson 1854 From Hill
ll. Parker 1855 Part from Navarro
12. Palo Pinto 1856 Part from Navarro
13. Hill 1853 From Navarro
14. Johnson 1854 From Hill
15. Hood 1861 From Johnson

Francis Slauter (1795-1842) must have descended from a hardy and adventurous family that was always seeking new frontiers.   He was, also, one of many Slaughters who bore the name "Francis." The "First" Francis Slaughter wills identified in America were in Rappahanock Co Virginia in 1656, in Richmond in 1718, in Culpepper Co in 1766, and in Shenandoah Co in 1776.  Some sources mention a Francis Slaughter living in Isle of Wight. a Coastal County. These dates indicate a constant move by the Slaughter family from the coast of Virginia to the frontier "over the mountains" and  into the Shenandoah Valley.

SLAUGHTERS IN KENTUCKY

Virginia Wills reveals a Col. Robert Slaughter, who lived in Culpepper Co. Virginia; who married Mary Smith in 1723, died in 1769, and left his estate to wife Mary, and three sons, Francis, Robert, and Thomas.   A second Col. Robert Slaughter had served as a Lt. Col. in the French and Indian War and in the Virginia House of Burgess 1772-1775, quite possibly the son of the first.

The second Col. Robert Slaughter may have been among a group of settlers, many veterans of the Revolutionary War, who were given grants in The Kentucky Territory.  Three hundred large boats of pioneers landed at the Falls of the Ohio River in 1780, a popular stopping place located near present day Louisville, Jefferson Co.     Kentucky had but recently opened for settlement and many of the lands were given to veterans of the French & Indian War.

Military records from Kentucky state that a Robert Slaughter was mustered in September 1793 from the Cavalry unit headed by Capt. John Gordon.   Three months later, September 17, 1793, Robert Slaughter, Esq., was licensed to practice law in Jefferson Co.    This Robert Slaughter would not have been Col. Robert Slaughter for a Colonel would not have been serving under a Captain.

Some members of the Slaughter Family, apparently, remained in Kentucky. Gabriel Slaughter, whose relationship has not been established, was elected Governor of Kentucky 1816-1820.

SLAUGHTERS FROM KENTUCKY IN WAR OF 1812

1812 Francis Slaughter, Cpl. Perchal Hickman's Co.  1st Rifle Reg. Kentucky 1812 William B Slaughter, Pvt. Peter Jordan's Co  Barbee Reg. Kentucky Militia 1812 Francis T Slaughter, Pvt. Peter Jordan's Co  Barbee's Reg. Kentucky Militia 1812      Edmond Slaughter, Pvt. Peter Jordan's Co  Barbee Reg. Kentucky Militia 1812 William H Slaughter, Cpl. James Ray's Co  KY Mounted Vol.   Col Sam South 1812 Francis I Slaughter, Cpl. Peter Dudley's Co, Boswell Reg. KY Vol. 1812 Francis Slaughter 2nd Cpl Peter Dudley's Co. Ky Mounted Boswell Reg. Ky Vol   Detached 1812 Francis Slaughter, Pvt. Jacob Ellison's Co.  Kentucky Mounted Infantry Col. Richard M Johnson

SLAUGHTERS IN TENNESSEE

Robert Slaughter, Esquire, of Jefferson Co. Kentucky had a license to practice Law thee in December 1793.    Seven months later, July 1794, a Robert Slaughter comes into the court of Davidson Co. Tennessee (Nashville) and is listed in the returns of the estate of one Malichiah Sutton.   Two years later, March 16, 1796,  Robert Slaughter purchases two hundred acres of land in Davidson Co. from Andrew Lucas.    Davidson Co. records indicate that Robert Slaughter sold his land in July 1796 to Churchwell Hooper for Five Hundred Pounds. He, also, sold a slave boy on July 30, 1796 in Davidson Co.  Robert Slaughter died in Davidson Co. July 21, 1806.

BIRTHS, DEATHS,MARRIAGES IN TENNESSEE
1793 Mary Hodge Slaughter born Mother:   Sarah Hodge  dau. Francis and Biddy (Mary Elizabeth)) Hodge 1795 - Francis Slaughter born (?)
1798 - Elizabeth Slaughter married Daniel Matthews  -  February 26 1798 - William H Slaughter born in Tennessee 1801 - William Slaughter married Peggy Carter   March 2 1806 - Robert Slaughter died in Davidson Co Tenn 1806 - Sarah Slaughter born.   died Maury Co February 22, 1877 1834 - Zeb Slaughter married Sally Matthews 1835 - Francis Slaughter married Minerva Catherine Matthews 1836 Millie Slaughter married Mastin (Martin) Matthews

SLAUGHTERS FROM TENNESSEE IN WAR OF 1812
1812 - Abraham Slaughter,  Private East Tennessee drafted Militia
1812 - Bernard Slaughter  1st Reg. U S Riflemen   Williamson Co ???
1812 - John Slaughter   Private, Volunteer Mounted Gunmen
1812 - Martin Slaughter  Cpt.  East Tennessee Drafted Militia
1812 - Reuben Slaughter   Sgt. Volunteer Mounted Gunmen

Other Slaughters were identified as living in Mecklenburg Co. North Carolina in the late 1700's, an area from which many of the families living in Maury  Co Tennessee in the early 1800's had migrated.  A Mecklenburg Co NC reference mentions a Capt. Francis Slaughter whose will was probated in 1718 and who had lived at Isle of Wight.  He is said to have married first Elizabeth Hudson and, second, Margaret Hudson. ?

George Slaughter is identified in Maury Co Tennessee in the 1820 U S Census.    Francis, Andrew, and William are listed in the 1830 Census.  Zeb Slaughter married Sally Matthews in 1834.  Millie Slaughter married Mastin Matthews in 1836.  Francis Slaughter married Minerva Catherine Matthews in 1835.

Many Slauter names appear in the ranks of those who served in the War of 1812 and Francis Slauter's name appears.   He was nineteen when he enlisted Sept. 28, 1814 in the Militia under the command of Robert Evans.  He was listed as a blacksmith from Franklin, Williamson Co. Tennessee.  No information has been found regarding his discharge.

Three years later, at age twenty-three, he married Miss Gertrude Lowe in Nashville on   September 11, 1817.   The first child born to the union of Francis Slauter and Gertrude Lowe was a daughter whose name was Sarah L. Slauter, born  1819.      Gertrude Lowe Slauter died at some point, possibly at the birth of Sarah L.

Three more years passed and Francis Slaughter married a second time.   His bride was Lourania Evans, whose father was Daniel Evans, possibly a brother of the commanding officer under whom Francis had served in the War of 1812.  Three children of record were born to this union.   Daniel M. Slauter, born 1825. Lena (Linea) Slauter was born in 1828 and William W. Slauter in 183l.

Francis Slauter had contracted "the virus of excitement" about a land to the Southwest that offered great promise to those who could dare face the risks, the uncertainties, and the dangers involved.  Francis Slauter had met a tall, handsome adventurer who made a trip to Texas in 1825.  His name....Sterling Clack Robertson.

Robertson was born into a family of adventurers and entrepreneurs who had a hunger for political power.  His father and uncles were the vanguard of  settlers in the area that later became Tennessee.   One uncle was Duncan Robertson, Governor of Tennessee.  Another uncle was president of the Merchants Bank in Nashville.  A young politician by the name of Sam Houston had been one of the original incorporators of the bank.

The Merchants Bank in Nashville had been responsible for the formation of a group of merchants, doctors, lawyers, and teachers called The Texas Association, a group desiring to create an empire in the Mexican province of Texas similar to what the Robertsons and other had created in Tennessee.  Robertson made a visit to Texas in 1825, probably in company with Robert Leftwich who had been instructed by the Texas Association to obtain a contract from the Mexican government which would permit the settlement of professional people in a large area of Texas similar to what Stephen F. Austin had done.

Leftwich, accomplished the task..in his own name... and sold the contract to the Texas Association for $8,000.00.  Political changes in Mexico brought changes in Mexican laws that restricted migration into Texas for a time, but in 1830 Sterling Clack Robertson gathered several families and the group traveled by horseback to the area obtained by Leftwich.  The area....north of the El Camino Real (Old San Antonio Road) and between the Brazos and
Trinity Rivers covered thousand of acres of wilderness.  Robertson led his initial group to a place just east of the Brazos and quite near the "Old San Antonio Road."  He called his new town, Franklin, after a town southeast of Nashville, Tennessee.

Leaving the initial group at Fort Franklin, Robertson returned to Tennessee to recruit more settlers. Francis Slauter may have been an employee of Robertson in 183l for it was on  March 26, 1831 that he served as a "witness" for an "indenture" by which Robertson took all but one thousand acres of land from a 4428 acres grant to be received by a settler from the Mexican government.

Three days later, March 29, 1931, Robertson paid passage on the ship, Criterion, for Francis Slauter and twenty-six others.  The trip would entail travel north on the Tennessee River to Ashland, Kentucky...down the Ohio River...down the Mississippi River to New Orleans. Schooners..(sailing vessels with two or more masts)...had established regular schedules to various ports on the Texas coast.  Settlers for Robertson's Colony were, probably, landed at the mouth of the Brazos River and transported upstream to the ferry landing at the "Old San Antonio Road."

Some question exists as to whether Francis Slauter actually made the trip to Texas in 1831 for his name does not appear in the list presented to the Mexican Authorities at that time.  His son, William M. Slauter, was born in 1831 and Margaret Lowe Slauter may have had some complications with the deliver of the child, a factor which may have prompted Francis Slauter to remain in Tennessee.  This could well have been the time when Gertrude Lowe Slauter died.

Gertrude Lowe Slauter died at some point between 183l and June 2, 1835 for it was on that date that Francis Slauter married "Catherine Matthews" in Mary County, Tennessee. A note of interest is that Zeb Slaughter married Sally Matthews in 1834 and Mastin Matthews married Millie Slaughter in 1836..both in Mary Co.  Minerva Catherine Matthews was the daughter of Robert Harvey and Mary Ann Stewart Matthews who had migrated to Mary County
from Mecklenburg Co., North Carolina c. 1808.

The first record of Francis Slauter being in Texas is found in a list of "new arrivals" to Robertson's Colony dated "Jany 8, 1836."  The report lists Francis Slauter, aged forty, and from Tennessee.  His wife, listed as " Manerva", is twenty-three.  Three children are listed in the report: Daniel M. Slauter, aged ten; Lena Slauter, aged seven; William Slauter, aged four. The same list includes R. H. Matthews, age 21, from Tennessee and "family servants."   Later documents report that the Slauters and Robert Harvey Matthews, brother of Minerva Catherine, arrived at Fort Franklin on December 1, 1935.

The first child born to Francis and Minerva Catherine Slauter was Robert Francis Slauter, born in 1836 in Texas.  The second child, Mary Ann Slauter, was born in Tennessee, perhaps on a trip to visit Catherine's father, Robert Matthews, who died in 1839.   Their third and last child was Louise Slauter, born in 1842, shortly before Francis Slauter completed his will.

Robertson's Colony must have been very small in 1835.  Fifteen years later the 1850 Census registered a total population of "nine hundred thirty-four...six hundred forty whites...two hundred four blacks." Regardless of size, Francis Slauter was quickly recognized as a man with outstanding abilities and was, in a short time, made Chief Justice of the Colony.  Slauter, as Chief Justice, was responsible for recording land transactions, probates of wills, and other matters of judicial and legal importance.

The office of "Chief Justice" was a prestigious position in the community, but it, apparently, failed to provide financial support to meet the needs of the Slauter family.  Francis Slauter and his brother-in-law, Robert Harvey Matthews, engaged themselves in some type of retail store.  The store sold corn for $1.00 a barrel... "Texas Money".  The partnership, apparently, did a generous "credit" business.  Accounts listed amounts from fifty cents to forty-one dollars and included many names that were prominent in Navarro County a century later.

James D. Matthews owed $41.00.  James D. Matthews had married Martha Patricia (Patty) Matthews, his First Cousin and sister of Robert Harvey Matthews and Minerva Catherine Matthews Slauter.    James D, son of Joseph Matthews of Maury Co Tenn.,   had arrived at Fort Franklin at some point prior to January 1837 when he ran for and won the position of County Coroner...24 to 23.  Other with accounts included:

J F Galloway another Mary Co, Tennessee native W  M Cook whose families lived at Franklin and some settled in the Spring Hill area of Navarro county.  James W Hill relative of Dr. George Washington Hill L B Prendergast whose name was later found in Navarro County George W. Morgan    from Mary Co. Tennessee, whose relatives were killed by Indians in 1838 north of present day Marlin, Texas M I Treadwell who lived at Spring Hill and is remembered by Treadwell Branch that ran through the town James Graham who settled south of Dawson and whose grandson, James R.Graham, built a large home west of Dawson and opened  "Graham's Park" to the public Thomas Flint whose descendents lived in Dawson for many years.

Francis Slauter lived only six years after coming to Fort Franklin, but he was to acquire several parcels of land during that time.  He receive a grant for 4428 acres of land on July 29,184l.  He owned l77 acres of land adjacent to three improved "Town Lots" in the Town of Franklin.  He owned another 4602 acres of land.  He had purchased 723 acres of land from Jesse Webb and another ll07 from the Jesse B Atkinson Headright.  He held title to several Town Lots in Franklin in addition to the three where he resided and he held a "Quit  Claim" deed to one half the Town Lots in the Town of San Augustine, Texas.  His land holding included ll,067 acres and numerous "Town Lots" in two towns.

Francis Slauter was forty-seven when he began to write his very detailed will that covered seven handwritten pages.  Francis Slauter was seriously ill and he was, apparently, knowledgeable of his condition.  His will was signed on February 4, 1842 and witnessed by H R Persons, L B Prendegast, and Samuel S McMurry.  He died at some point between February 4, 1842 and sometime in August when the will was filed for probate.

The preamble of his will was typical of many wills written in the 1800's and filled with beautiful, almost poetic language.

"REPUBLIC OF TEXAS, Robertson County:  To all to whom these presents shall come. Know  that I, Francis Slauter, a citizen of said County and resident of the Town of Franklin, being of sound mind and disposing memory, do make this my last will and testament and direct the following disposition to be made of the worldly estate which it has pleased God to entrust me with, (viz)."

Francis Slauter, judging him from his will, was a thoughtful and caring individual who made detailed preparation for every eventuality.  He must have had some training as a lawyer for much of his will appears to bear the expressions of a legal mind.

His initial Article was to name an Executor and he named "my friend George W. Hill,"  Dr. George Washington Hill, born 1814 in Warren County, Tennessee.   Some members of Dr. Hill's family may have arrived in Texas as early as 1830, but George Washington Hill remained in Tennessee where he attended a college in Wilson, Tennessee.  He was to have studied medicine at Translyvania University in Kentucky, but no records of his having attended exist.  He performed "services" for Robertson's Colony in 1835 for which he was paid Twenty-five cents.  He served 1838-1839 as a representative from Robertson County to the Texas legislature and as Secretary of War & Marine for The Republic of Texas under Presidents Sam Houston and Anson Jones until the Republic was admitted to the United States in 1845.

Francis Slauter placed much confidence in Dr. Hill.  So well respected was Dr. Hill that he was often named as executor on wills drafted in the county.   Francis Slauter mention again and again in his will that "The Executor shall act as he sees fit."  Dr. Hill eventually "Saw Fit" to marry Francis Slauter's widow.   Dr. Hill and Minerva Catherine Matthews Slauter married November 17, 1847 and they lived together until his death in 1860.  They had no children of their own, but Dr. Hill, apparently, served well in his role as father to the children of Francis Slauter.    Dr.Hill referred in his will to Robert Slauter as "a dutiful step-son."

Slauter stated precisely the names of his heirs.  The daughter by his first wife, Gertrude Lowe, Sarah L. Rankin who had become Mrs. John M. Rankin.     Children by his second wife, Lourania Evans....Daniel M Slauter,   Linea Slauter, and William W. Slauter.  Children by his second wife, Minerva Catherine Matthews were Robert Francis Slauter and Mary Ann Slauter.  He was careful to make provision for other children "as may hereafter be born in lawful wedlock of my wife Catherine Slauter."  The concluding article of his will stated, "I hereby declare and name _______ Slauter, infant lately born of my wife Katherine M. Slauter, one of my heirs."  That unnamed child, a girl, was later named Louise Slauter.

Slauter's will made provision for Catherine to remain in "reasonable possession, use and enjoyment of the three improved lots" located in the Town of Franklin "which I now reside."  She was to "enjoy" the improvements on those lots and the Labor of Land (l77 acres) adjoining which Slauter referred to as "My Farm."   She would be entitled to any additional six hundred forty acres contained in his estate.  She would, as well, receive "two milch cows, four sows and pigs, and sufficient pork or large hogs..or aplentyful supply of meat for one year."   Catherine would receive the household and kitchen furniture.

Slauter instructed that "My Negro woman, Viney, together with her present and future increase of children shall remain in possession of my wife Katherine free of charge for the term of four years."  The provision carried two conditions: One, she would relinquish possession should she cease to become a widow, and, Two.".the negroes could not be ill treated."  He stipulated that "They...the negroes...be well treated with respect."

The Executor was instructed to use the assets of the estate to provide his heirs with a "Good English education."

Daniel M. Slauter was twice given special mention in the will.  Despite the fact that Daniel was seventeen at the time, Francis Slauter, apparently, had concern for his son's future.  Daniel was to receive his choice of his Father's horses and his Father's bridle and saddle.  He was, as well, to receive a "small rifle gun."   Daniel must have had a hearing difficulty, possibly existing throughout his life.   Francis Slauter instructed the Executor to use assets from the estate for any treatment that might restore Daniel's hearing.

One Article in the will mentioned that Francis Slauter was to receive a portion of the estate of George Hodge, then deceased, and formerly of Davidson Co. Tennessee (Nashville).   Whatever portion he was to receive was to be upon the death of Elizabeth Hodge.   He instructed the Executor to appropriate whatever was received from that source to "the common benefit of the heirs in this will mentioned."  Who were George and Elizabeth Hodge. They may have been the maternal grandparents of Francis Slauter.

Francis Slauter was concerned as to where his children would live following his death and stated his wishes for each child.  Sarah L.Slauter had married John M. Rankin June 20, 1833 in Mary County, Tennessee , came to Texas at some point , and eventually settled in San Augustine Co.   Sons Daniel M. Slauter and William W. Slauter were to live with either of three relatives:  William H. Slauter, brother of Francis; John M. Rankin, his son-in-law; or William D. Thomson, a relative who relationship is unknown.   William D Thompson was listed as one of three hundred settlers brought to Texas by Robertson.  Alexander Thompson was said to have been a partner of Robertson.    Whoever took the two boys were to become their Guardian until the boys read the age of majority.

Slauter's will instructed that Linea (Lena) Slauter...then ten years of age...was to receive the Guardianship of Henry Smith of Monroe Co. Tennessee, a county located approximately one hundred fifty miles east of Maury County, Tennessee.  Who was Henry Smith?  William H Smith was one of the signers of the petition presented to the Mexican government verifying the character of Francis Slaughter.  The Executor was instructed to use estate funds to "take any minor heirs to the United States should such become necessary."  His children born by Minerva Catherine were to remain in her care.

Francis Slauter died April 25, 1842. His will was filed for Probate in August 1842 and confirmed on December 26, 1842.  Alexander Patrick, J L McMurry, and Edwin LeRoy Patton were appointed by the court to inventory the estate and they made their report to the court on November 5, 1842.  H Persons was serving as Chief Justice when the probate was finalized.  Their report included the lands and Town Lots previously identified and named "Viney, the negro slave; her daughter, Caroline; and a three year old negro girl whose name was Adoline."

The inventory, also, included $600.32 due the estate from various "accounts receivable" both personal and from the partnership between Francis Slauter and Robert Harvey Matthews.  The amount would not be substantial by modern standards, but would have purchased more than Twelve hundred acres of land in that day.

Francis Slauter was buried in Robertson County, but none of the graves registration lists bear his name.  A stone marker was, without doubt, placed over his grave, but many of the old stones  have weathered to illegibility and those individuals who remembered the location of the grave have long since gone to Glory.

Family history relates that Minerva and her three children moved into the home of her brother, Robert Harve Matthews and lived there until her marriage to Dr. Hill George Washington Hill on November 17, 1847..  Dr. Hill was heavily involved with the Republic of Texas until 1845  when the Republic of Texas became the 37th State of the United States.  The date of  their move to the area of Western Navarro County is not known, but, based on their marriage and the fact that Dr. Hill was named Postmaster at Spring Hill in 1848, it would appear that the move was made at some point in the fall of 1847 or early in 1848.   The first burial in the cemetery located just north of Dr. Hill's cabin was in August 1848.

Dr. George Washington Hill, for whom Hill County, Texas was named, opened a Trading Post   at the Indian Spring south of Richland Creek and was named the first Postmaster at Spring Hill, Texas in 1848.  Dr. Hill died May 29, 1860 and was buried on two acres of land which he owned and which he, in his will, designated as a public cemetery.   Minerva Catherine Matthews Slauter Hill died April 24, 1871.

*****************

ROBERT FRANCIS (Slaughter) SLAUTER.b. August l, 1836 d. August 6, 1883..continued to live at Spring Hill and is buried at the Spring Hill Cemetery.  Robert Francis Slaughter was married three times and all three wives, apparently, died in childbirth and are buried at Spring Hill Cemetery.  The markers above their graves are legible, but provide no clues as to the maiden names. Navarro Co. records reveal that Robert F Slaughter married Susan I Fullerton 17 March 1872.   She was a daughter of Henry II (born in Ireland) and Nancy Walker Fullerton and a sister of Mary Jane Fullerton who had married William Clay Garner.

Robert Francis Slauter, son of Francis Slauter & Minerva Catherine Matthews Slauter, fathered the following children.

By  L M Slaughter   1842-1864
Robert Frank Slaughter,  1859-187 buried at Spring Hill Cemetery.
Bobbie Anna Slaughter, born 1864-1884  buried Spring Hill Cemetery
married 3rd cousin, William Newton Matthews,  Feb 10, 1883
Ottma Slaughter Matthews, their son born at Spring Hill, Texas on?.

By Susan Isabelle Fullerton Slaughter  1853-1878
James H. (Jim) Slaughter    1873-1934  Buried at Dawson Cemetery.
Cousin Jim married Katherine Ruth (Cousin Kate)Matthews, a cousin in 1898. They had no children.   He was raised by his Mother's sister, Sarah Jane Fullerton who married William Clay Garner. Willie R. Slauter b. May 28, 1876  d. March 11, 1877 Henry Bell Slaughter 1879-1897. His father died when he was five and he went to live with Mary Ann Slauter Wheelock who was called "Aunt Puss" who had married George Ripley Wheelock. Henry Bell died Oct 17,1897 without issue.  His will directed that his property be given to "Mrs. Mary Simmes" and "Jas. H Slauter."   Mary Ann Wheelock's husband had died and she had become Mrs. Dan G. Simms by 1897 .

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OTTMA SLAUGHTER MATTHEWS  b. January l, 1884, became the only descendent of Robert Francis Slauter. His mother, Bobbie Anna Slaughter, died shortly after his birth and his Father, Cousin Will, carried him to Maury County, Tenn. where he lived with his Grandparents,"W R H Matthews, Southport, Tennessee" until Cousin Will remarried.

Ottma Slaughter Matthews married Flora Elouise Bankston and lived his life in Western Navarro Co. Texas as a successful farmer.  Their children:

Bobbie Kenneth Matthews b. 1933
Billie Sue Matthews b. 1935 m. Cecil Sanders
James Herman Matthews b. 194l
Henry Newton Matthews b. 1945

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MARY ANN SLAUGHTER  b. April 7, 1838  Tennessee    d. l9l0   Dawson, Texas

Married First..John Ripley Wheelock  b. 18l9   d. 1889

Married Second  Dan G. Simms (1864-1946) after the death of John Ripley Wheelock and before 1897.  They had no children.

Mary Ann, named for her maternal grandmother, Mary Ann Stewart Matthews, was called "Aunt Puss."   She had lived at Spring Hill from the time she was eight or nine years of age, but the family must have returned to Frankin for visits with relatives,  Some members of the Slauter and Hill families remained in Franklin and it was probably on one of those visits that Mary Ann, not yet twenty, caught the eye of John Ripley Wheelock who was almost forty.  Despite the age differences the two fell in love and were married in 1858.  Their children and their families were:

Mary Olivia Wheelock  b. l862     d. 1910
Married:  W W Turner
s. Cliff Turner
s. Leonard Turner
d. Lizzie Turner
d. Sadie Turner
d. Pauline Turner
s. Wilmer Turner
s. Torrence Turner

Annette Wheelock  b. 1864
Married:  John  R Smith   Dawson Dry Goods Merchant
d. Verna Smith
d. Beuna Smith
d. Annie Smith
d. Joycie Smith
s. William Smith
s. Georgia Smith c1888 m. Dave Berry

Beuna Wheelock   b. 1869   d. 1899
Married:  Albert Berry
d. Carrie Annette Berry m. Mr. Foster
d. Mary Jane m. Mr. Hutchinson
d. M Hollis (Holly) Hutchinson RN JD  Dallas TX
d. Theressa Berry
d. Mary Berry

John Ripley Wheelock  b. 187l
Married:  Lillian Ellura Wilkes
d. Theressa Ermadine Wheelock  b. 1903
Married:  Barney Wells   1920
s. Raymond Douglas Wells b. 1921
Married:  Janet Woodall   1940
d. Cheryl Wells   194l
s. Gerald Wells   l941
s. Weldon Earl Wells  b. 1924
Married:  Puselle Henley    1946
s. Weldon Earl Wells, Jr.  l947
d. Ann Elizabeth Wells   1955
s. Johnnie Russell Wells   1956

Robert Harvey Wheelock   b. 1874  d. 1880


LOUISE SLAUGHTER  b. l842   d. August 2, 1867

Louise Slaughter was married c. 1857 to Robert A Younger (March 16, 1833) and had one child, Medora Younger, b. 1858.

A Warranty Deed given by "R H Matthews" dated Sept 25, 1860, granted to " R A Younger" "a certain lot of land."  The "lot"covered approximately three acres and Younger constructed "a large brick storehouse."   Robert A Younger joined the Confederate Army and was killed at some point during the Civil War.  Louise died in l867.

Medora Younger married F. Alonzo McSpadden

UNCLE HARVE GOT MARRIED

Robert Harve Matthews married Bettie Priddy in 1884 when he was seventy and she was twenty-eight.  No record has been discovered as to just how the romance began, how they met, what Bettie was doing.  Robert Harve had lived most of his adult life with members of his family...sisters, nieces and nephews.  He, apparently, owned and operated a General Store at the time in "New Spring Hill."  He was, as well, a man of considerable means in the community and well respected.

The 1880 Census of Spring Hill identifies Robert Harve Matthews living with the James J Coffey Family.  Anne E (Elizabeth) Coffey was the daughter of Robert Harve's brother, Sampson Stewart Matthews.  Robert Harve is listed as an "Uncle" and a Farmer."  Nathan Turnbow, son of Anne's sisters, also resides in the Coffey household.

Bettie's parents lived in a house, reported to have been owned by Robert Harve and located just north of the home of W T Priddy.  Prentice Priddy of Dawson, who lives (1994) at the old W T Priddy homeplace, stated that the old well that served the house where "Cousin Bettie" lived remains in place, but that the house has long since gone.   The old well is located in the corner of two properties currently owned by James Matthews, a grandson of W N (Cousin Will) Matthews, and the north line of the W T Priddy land.  The well is, as well, near the Rockwall Creek that runs from the Pierce land, across the W T Priddy land, and across the W N Matthews place.

The 1880 Census of Spring Hill identifies Bettie's family.
Father    Richard b. 1829
Mother Elizabeth b. 1830
Daughter Bettie b. 1856 -1921
m. 1884  Robert Harve Matthews  1814-1894
Daughter Jimmy b. 1859
Son Robert b. 1863
Son Johnny b. 1865
Daughter Pattico b. 1867
Son Ripley b. 1872 m. 1921 Mary Dorna Norman 1895-
d. Geneva m. Jesse Thompson
s. G R (MD-Okla)
Son Samuel b. 1872

George Ripley Priddy (b.1872) married Mary Dorna Norman, April 12, 1921 when he was forty-nine and twenty six years older than his wife.  "Rip" lived in Hubbard in the 1930's and 1940's and operated a restaurant.  Son G. R. Priddy, Jr. became a physician, lived in Oklahoma where he died. Daughter Geneva Priddy, married Jesse Thompson and resided at Hewitt, Texas.

There is a possibility that the land was originally owned by Dr. George Washington Hill and passed from him to his step-daughter, Bobby Anna Slauter.  She married W N Matthews in 1883 and died in 1884.  Her son, Ottman Matthews, born 1884, received the property at some point.  Robert Harve Matthews...may...have built the house on land owned by Dr. Hill.  The site of the old well is but a short distance from where Dr. Hill lived in the cabin he first built for his family and the site of the Trading Post.

Mention should be made that many of the original houses in the area were located in the area of the Trading Post and that "The Town of Spring Hill" as remembered by today's "Old Timers" was not created until c. 1859. Robert Harve Matthews purchased five hundred acres of land from Dr. Hill in 1858. He surveyed and platted the Town of Spring Hill at some point afterwards and only then did settlement begin in that area.

Bettie gave birth in 1886 to a boy who lived briefly and was buried at the Spring Hill Cemetery. Robert Harve died 1894 and was buried next to the child..  Despite the wide variance in their ages the marriage appeared to have been one based on true love.   Robert Harve referred to Bettie in his will as "My Beloved Wife" and left her all that he had accumulated.  The estate appeared to have totaled something in excess of $30,000., no small sum in those days and included more than sixteen hundred acres of land in Western Navarro County.  Improved property included a large house in Dawson, commercial property in Dawson, and a brick "storehouse" in Corsicana.

Bettie did not marry for more than ten years.  Her second marriage was at some point after 1910 to Dan Simms, who had come to Dawson from Angelina, Co (Lufkin) Texas and had first married Mary Ann Slauter Wheelock, widow of John Ripley Wheelock. Mary Ann Slauter Wheelock was the daughter of Robert Harve's sister, Minerva Catherine, whose husband, Francis Slauter/Slaughter, died in 1842.  Minerva Catherine married Dr. George Washington Hill on November 17, 1847.  Dr. Hill and his bride and her three children...Robert Slauter, Mary Ann Slauter, and Louise Slauter...probably moved to the Indian Springs in the early months of 1848.

Dan Simms was born in 1864 and died in 1946.  Mary Ann was born in 1838 and died in 1910. Dan Simms was eighteen years younger than Mary Ann Slauter Wheelock and was eight years younger than Bettie Priddy Matthews.  After Bettie died in 1921, Dan married a third time to a lady said to have been from Dallas.  The lady is remembered as having two daughters.  The  Dallas wife was referred to as a "High Flying Lady" who ran through with the property and money that Dan Simms inherited from Betty.

Dan Simms returned to Dawson frequently to attend to his farms and conduct other business. He died in 1946 and is buried in the Dawson Cemetery.

Mary A Simms (1841-1910) the date of 1841 is incorrect. Mary Ann Slaughter was born in 1838 in Tennessee when her Mother returned there during the final illness of her Father, Robert Matthews.  She was named for her Grandmother, Mary Ann Steward Matthews; Bettie Simms (1856-1921); Ella Smith (1886-1968) relationship unknown: and Dan Simms Jr. (b/d 1926).

Bettie Priddy Matthews Sims was remembered as a pretty lady and one with a "good head for business."  During the approximately fifteen years between the time Robert Harve died and when she married Dan Simms, Bettie, apparently, increased the value of her estate considerably.

Prentice Priddy remembered that "Cousin Bettie" and Dan Simms often toured the Spring Hill area on Sunday afternoons.  Their means of transportation was a grand air cooled Franklin that was garaged in the barn on a raised wooden platform.  Prentice stated that each Sunday, after the drive through the countryside, Bettie had Dan to drain...and save the oil...jack up each wheel until the tires were free from the wood floor.  The car sat there until the following Sunday when Dan returned the saved oil to the crankcase...lowered the wheels...and picked up Bettie.

Henderson Culbert owned a blue Franklin in the 1930's that he kept parked in a garage on the north side of his property.  That car was like new and Henderson rarely used it.   His main means of transportation was a two seat Model "T."   Henderson lived with his sister, Miss Nettie.  The car may have been sold in the 1940's to Felix Davis.  That Franklin may have been the car that Prentice remembered.

W T Priddy, Father of Prentice Priddy, was told that Dusca Webb and his family, originally from Tennessee,and part of a wagon Train headed for Franklin in 1848 and had camped under the oak trees just north of the Trading Post.  Webb had a number of children and his daughter, Sarah, became very ill and died.  Some reference has been made to the fact that she was a child, but the marker indicates that she was twenty-two and born in Maury Co. Tennessee.  She was buried on the hill behind the Trading Post and was the first person  remembered to have been buried there.  This is very probable since Dr. Hill and Minerva Catherine Matthews Slauter had married the previous November and, probably, moved to the Trading Post in the early months of 1848.  The marker over Sarah Webb states she was born Aug 27, 1826 and died Aug 25, 1848. The names of Dusca and George are included on the marker, but it is not known if they were brothers who died at the same time or later...or why their names were included.  It is possible that Dusca and George returned at some point, had the stone erected, and included their names. A road ran on the north side of the cemetery where several early Spring Hill families resided....Davidsons, Cottengames, and Camerons.  The road led to Hill Lake (a natural lake probably located on Dr. Hill's property) in the Richland bottoms and the road may have been part of the "old Cowhide" or the "Old Cowhead" road that ran from Liberty Hill east through Silver City and "Points East."

Prentice Priddy recalled a story concerning "Hill Lake."  It appeared that Ottman Matthews and his Father, W N, owned land plots that met in "Hill Lake."   Ott had a sow that was continually trespassing on Cousin Will's land and Cousin Will didn't like that.  Ott "Slow Trailed" that sow one day until she made her move.  That sow made her way into Hill Lake....swam into the deep water...under the fence between the two properties..and on to Cousin Will's land.  Smart Sow!

Barbara Davidson Patterson recounted that Dr. H L Matthews and W N (Cousin Will) Matthews did not "get along too well."  One of the conflicts appeared to be that Cousin Will drove his sheep from his pastures south of Spring Hill to those on the north and that he used the main street of Spring Hill for the drive.  For whatever reason the drive irritated Dr. Matthews.

UNCLE HARVE AND THE MEXICAN BANDIT

****************

The porch of the Spring Hill Store had long been accepted as the center of recreational conversation and somebody was always there to listen to the Tall Tales that somebody was always eager to tell.  The roar of laughter could, sometimes, be heard to the bottoms of Richland Creek and beyond.

"Drummers<" later called Traveling Salesmen........came to the store on a regular basis and, always, with some new story....some more "raunchy" than others.

And there were others who made frequent visits to the store like Old Jose Maria, the Indian Chief who had led his band in fights against the settlers
when the area was first opened.  His village was located on the west bank of the Brazos, but the marauding groups of his tribe often came across the
river to steal horses to ride and cattle for food.   Now the "Old Indian" was at peace and he had become close friends with the "Old Ranger," Robert Harve Matthews, who had owned the Spring Hill Store for so many years.  Robert Harve had once wounded Jose Maria and the miniball remained lodged in his back until the "Old Indian" died.  Jose Maria enjoyed retelling the story and having listeners feel the miniball.

Robert Harve Matthews had come to Texas in December 1835 and was one of the first to join up with a group of men who were "part time" peace officers charged with "ranging" the frontier to insure that Indians, Mexican bandits, and outlaws from the United States kept their distance from the settlements.   The were called Rangers...Texas Rangers.

Robert Harve had come to the Spring Hill area in the Fall of 1847.  His sister's husband, Dr. George Washington Hill opened a Trading Post near the springs south of Richland Creek and Robert Harve had obtained land nearby as payment for "Rangering."  He purchased the store from Dr. Hill in 1852 and became Postmaster.  And, later...he purchased five hundred acres about a mile north of the Trading Post and, using his skills as a surveyor, laid out a new community with streets and town lots and farm lots.  He called the community Spring Hill, Texas.  People bought lots and built houses and barns.  Churches and schools were organized, tradesmen served the community to make wheels, repair plows, gin cotton, and quarry stone.  And there always......The Spring Hill Store.

Few weeks would pass but some "Old Ranger" friend of Robert Harve would stop by to spend the night.  Old Rangers were known as "Tellers of Tall Tales" and the porch of the store would soon be filled with listeners.  Robert Harve had done well financially and he was often ribbed by his old cronies about his "Financial Status."

One "Old Ranger" commented on how well Robert Harve appeared financially and suggested that he was aware of just how Robert Harve had begun his climb in the world of "High Finance. "  He reported that Robert Harve was almost penniless when he arrive in Texas in 1835, but that his fortunes turned while on a tour of duty with the Rangers.

It appeared that a group of Mexican Banditos had robbed the Bank of San Marcos of $50,000.00 in gold and were headed back to Mexico with the loot.  Several Rangers in pursuit of the Mexicans met Robert Harve traveling north toward Austin.  Robert Harve was fluent in Mexican and, since none of the Ranger group spoke any Mexican, they persuaded Robert Harve to join them as in interpreter.

The Mexicans, unaware that the Rangers were in hot pursuit, stopped to rest at a well known Cantino in the small town of Helotes.  When the Rangers rushed the Banditos, they were surprised and all but one Mexican was killed.   The Rangers searched high and low for the $50,000 in gold, but it was not found.

The surviving Mexican was sitting on the ground in the shade of the Mission, his hands securely tied with rawhide.  Capt. Eli Chandler, hot and tired from the long ride, was in no mood for games and ordered Robert Harve to question the Mexican.   "Ask him if he was part of the Bandito gang."  The Mexican acknowledged that he was by nodding his head.  "Ask him if they robbed the bank at San Marcos."  Again, the Mexican nodded his head.

"Harve, ask him what they did with the gold."   Harve questioned the Mexican and informed Capt. Chandler that the Mexican said he would never tell. Capt. Chandler pulled his Colt six-shooter from its holster...stuck the end of the barrel into the ear of the Mexican and said, "Now, Harve, tell that dang Mexican that if I don't get a quick answer as to where that gold is located I'm going to blow his head off!"

The Mexican was trembling with fear.  He could speak no English, but he knew from the expression on the face of Capt. Chandler...and by the cocked Colt six-shooter..that he was in a desperate situation.  The Mexican listened intently as Robert Harve began to speak.

"Mexican, Capt. Chandler is a fine man, but his patience has reached it's limit.  He wants to know what you Mexicans did with that gold from the San Marcos Bank.  If you don't want your head blown off...I would tell him what he wants to know...and quickly.

The Mexican stammered a rapid response in Spanish, understood by no other Ranger save Robert Harve.

"Señor...Señor...the gold...the gold...it is in a bucket which we lowered into the Mission well by the gate!"

"Harve...what did he say?"   Robert Harve turned to Capt. Chandler and said, "The Mexican said he is not afraid of you...that he is a brave
man....completely unafraid of death...he would rather die than tell."

And that is how Robert Harve Matthews got his start....I guess!

THE FUNERAL
Robert Harvey Matthews 1814-1894

The ornate funeral carriage waited outside the Cumberland Presbyterian Church three blocks north of the business district in Dawson, Texas.  Two matching black horses stood at the ready, fully hitched..their gleaming harness accented with polished brass and bright red tassels.  Family and friends had begun to gather at the church a good hour before the appointed time for the funeral service and when the seating capacity was reached the mourners spilled into the small entryway, down the steps, in front and around the church building.  Dawson had never before experienced such as this.

The funeral service was drawing to a close and the air was hushed within and without the church building.  Each mourner listened reverently as the good pastors pronounced the benediction..not  just a benediction for a funeral service, but a fitting benediction for a life that had been filled with living at its best.

The click-y-clack of the telegraph instrument at the Texas & St. Louis Railroad Depot in Dawson had quickly spread the word of the funeral two days before and out of town visitors began arriving the following day.  Seven older men...well into their eighties..stepped off the train and into the streets of Dawson.  No man had to ask who they were.  Their feet were covered with hand made cowboy boots that rose almost to the knees.  Their dark suits were conservative and a string bow tie had been fashioned to the collars of immaculate white shirts. Their light colored beaver Cowboy hats were large and appeared to have come from the same maker.  Each man, despite his age, stood ramrod straight and on each coat was penned a five peso Mexican coin...the Sign of The Texas Ranger.

The service was completed and those inside the church building joined the swollen crowd gathered outside that now extended into the dusty street.  The crowd parted as the family...wife, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews..came down the steps and across the brick walk which lead to the street.  Pallbearers moved the polished pine casket through the doors of the church and gently down the wooden steps to the brick walk.   The casket was place with care into the funeral carriage and the door gently closed and locked securely. The members of the Texas Rangers who had served their old friend as an Honor Guard climbed into special buggies in front of the funeral carriage.  They would serve in their role for three more miles. It was then that Cousin Nate Wright, driver of the coach, was signaled to begin the final leg of an eighty year journey.   The destination was the Spring Hill Cemetery.

The family followed in buggies driven by friends who had sat outside the church in readiness to receive their passengers and to express in some way their respects.  The large crowd that had assembled followed.  Some were in buggies..some in farm wagons..some walked..others rode horses.  The mourners came from every walk of life.   Some were prosperous, some were dirt poor, some were politicians from the County Seat and from the State of Texas.  Some were young and some were old. Black men and women..and their children..some weeping, saying, "We loved him, also."

One mourner was an old Indian Chief who had once fought against the Texas Rangers.   He rubbed the lead bullet still lodged after many years in his shoulder and remembered that it had been put there by the man whose body lay in the casket just up ahead.  The two had become close friends when peace was established on the Texas frontier and he had visited his ailing friend just a few weeks earlier.

Memories had been stirred that day, running faster than Richland Creek after a heavy spring rain.  Eulogies had been given at the church service by several men who had known him well...recitations of relationships that reach back more than seventy years.   There were memories of good deeds...of a hearty laugh...of community service..of fairness in business transactions...of love for family and friends and country.   Hundreds of thoughts...disturbed only by the creaking of an ungreased wagon wheel, the muffled sound of animal feet pulling into the sandy road bed..the hushed conversation of those who mourned.

He had arrived at the Indian Spring on the South Side of Richland Creek forty-seven years before, a time when few white men dared venture into the area where marauding Indians were still present.  Indians had massacred seventeen members of a surveying party just nine years earlier on a spot not more than two miles away from the church.  Elder John Parker's little fort had been overrun two years before that and his daughter, Cynthia Ann, taken prisoner by the Kiowas and Nokoni Comanches.

He had come to Texas in 1835 from Tennessee and had quickly enlisted in Sam Houston's "rag-tag" army in an effort to free Texas from Mexico.  He missed San Jacinto by ten days when Sam Houston ordered him and his Captain, Sterling Clack Robertson, to return home with their company to protect the settlements from Indians.   He had served Robertson County as Tax Assessor and Collector in the early days.   He had bought and sold land.  He surveyed one large acreage north of the Indian Springs into home and farm lots..with wide streets and areas for business and commerce...places for a school and for churches.  He had gone to the County Seat in Corsicana and personally drew the plat on the fly leaf of the County Clerk's book. He called his new town...Spring Hill, Texas.  He had served Navarro County as a commissioner...had operated general stores and served as Postmaster.  And...he had acquired a sizable fortune.

Some mourners remembered attending the Spring Hill School that stood on land that "The Old Ranger" had given.  The building was one of several constructed of a wooden frame covered with buffalo hide.  Some said that he had given the money to build the building.  Others remembered the Spring Hill Trading Post that he had purchased in 1852 from his Brother-in-Law, Dr. George Washington Hill. They remembered the smells of the store...the barrel filled with crackers...dried apples in bright wooden boxes...shelves filled with "Patent Medicines."...and hoops of yellow cheese covered with cloth. And, OH YES...there was that large glass case that harbored red stick candy...licorice...and gum drops of every color.

Some smiled as they recalled the "Tall Tales" he often told visitors to the store as they sat around the warm "pot bellied" stove in winter or on the benches that sat on the store porch in summer.

Several older men and women remembered that as orphaned children it had been "The Old Ranger" who had made possible their education. He had bought their shoes and clothes and their books and school supplies.

A Grand Nephew who had graduated from Vanderbilt Medical School in 1887 remembered that it was in 1889 when "The Old Ranger" sold him two lots in Spring Hill for twenty-five dollars.  It was there he had built a new home and there his children were born.

The procession moved South on Main Street toward the Dawson business district.  Nice homes now lined the street.  The large two story home on the right one block south had been built for his old friend from Spring Hill, R B Marsh.  The "Old Ranger's" doctor nephew would move to Dawson and his family would occupy the house twenty years later.

Across the street was the two story home he had built just four years before for himself and his wife, Bettie.  He had planted the hackberry trees himself and now they were growing tall.  He had enjoyed sitting on the large porch that shaded three sides of the house.  The lot extended east to the next street where the barn and buggy shed were located.

The two story homes were, by far, the grandest and most imposing, but there were many smaller homes constructed of sawn wood as well as several newly built log houses.

The brick business buildings on either side of the street stood on land that was nothing more than raw prairie when he had first arrived. They passed the "dry goods" store operated by his old friend from Spring Hill, J. M. Johnson. There was the Woodman of the World Building where Dr. Kirksey taught a Men's Bible Class each Sunday.

There was the "racket" store and the harness shop.  And there were two drug stores.  H. Silbert had just come down from Dallas and opened a clothing store.   There were "meat" markets and several grocery stores.  There were saloons and two domino halls.

Dawson had grown rapidly after the railroad arrived just thirteen years before.  The railroad had brought dramatic change to the area....so different than the area had been in 1848.

The procession made a left turn on the Corsicana Road.  Workmen, constructing a building on the right for The Dawson Lumber Company,  paused from their labor as the procession passed, each man standing silently with hat held to the breast.  The railroad had completed a siding to serve the lumberyard and the feed store that had been completed on the next street to the east.

The second floor of the brick building on the left housed the Dawson Masonic Lodge where he was an honored member.  He had become a Mason in Spring Hill years before and witnessed as the Lodge was moved to Dawson.

The procession crossed the little branch that ran by the new tabernacle.  Some people from Corsicana had but recently completed a real "sody water" bottling plant just south of the tabernacle.  On the right was a stand of huge oak trees where Gypsies and other strangers camped from time to time.

J. C. Calhoun's house was on the right, after the railroad tracks were crossed.  Mr. Calhoun had descended from and had been named for the great American statesman from South Carolina.  Mr. Calhoun owned the only home in Dawson that had been constructed with a real basement.

The railroad had built cattle loading pens on the left.  The "Old Ranger" had witnessed the development of a cattle industry in Texas and had, himself, shipped several car loads of cattle to the  packinghouses in Ft. Worth and Chicago.

Dr. B.W.D. Hill had a new house on the right.  Dr. Hill was a nephew of the "Old Ranger's" best friend at Franklin, Dr. George Washington Hill.  The "Old Ranger" and Dr. George Hill had fought indians together and Dr. George Hill had married the "Old Ranger's" sister, Minerva Catherine, after her husband, Francis Slaughter, died.  They had all come to the Indian Spring together in 1848.

The new McCulloch gin stood north of the railroad tracks and the Davis boys had another on the South side of the tracks.  The last of the cotton crop was being ginned, but the huge motors that ran the machinery were shut down in respect for the procession that was passing by.

Farmersville, the black community, had been built just West of the gins and the people who lived there had named their community for another old friend and leader of Dawson, J H Farmer.  The "Old Ranger" had been a friend to black people and the residents of Farmersville had gathered in great numbers at the edge of the street to pay their last respects to their trusted friend.  Many had been slaves of Masters who were prominent Dawson and Spring Hill citizens, but had been "Free men" since Juneteenth 1865 when the formal announcement had been made at Galveston.  The "Old Ranger" had brought "Family Servants" when he came to Texas in 1835, but he had always treated them with respect and they felt as members of the family.

The procession followed the railroad tracks east toward the Spring Hill Road.  Off to the right the mourners could see the large two story house that Brit Dawson had constructed in 1858.  The Dawson home was the very first of the really grand homes constructed in the area and the lumber had been hauled from Houston on huge wagons pulled by oxen.  The "Old Ranger" and Brit Dawson had known each other at Fort Franklin long before the town of Dawson was even a thought.  They, with other pioneers, had tamed the wilderness of Western Navarro County and created the peaceful communities that existed there in the closing years of the Nineteenth Century.

When the Spring Hill road was reached the group turned North.  On the left stood the new house that Mr. Wilkerson had built for his family.  Cody Wilkerson stood beside his Mother on the huge front porch and waved his tiny hand to "The Old Ranger" who had been his friend.

The funeral carriage slowed to make the sharp turn at the Wilkerson corner and, again, a few yards to the East, as they, again, headed North on the Spring Hill Road.  Ahead was the Priddy home.  The "Old Ranger" had stopped there many, many times to pass the time of day, to drink water from the cool well, and to partake of a good meal.

Jim Pierce had but recently built a new house down the lane on the left. It was down that lane where the wild plums grew in profusion along the fence row.  The "Old Ranger" always watched for the ripening of the wild plums and always gathered several buckets full to use for making jelly.

A few hundred yards to the north and to the east was the lane that led to the Indian Spring Trading Post that Dr. Hill had constructed ..and there was the cabin Dr. Hill had built in 1847 for his bride, Minerva Catherine Matthews Slaughter, and her children...Robert Francis Slaughter, Mary Ann Slaughter, and Louise Slaughter.

It was a few yards north of there that the cortege veered from the main Spring Hill road and turned East on the lane that led to the Davidson's and the Cottengame's....and The Spring Hill Cemetery.  Cattle, grazing on the hillside, lifted their heads momentarily as the procession moved passed. The Davidson lane led around the edge of the hill and up to the small cemetery on two acres land given to the community for that purpose by Dr. Hill. Sara Webb from Giles County, Tennessee had died in 1848 and was the first to be buried there.  Others were buried later and Dr. Hill made provision in his will that this two acres of his land would be so utilized. Dr. Hill and his wife, Minerva Catherine, had been buried there.

And it was nearby that friends and relatives had prepared an open grave for "The Old Ranger."  Huge and timeless oaks towered above the chiseled stone markers and wooden slabs...sentinels watching over the mortal remains of pioneer families...white and black.  The names read like a veritable "Who's Who" of individuals who had come to a Mexican province and who had remained through war and famine and dust and "Blue Northers" until the land became The Republic of Texas..and finally, the twenty-eighth state of the United States of America.  Many had fought in the Civil war and some had become free as a result.  Young wives and infant children were buried there.  It was a place of resting...and remembrance..and reverence.

The seven old "Texas Rangers" took their places on the south side of the open grave..straight and tall they stood...large hats held at their sides, secured by gnarled hands.  The family was seated on crude pews brought from the nearby church.   Pallbearers lifted the casket from the carriage ever so gently....moved with solemn dignity to the gravesite and rested the casket on sawn timbers that had been placed across the open grave.

Several minutes elapsed before those who had brought up the rear of the procession could take their places in the congregation surrounding the gravesite.  It was only then that Bro. McKeown and Dr. Berry began the graveside service.  Bro. McKeown began to read...."The Lord is My Shepherd..I Shall Not Want..."  Dr. Berry continued with an eloquent and beautiful prayer that included enough good references to secure anyone a place in Glory.  Bro. McKeown concluded the service with a few softly spoken remarks and offered a closing prayer.

The outdoor cathedral, covered with the leafy branches of the old oaks, became silent for a few moments following Bro. McKeown's "Amen."  The silence was broken as a single individual began to sing,  "Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound..That saved a wretch like me....!"  One by one other voices joined in the chorus until the entire congregation was united in song...men, women, boys, girls, white, black, Indian.  Verse after verse they sang until the final verse began to be sung and it sounded as if some Heavenly Organist had pulled all the stops on the grandest of musical instruments... and the chorus sang..

         "When we've been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We've no less days..to sing God's praise..
Than when we first begun!"

The sounds of the choir faded across the little brook as members of the Dawson Masonic Lodge made their way to the gravesite.  The Lodge was first organized at Spring Hill June 3, 1854, but had been moved to Dawson in 1884.  The "Old Ranger" had been one its first members at Spring Hill.

The Lodge Members assembled and took their places....dressed in dark suits and wearing large black hats.  Spotless white aprons hung from the waist of each Master Mason.   The Grand Master of the Waco Lodge had been summoned to recite the mystical funeral ceremony of the order and it was given with beauty and dignity.

The sun was setting in the west over the new house Dr. Hill had built across the brook on the main Spring Hill Road, now occupied by Dr. Hill's "Dutiful stepson", Robert Francis Slaughter.  The sun was setting, as well, over the life of Tennessee's Texas Ranger.  His name was Robert Harvey Matthews.  He had lived eighty exciting years and had left a legacy for all men to follow.

Copyright 1999
Carl W Matthews