Talk of Wilson County TX Historic Towns

by Barbara J. Wood

SUTHERLAND SPRINGS COMMUNITY

TEXAS TRANSPORTATION MUSEUM

TEXAS TRANSPORTATION MUSEUM ... The line to Victoria and beyond was built primarily to take tourists to the world famous health spa in Sutherland Springs - folks used to come from Europe to visit it - before World War One. By the 1940s you traveled on a 'doodlebug' or motor train. Freight trains, of course, still relied on steam, but passengers could get to Lavernia from Sunset Station in San Antonio in less than an hour and Sutherland Springs in almost exactly that time. Heck that's a time that would be amazing today. But finding even a trace of the old right of way is hard work now.

The line to Victoria

Hotel Sutherland

Sutherland Springs Historical Museum Director, Tambria Read responds, "In 1936 (I hope that's the correct year) Pattillo "Bud" Higgins, Sr. purchased the hotel ( Hotel Sutherland), block 35 of NTSS ( New Town Sutherland Springs), from T. J. Williams. The deed did mention, for the harvest of the wood. However, there was a "gentleman's agreement" that the Hotel Sutherland was not to be torn down during TJ Williams lifetime. "

She added, "Pat Higgins, Jr. purchased the hotel and the land the hotel was situated on in block 35 of NTSS, from his dad in 1945. Pat Higgins, Jr. purchased the remaining lots of block 35, after he purchased the hotel."

Tambria informs, "Pat Higgins, Jr., after purchasing the Hotel Sutherland, due to the construction of FM 539 the Texas Hwy Department told Pat to either take down the hotel or the Hwy Department would. The back third of the hotel would have been to the center stripe of FM 539."

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Brown C. Williams died in 1944 after selling, together with his brother and sister, the Hotel Sutherland to Pattillo Higgins Jr. This marked the end of New Sutherland Springs.

The namesake of the pioneer in the Spindletop oil field and an oilman himself who had tried to herd cattle, Higgins had begun raising Buffel Grass. This potentially lucrative crop had been brought to the United States from Africa by the Soil Conservation Service, a New Deal agency concerned with erosion control. A San Antonio nursery of the Soil Conservation Service worked with the grass until 1950, when it was released for field trials. Higgins had one of the experimental farms from which interested parties could buy Buffel Grass, which proved to be effective for feeding cattle.

After county commissioners converted abandoned town lots into acreage in 1925, 1937, and 1941, he bought much of what had been New Sutherland Springs, where some buildings had already fallen victim to either fires or vandals. He then razed houses, businesses, and the Hotel Sutherland to expand his grass production, and allowed the two pools to fill with dirt. A few remaining commercial buildings of New Sutherland Springs became ruins in his Buffel Grass fields, which expanded again after renovation of Farm to Market Road (FM) 539 during the late 1950s and early 1960s led state officials to acquire and sell more lots owned by long-absent landlords.

Newspaperman Thomas C. Richardson remarked in his 1959 autobiography, "Pat Higgins is now irrigating grass where my proud handiwork once stood." On the edges of the grass fields, along Lee Avenue and several connecting roadways, a few of Williams's homes survived Higgins, who suddenly died at the age of 51 in October 1961.

However, during the next decade other buildings that had not been taken down during Higgins's expansion, such as the Messinger Hotel, had to be demolished as well after neglect led to deterioration.

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Courtesy/ Rick McCaslin Author of " Sutherland Springs Texas Saratoga of the Cibolo".

Sutherland Springs history research

College students referencing the Wilson County Historical Society & Talk of Wilson County TX Historic Towns among other entities for thesis/reports/essays is one of the many reasons the sites are utilized.

Recently, Cheyenne Kwast , researched a college report on Sutherland Springs history. The student shared her paper with me & I was delighted to see that she had given credit to the Sutherland Springs Historical Museum. She wrote, "I believe that the exhibits bring a lot of insight into how amazing my town is and how amazing the museum captured these exhibits beautifully. The article dated October 18th, 1982, captured the beauty of the Grasspond Colony."

The Sutherland Springs Historical Museum

September 22, 2020
By Gregory Ripps
Wilson County News

The Sutherland Springs Historical Museum includes clothing dating from the 1920s in one of its displays. These items are among those salvaged from the Tiner house, built in the late 1800s along what is now U.S. 87. Tambria Read — now retired from more than four decades as an educator — noted that a stove in Floresville's Jailhouse Museum came from the Tiner house. GREGORY RIPPS/Wilson County News

Full article at https://www.wilsoncountynews.com/articles/tambria-read-weaves-local-roots-and-love-of-art-in-retirement/

New Town Sutherland Springs Dance Hall

New Town Sutherland Springs Dance Hall ...Carrol Sammons Mama and Sister: Johnny Cox (Sammons) and Lois Cox on stair landing at New Town Sutherland Springs Dance Hall. So many historical aspects in the tall stilts to protect from the flooding Cibolo, the large opened windows to provide a breeze, and all those eye-catching tin signs.

Before & After

BEFORE & AFTER ... Sutherland Springs Swimming Pool pictured first in its heyday & secondly twenty years ago (2005). [The Higgins Grass Farms property is private with "NO Trespassing".]

Sutherland Springs Community Building....

Many communities have buildings where the community gathers for a variety of reasons. Sutherland Springs has one, the "Community Building". The property that it rests on was given in 1854 by founder, Dr. John Sutherland, as the commons/park in the center of the planned 275 acre settlement of Old Town. The "Community Building" replaced a large old gazebo that sat in the center of the designated property.

The Sutherland Springs "Community Building" has a distinctive character with her own Texas history. Built in July 1950 by C.T. Aubin, Architect & E.H. Grief, Contractor, makes her almost 75 years of age. Salvaged lumber from the Old Town Sutherland Springs School gymnasium was used for the building while cypress wood from the gymnasium floor was laid as flooring. The architect & contractor were the ones who built the school in 1936.

The "Community Building" has kept the same characteristic of 1950 - style architecture as when she was built. The atmosphere remains the same with a down-home friendly family personality.

Caretaker of the structural integrity and renovating of the historic building, grounds, ball court, historical marker and the very old oak tree has been the Sutherland Springs Community Association. The Association was known as the "Civic Club" until 1990 when it merged with the Sutherland Springs Volunteer Fire Department. Then in 2000, after updating the charter the name changed to Community Association Inc.

The branches of the majestic oak tree have spread over countless folks creating memories which at the moment weren't realized until later in life. Years ago, the men gathered weekly for games of "42" with cigar smoking, hardy laughter and clean fun. The ladies met for Home Demonstration meetings learning the newest ways to can those garden vegetables. Youth was not left out as 4-H Clubs met monthly and the Wilson County Library sponsored weekly Summer library events.

The Sutherland Springs community as well as other communities revitalize the spirit of the "Community Building" through Jam sessions from area musicians, community ceremonies, funeral receptions, organizational meetings, fundraisers and shelter during storms/tragedies. Many families have had festive occasions in weddings, parties, reunions, suppers, and all that is connected with a family. Being handicapped accessible makes it possible for all to attend affairs.

The Sutherland Springs residents are stakeholders in preservation being an integral part of the Sutherland Springs community. When you see the "Community Building", visualize the gymnasium from where the lumber came, the hands that sawed and nailed the boards, and the thousands of folks who have entered her doors. The Sutherland Springs "Community Building" deserves respect & her own historical marker. ~Barbara J. Wood~
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Photos Courtesy/ Sutherland Springs Community Association, Inc.

Sutherland Springs...4th of July in 1912!

This vintage photo is a poem written in all those beautiful New Town Sutherland Springs Spanish moss enhanced trees forming a welcoming canopy over families celebrating the patriotic holiday. Love all the aspects of this priceless photo in the faces, hats, and the feast of food.

Those enjoying the celebration are: Right side: Minnie Colwell Baker, ? Baker, Annie Gorden, Lucy Riley Gorden, Jesse Gorden, Will Gorden, Abe Baker, Hill Gorden, Jule Riley, Tom Riley.

It is believed those on the "Left side" of table are Bakers. Alonzo Adcock and Pearl Adcock are supposed to be in this picture as well as Margaret Adcock Minica.

Contributor Megan Locker's Great Grandfather is Jesse Gorden and Hill and Lucy Gorden are her Great-great grandparents.

The sitting chart is below. If any are recognized, please comment # with name. Thank you!

PAT HIGGINS LOOKING AT HIS BUFFELGRASS

Spindletop Oilfield and the 'Prophet of Spindletop'

Texas Historical Commission ...
On January 10, 1901, the Spindletop oilfield was discovered near Beaumont, Texas, marking a pivotal moment in petroleum history. Self-taught geologist Pattillo Higgins, nicknamed the "Prophet of Spindletop," had long believed in the area's potential. In 1899, he partnered with experienced salt dome expert Anthony F. Lucas to explore the site.

Despite skepticism from contemporary geologists, Lucas persevered. On that fateful day, his well, drilled to a depth of 1,139 feet, struck oil. The Lucas Gusher erupted, shooting a stream of oil over 100 feet high and producing an estimated 100,000 barrels per day for nine days before being capped.

The discovery of Spindletop kicked off the modern petroleum age, changing how oil was used—from lighting and lubrication to a key fuel for everyday life. Texas oil production skyrocketed, jumping from 836,000 barrels in 1900 to a staggering 17.4 million barrels in just one year. This boom transformed Beaumont, which saw its population explode from 10,000 to 50,000 people in just three months.

The excitement around Spindletop also led to the rise of major oil companies like Texaco, Gulf Oil Corporation, and Exxon. Plus, it sparked more exploration along the Gulf Coast, resulting in many other important oil field discoveries. Overall, Spindletop changed the game for the oil industry and had a lasting impact on Texas and beyond.

Today, you can visit the Spindletop-Gladys City Boomtown Museum on the Lamar University campus in Beaumont. The museum features a working replica of the famous Lucas Gusher and other artifacts from the era.

📸: A crowd gathers to watch a side gusher on Spindletop Hill / Getty Image

Three gentlemen passing time

Three gentlemen passing time ... in front of Talley's Red 'n White Grocery Store in Sutherland Springs, Wilson County Texas. L-R: Fred (James Alfred) Talley, Pat Baker and Ludie Duncken. The blackboard under the large Pepsi Cola sign always displayed store specials or incase of a community death it was hand written there. The wooden case Mr. Baker is sitting on is where newspapers or other deliveries were stored. A gracious sweet lady, Leola Scales Jordan, shares this priceless photo of years ago. Leola worked for Coleman Talley 8 years. She was a delight as you entered the store and she always had a joke to share. Leola still lives here in Sutherland Springs.

Sutherland Springs Texas: The Saratoga on the Cibolo

SUTHERLAND SPRINGS TEXAS ... One factor that contributed to the low price of the resort property was that it had been slightly damaged in a flood.

As early as June 1913, reports appeared of heavy rains causing tremendous floods on the Nueces, Leona, and Frio rivers, some of which were so strong that bridges were washed away.

The deluge resumed in September and more South Texas rivers overflowed; when the San Antonio River flooded on October 2, it killed four people in the city and damaged a shocking amount of property. At Sutherland Springs, Cibolo Creek rose forty-two feet, to the bed of the iron truss road bridge. Yet when losses were assessed, it was found that the damage was much less there than it had been on other streams.

The bathhouse had been partially swept from its foundations, the railroad line had been damaged, and the approach to the iron road bridge had been undermined. There were no human casualties, at least until October 8. That day a false report that the creek was rising again prompted many residents to crowd onto the road bridge to watch the anticipated flood. It did not come, but in the excitement a boy fell off the span and broke his arm.

The Cibolo did surge twenty-four feet again in early December, alarming those who lived along its banks, but again there was little damage, unlike the horrific losses on other Texas rivers. In Sutherland Springs, the approach to the bridge by that time had already been repaired, as had the rail line.

(Courtesy of Richard McClasin, author of "Sutherland Springs Texas: The Saratoga on the Cibolo")

Posing on the Sheehy Rocks

Sutherland Springs Wilson County Texas ... This group of ladies are having fun posing on the Sheehy Rocks at Cibolo Creek (Photo Courtesy of Liz Lester)

Doctors in New Town Sutherland Springs

SUTHERLAND SPRINGS TEXAS ... There were four doctors in New Town including retiree John M. Weston (whose wife Robbie Weston Herndon was one of the four druggists in town).

The girl in the white dress in front is their daughter, Mary Herndon. Her sister, Louise, is on the horse. Other girl is unknown. It was the girls' mother, Robbie Weston Herndon, who was the druggist. Robbie is listed as such in the 1910 census.

Tambria Read, Sutherland Springs Historical Museum Chairperson adds: I think the New Town Sutherland Springs Drug Store was on the corner of Lee Ave. (renamed CR 333 ) & E. Third St. which puts it at the opposite end of the block from the First State Bank of SS. Many items found in a pharmacy have been unearthed at that corner such as a metal swizzle spoon used for mixing medications and a round tin which carried condoms( brand name Merry Widows). (Photo courtesy of Richard B. McClasin, author of "Sutherland Springs Texas: Saratoga on the Cibolo")

New Town Sutherland Springs

NEW TOWN SUTHERLAND SPRINGS TEXAS ... Lila Peavy Gorden in 1918 when she was 16 years old at the New Town Sutherland Springs swimming pool. An exquisite photo capturing much history! (Courtesy of blessed great granddaughter, Megan Locker)

Tambria Read, Sutherland Springs Historical Museum Chairperson, adds, "The deep end of the pool is nearest to where Lila P. Gordon is sitting, the spring that filled the pool is at the corner to the viewer's right. There is still a concrete short wall that divides the deep from the shallow end. The shallow end is not a true rectangle which guided the water to flow to the spillway which allowed the over flow to spill into the Cibolo Creek."

1950 Elementary School

1950 Sutherland Springs Elementary School ... {Teacher, Mrs. Adele Donaho} Giving names to this happy group of students would be a great asset for family genealogists. If you recognize one of these cute faces, please comment. (Courtesy Sutherland Springs Historical Museum)

Sutherland Hotel

*SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1908, THE SAN ANTONIO LIGHT SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 1O, 1908.

NEW $lOO,OOO HOTEL IS PLANNED FOR SUTHERLAND SPRINGS

With the construction of a first-class

hotel at Sutherland Springs that re

sort bids fair to become one of the

most popular in the state. The pro

moters of the enterprise will spare

no pains or expense towards making

tiie hotel modern and up-to-date. With

the completion of the building they

will have invested $100,009. ($3,314,945.65 in 2024)

The building will be a handsome

structure two stories in height. There

will be ample ventilation. Each of

the 50 rooms will be an out-ide room I

and there will be seven baths.

With the march of progress, the enterprising people of San Antonio and the surrounding country have invested in property, which they are rapidly developing for the benefit of the country at large so that the people of the United States who are seeking a real health resort can get the desired results by visiting Sutherland Springs located only 30 miles southeast of San Antonio.

It is only a short time since Sutherland Springs has been placed before the public, although it has for years been a private resort, and in that short time it has become so popular that the management of the G.H & S.A. railway, on whose lines it is located, has found it profitable to run excursions to the place. The result is that a 50-cent rate for the round trip has been put on twice a week – Thursdays and Sundays – to permit people from San Antonio to enjoy a run to this great resort.

The commercial possibilities of Sutherland Springs are also in evidence by the preparations which are being made towards drilling wells for oil or gas. A test well is to be sunk in a very short time.

An important investment that has just been made amounts to $10,000, which consists of a first-class lumber yard that J. W. Hammond of McDade, Texas, has established. He will also establish a store there. Other similar investments are about to be made. In fact, Sutherland Springs will soon become a conspicuous place on the map of Texas. (Thanks Kevin Wagenfuehr for assistance)

MIRACULOUS OPENING OF HOTEL

... The hotel at New Sutherland Springs actually opened on the Fourth of July in 1909, but that it ever opened at all was somewhat miraculous.

Plans for further development had almost been derailed when a young woman nearly drowned in the pool in August 1908. Contractor Berry in March 1909 was stabbed in the stomach during a card game in the kitchen of the hotel, which was still under construction at the time. Michaels, the manager, was then injured by a fall into an elevator shaft at a San Antonio furniture factory in June 1909, but like Berry he survived. Most spectacular was the stabbing of Sheriff William L. Wright at Floresville that same month by a prisoner hanged.

Wright in July 1908 had arrested Refugio Jaureque, a Mexican construction worker accused of stabbing and raping a teenaged Polish girl, Albina Olenick, near Sutherland Springs. When the two men arrived at Sutherland Springs en route to the Wilson County jail, a crowd of thirty or so men and boys tried to take the prisoner and lynch him. Wright "eluded" his attackers by a "ruse" and delivered his prisoner safely to Floresville, where Jaureque was tried and sentenced to death. He was hanged in June 1909 at Floresville but managed to stab Wright on the gallows inside the county jail with a knife he made from a spoon. Wright lived and served many more years as a sheriff and Texas Ranger.

To add a fittingly grim end to a year of disruption and bad news, former hotel proprietor James W. Parish, who had begun selling real estate at Sutherland Springs, fell between two train cars at San Antonio in December 1909 and had his right arm crushed so badly that it had to be amputated. (Taken from "Sutherland Springs Texas: The Saratoga on the Cibolo" courtesy of Writer Richard B. Mc Claslin)

E.E. Perry Drugstore

The E.E. Perry Drugstore in New Town Sutherland Springs, Texas, circa 1900. Sutherland Springs is in Wilson County.

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COURTESY/ Traces of Texas

Mission Paistle

*Mission Paistle... Located near Sutherland Springs. Its only a dot....but historically dots are significant. COURTESY/ Mark Cameron

The First State Bank

The First State Bank in Sutherland Springs circa 1910. From L-R: Mr. C.E. Ford, Mrs. Ford, Mrs. John Sutherland, Mrs. E.A. Grob, Mr Goodenough, 2 unidentified, Mr. Winters, Bethel Field, and 2 unidentified. Second photo is a Google streetview that shows what this same building looks like today.

Courtesy the Wilson County Historical Society via the Portal to Texas History.

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COURTESY/ Traces of Texas

The E.E. Perry Drugstore

The E.E. Perry Drugstore in New Town Sutherland Springs, Texas, circa 1900. Sutherland Springs is in Wilson County.

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COURTESY/ Traces of Texas

SUNNYSIDE SCHOOL

.... located in Wilson County Texas. No info. (COURTESY / Wilson County Historical Society )

Hotel Sutherland

''A place where time stood still / Hotel Sutherland's 52 rooms are vacant as echoes remind one of a glorious past / Old hotel houses a family of five.''

A rare photo showing an exterior view of Hotel Sutherland in 1939. Hotel Sutherland was once the center of a thriving community (New Town Sutherland Springs Texas) from 1909 to 1920. Thousands of people visited the 100 acre resort that boasted plentiful supplies of iron, sulphur and sour water.

COURTESY/UTSA Libraries Special Collections

FACTS ABOUT NEW SUTHERLAND SPRINGS....

When one realizes what some

world famous mineral Springs have

done for the community in which

they were located and what a boon

to buffering humanity they have

been is it a wonder that New Sutherland Springs in Texas should

have made everybody who has

heard of them sit up and take notice.

New Sutherland Springs will become more famous than Hot Springs, Ark., New Baden, lnd., or Mt Clemens, Mich. for these reasons: Its waters are of a higher order minerally they are situated in a portion of Texas where there are no wintry blasts or unstable

weather. In other words God's best

gift to suffering humanity Is located

in a land of year around sunshine.

New Springs will become the mecca of all health seeking people from everywhere and knowing this we urge you dear reader to grasp the opportunity and invest in a lot or some land near these springs you will always after thank us for urging to do it.

Write for further Information to SUTHERLAND SPRINGS DEVELOPMENT COMPANY.

SAN ANTONIO LIGHT & GAZETTE

OCTOBER 5, 1910

The Sutherland Springs Man

It is funny-how many men have a similar appearance from a rear view.

Mr. L. S. Winters has been followed all over town and asked for tickets to Sutherland Springs, about a thousand times a day, more or less.

l am not Winters, I am not W. E. Nelson, I am not A. W. W eatherford, I am not Mayor Callaghan, nor President Taft—l am the Sutherland

Springs man.

If you want a ticket to Sutherland Springs next Sunday, all you have to do is ask for it.

I will be on Joske's corner Thursday just at.twelve o'clock; I will go in and buy a handkerchief from the men's furnishing department.I will then go over to Washer's and buy a necktie. From there I will go to Aaron Frank

& Company on Houston street and buy a pair of sox.

I lost six tickets yesterday and I had to

hustle to get away from a crowd of girls in front of the Four Seasons restaurant to keep from losing the bunch of tickets then and there.

They insisted on telling everybody that came along that I was the Sutherland Springs man.That wasn't fair.

The sale of lots at Sutherland Springs is going fine now. Better get into it.

The Sutherland Springs Man

Sutherland Springs – 1910 article from San Antonio LIght and Gazette

"A Budget of Up to the Minute News from Towns of Southwest Texas"

San Antonio Light and Gazette, AUGUST 28, 1910

SUTHERLAND SPRINGS....

Mrs. Fred Peterson of San An

tonio returned home Sunday after a

ten-days visit to relatives in Suther

land Springs.

Miss Ethel Jack of Artesia is visit

ing Miss Bessie Rush of this city.

Miss Winnifred E. Williams of San

Antonio spent Sunday in Sutherland

Springs visiting Miss Bertha Singer.

Mrs. Fannie Rush gave a moonlight

picnie in honor of Miss Ethel Jack of

Artesia last Friday night at the bath

ing pool in the park. The following

were among the crowd: Mr. and Mrs.

E. J. Gore, Mr. and Mrs. E. A. AVid

man, Mrs. Fred Peters, Mrs. Rush and

Mrs. E. Oates. Misses Williams, Bes

sie Rush, Ethel Jack, Bertha Singer,

Emma Stevenson, Mollie Dunean, Cal

lie Dunean, Alice Warren and Rhodea

Williams. Among the boys were John

Sutherland, H. R. Stevenson, Jack

Adair, Marvin and Lancing Warren,

Robert C. Singer. Prior Tunstall, Rufus

Stevenson and Rex Covington.

I Jesse Pouncey, of the Smiley Bank,

accompanied his wife and children

home Sunday from Sutherland Springs,

where they have been camping.

Mrs. K. Y. Stevenson and daughter,

Miss Emma Stevenson, left Sunday fpr

San Antonio to spend several weeks

visiting her daughter, Mrs. J. N. Moore

of that city.

James Smith and family of Smiley

home Monday from a camp

teip at Sutherland Springs.

Mrs. V. V. Lawhorn, who has been

visiting her sister, Mrs. K. Y. Steven

son, for the past month, left Sunday

for her home at Corpus Christi.

J. L. Shinloe of Yoakum is a spend

ing a few weeks in Sutherland Springs.

Mrs. Dow of Aransas Pass spent Sun

day hdre.

Grace Kaufman of San Antonio

spent Saturday and Sunday in Suth

erland Springs.

Ed H. Everett, wife and child, of

San Antonio arc spending a vacation

at Sutherland Springs.

G. E. Melliff of San Antonio was a

visitor Sunday.

J. AV. Holmes and family from the

Panhandle are spending some time in

Sutherland Springs.

Fred Sherman of Mexico spent Sun

day in Sutherland Springs.

R. W. Nowlin of Victoria was

among the visitors Sunday.

Misses Sallie Bell Lay, Jennie and

lone Schull, Lydia Wiseman and Nan-

SUNDAY,

nie Fly of Lavernia are among the

campers here.

Miss Ethel Powers of San Antonio

is spending a week in the Springs.

G. R. Cockrum returned Sunday from

a short business trip to San Antonio.

E. E. Chandler of Stockdale was

among the visitors Sunday.

A. B. Burnett of San Antonio was

registered at the Hotel Sutherland.

Misses Virgie and Sallie Lay of La

vernia were visitors Sunday.

H. D. Hoffmartin of Dallas is regis

tered at the Hotel Sutherland.

Mrs. M. J. Mackey of Chicago spent

Thursday in Sutherland Springs.

Curtis E. Warren and family of San

Antonio are camping at Sutherland

Springs.

H. Phillips and wife of San Antonio

are among the visitors here.

Mrs. M. J. Bryant of San Antonio

is spending the week at Sutherland

Springs.

Mrs. Ella and Miss Dukas Dunean

of Liberty were visitors to Sutherland

Springs Thursday.

Mrs. Jeneatte Evans of San Antonio

is spending some time at the Springs.

Mrs. N. E. and Miss M. Hutchins of

San Antonio were among the visitors

to Sutherland Springs Thursday.

Miss Cathleen Seale is the guest of

Miss lone Schull. who is in the

Springs on a camping trip.

Mrs. Mary E. Muncey of San An

tonio was registered at the Hotel

Sutherland Thursday.

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STOCKDALE...

Stockdale

Mr. t d Mrs. Charles Montgom

ery and children have returned to

their home at Weir, Tex., after a visit

here to relatives. They were accom

panied home by Mrs. Montgomery's

mother, Mrs. J. f*. Dameron Sr.

W. E. Cotter of Sutherland Springs

was a visitor here Saturday.

Miss Ruth Spear of Union is the

guest of her sister, Mrs. William Cot

ter.

Mrs, E. AI. Norwood of Karnes City

is here visiting her son Walter Gor

ham, and family.

Miss Dide Grissom of San Antonio

is here with her parents for a few

d .vs' visit. ।

Lou Carr and Bob Spear left Satur

day for a few days' stay at Galveston.

Willis Alston and wife of Houston

are here, the guests of Mr. and Mrs.

G. B. Gouger.

J. C. Dameron and T. Y. Hardin have

1 returned from Eagle Pass, where they

attended the Dry Farmers' convention.

Misses Pearl and Bessie HoWe and

Singa Harper were at Shiloh Monday,

where Miss Pearl Howe will teach the

coming term of public school.

Mrs. Herbert Harvey left Monday

for San Antonio, where she will visit.

G. B. Gouger and family and Mr.

Gouger's mother. Mrs. Henry Smith,

were at Sutherland Springs Tuesday.

Miss Luda Spear is here from Union

to visit her cousin, Mrs. Everett Reed.

Mrs. Lew Tumlinson and children are

at Leesville visiting relatives.

Mrs. Emma Geyer and children of

San Antonio have returned home after

a visit to relatives here.

Mr. and Mrs. Everett Reed spent

Sunday in Floresville with relatives.

Miss Singa Harper visited relatives

at Sunny Side Sunday.

The supper given Saturday by the

ladies of the Cemetery association was

a success, having made $5O after ex

penses were paid.

Mr. and Mrs. Harry Alston and chil

dren and Mr. and Mrs. Willis Alston of

Houston spent Sunday at Sutherland

Springs.

Misses Pearl and Emma Kinsey were

visitors here Tuesday.

Thad Reese of Floresville was here

this week on business.

Mrs. Dora Conn and Miss Rebecca

Conn have returned from an extended

visit to relatives at Fort Worth.

Heck Cox and daughters of Maree

lena were here Tuesday to attend the

funeral of Miss Victoria Bell.

Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Conn of near

Floresville were here this week.

Miss Annie Short has accepted a po

sition in the Caddo school for the com

ing term.

E. E. Peary of Unity was hero

Wednesday on business.

Dr. John Sutherland Ranch

The Dr. John Sutherland Ranch ... in Sutherland Springs Texas consisted of 4,605 acres along the west bank of the Cibolo Creek nearly a mile from the springs.

New Town map

HISTORY KEY: A map showing New Town's relics along with the "blue line" showing the Southern Pacific spur line.

Thomas Williams, owner of Hotel Sutherland, built an extension from the Southern Pacific Railtroad main line right to the pools. The line went right behind his hotel as well so there was virtual door to door service for the infirmed.

Exhibit honoring enslaved individuals in Wilson County

Did you stop by the Sutherland Springs Historical Museum Saturday to see the new exhibit honoring the enslaved individuals from the Polley plantation?

This new exhibit was created, designed, and curated by Dr. Melinda Creech, independent scholar and Vice-Chair, Wilson County Historical Commission. Pictured with Dr. Creech are Bexar County Archivist, Dr. David Carlson and Anthony Delgado, Chair, Wilson County Historical Commission.

If you have not yet visited the Sutherland Springs Historical Museum, you are missing out on a treasure. The museum has some great pictures, stories, and artifacts documenting the uniqueness that is Sutherland Springs. Kudos to Museum Chair Tambria Read for this little gem in our county. ( Wilson County Historical Society ) ( Kat Creech Photos)

1920s photo

This 1920's vintage black 'n white photograph features brothers Luther, Claude, & Walter Luttrell alongside Grandville Chaney. The serious- looking horsemen were posing in the resort area of Sutherland Springs, Wilson County Texas.

Enslaved People of J. H. Polley Plantation museum exhibit

Sutherland Springs Historical Museum ... Dr. Melinda Creech's new exhibit, The Enslaved People of J. H. Polley Plantation, Whitehall, Sutherland Springs, Texas 1836 - 1865", will open this Saturday, February 3rd at the Sutherland Springs Historical Museum. Feel free to share the flyer and this post with all of your friends and stop by the Sutherland Springs Historical Museum to see the new 30-panel exhibit honoring the enslaved of the Polley Plantation.

The museum's curator, Dr. Melinda Creech, researched the untold stories of theses people and created this lovely display. Each person is represented by a quilt square pattern; there are no known photographs of these folks.

Sat. Feb. 3, 2024 10am - 2pm

or by appointment call / text 210-289-3583.

Alexander H. Sutherland

ALEXANDER H. SUTHERLAND .... youngest son of Dr. John Sutherland, founder of Sutherland Springs Texas, organized the San Antonio Mexican Mission with just seven members led by pastor José María Casanova

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Methodist Ministers ... the Sutherland's and Rodriguez's served the Methodist Ministry together.. COURTESY /Ricardo Rodriguez , Administrator of Alamo Legacy & Missions Association.

I shared with you before, a story of a Alamo scout serving under William Barrett Travis, which later became a Methodist minister. After his death, his son Rev. Alexander H. Sutherland, continued his ministry and was responsible for converting and Supervising young Ministers, such as my Ggrandfather Rev. Cresencio Angel Rodriguez Coy.

Reviewing the family archives, as well as our Methodist Church archives, l located one of the several churches Rev. Cresencio preached at and located Rev. Alexander, Rev., Cresencio and his missionary German wife, Maria Cristina Strasburger Rodz. in the pictures..

History:

Forty years before the first preacher was appointed to what would become La Trinidad UMC, a Methodist doctor and settler serving as a physician to the troops at Bexar, Dr. John Sutherland, rode out as a scout from the Alamo to test reports of the approaching Mexican Army. Seeing the 1000-man army approaching, he returned in haste and was thrown from his horse into mud. His horse fell upon him and his rifle snapped in two. Injured and unarmed, he returned to give the grim news to Colonel Travis. Seeing his injury, Colonel Travis ordered him to leave, sparing him a sure and certain death.

After the massacre, Dr. Sutherland returned to the San Antonio area to found the community of Sutherland Springs near present-day Floresville. He also fathered eleven children and served as a lay delegate to the West Texas Conference.

Dr. John Sutherland died in 1867, and youngest child, Alexander Hamilton Sutherland, entered the itinerant ministry just one year later, around the same time that a new convert to Methodism, Alejo Hernandez, became the first Mexican to be ordained within the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.

Rev. Alexander. H. Sutherland was fluent and fully literate in Spanish, and like many Presiding Elders of his day, he traveled as a circuit-riding evangelist conducting open-air services, raising up new clergy, and organizing new churches.

With the organization of the new district, evangelization began immediately in the area around San Antonio. In 1876, Rev. A.H. Sutherland organized the San Antonio Mexican Mission with just seven members led by pastor José María Casanova. The mission church met first in the homes of its constituents and then rented a hall on the corner of San Saba and Produce Row, where the famous "Mi Tierra" restaurant now stands in Market Square. The mission grew to over 100 members in just two years.

In 1886, the San Antonio Mexican Mission purchased land on the corner of San Fernando and Pecos Streets, where it has conducted ministry ever since. There, it constructed its first place of worship, known as the "Templo de Madera" or the "Wooden Temple." LTUM archives.

This Day in Texas History: February 28, 1836

The Dr. John Sutherland mentioned here is the gentleman Sutherland Springs Wilson County Texas is named after.

This Day in Texas History: February 28, 1836

Mexican army tries to cut off the Alamo's water supply again.

Seguin passes on Travis' oral message to another messenger after running into John Chenoweth and Francis L. DeSauque, who were the advance force for Fannin, tell Seguin that Fannin is on the way.

Juan Seguin rounds up 25 Tejanos to go to the Alamo and escort Fannin's men into the Alamo, 22 of these were men who had evacuated their families from Bexar before the Mexican Army arrived.. Several of the ranchers who had left the Alamo promised to return with help, this probably included Juan Ximenes the brother of Damacio Ximenes (Jimenez) he was also cousin to Juan Seguin, Gregorio Esparza and Toribio Losoya. {{{Dr. John Sutherland and 12 others join them in waiting for Fannin and they head to the Cibolo Creek.}}}

William C. Simmons, Thomas Mason Dennis, John Bate Berry, Andrew Jackson Berry, Logan Vandeveer enlist in the Texas Army in Mena, they will fight at San Jacinto.

Fannin to Joseph Mims- Tells him that the Alamo is under attack and a force is closing in on him after defeating Colonel Johnson.

Fannin to Acting Governor Robinson- tells them of Colonel Johnson's defeat. The enemy is attacking Bexar and heading to Goliad

The bombardment continues on the Alamo but no more skirmishes.

Green Jameson keeps on working on reinforcing the Alamo walls

Urrea prepares a trap for the rest of Johnson's men in Aqua Dulce. Battle of Agua Dulce happens in three days.

Almonte Diary- Sunday, "the weather abated somewhat. .. News were received that a reinforcement to the enemy was coming by the road from La Bahia in number 200. It was not true. The cannonading was continued."

The Alamo falls in seven days.

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This Day in Texas History: February 29, 1836

Bonham reaches Goliad. Fannin tells him that he is unable to march to the Alamo. Bonham continues to Gonzales

The Gonzales volunteers reach the outskirts of Bexar

Sam Houston arrives at Washington-on-the-Brazos.

ON THE CIBOLO IN A ROWBOAT

ON THE CIBOLO IN A ROWBOAT ..... That's what Mary Herndon wrote under the photo in her 1909 scrapbook. She's in the rowboat, but the others are unknown. There was a time Cibolo Creek at Sutherland Springs Wilson County Texas was not polluted but clean & used for recreational activities such as boating, swimming, fishing, & picnicking to name a few. My childhood was enjoyed spending many a summer day swimming & playing in the clean waters especially at the "Y" . ( 97 & 87 intersection area)

(Photo COURTESY/ Liz Wheeler Lester .... Mary Herndon ( lady in boat) is Liz's grandmother.

MINERAL WATERS in NEW TOWN SUTHERLAND SPRINGS

MINERAL WATERS in NEW TOWN SUTHERLAND SPRINGS,.... were reported to cure an exhaustive list of ailments, including but not limited to, alcoholism, arthritis, baldness, cancer, chapped hands, constipation, diabetes, "female complaints", gout, high and low blood pressure, insomnia, malaria, pneumonia, rheumatism, ringworm, scurvy, toothache, ulcers, and venereal diseases. No wonder mineral springs were so valued by the Texas settlers.

The resort town of Sutherland Springs Texas was advertised as "Saratoga of the South" and had the largest sulphur bathing pool in the United States. One pool was white sulphur and the other was black sulphur. The white sulphur pool was a milky white color.

The main pool was divided into two sections by a cement wall with drainage run-offs for the continuously flowing spring water. The deeper pool was fed from springs from the bottom of the pool and the other side had a concrete bottom. The whole pool was surrounded by a sidewalk and walls.

Since mineral deposits floated to the top of the water, occasionally the top of the water had to be skimmed with a long board to remove the deposits.

There was boating and fishing as well in the Cibolo River. There were bath houses for men and women.

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[Courtesy of Sharon Sutherland who has written some stories involving Sutherland Springs in her blog "Sutherland Family History"] The Sutherland Springs Historical Museum has a nice display on the resort.

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THE RIVER OAKS BAPTIST CHURCH

Mrs. Annie Jahn Higgins related the history of the first River Oaks Baptist Church as: "The people of New Town Sutherland Springs told her they longed for a church on their side (the east side) of the Cibolo Creek. Annie spoke with her church, Baptist Temple on Gevers at E. Drexel in San Antonio, and the River Oaks Church was established as a mission of the Baptist Temple. Possibly Pastor Yelvington was the minister at the time as he was the pastor at Baptist Temple. "

Annie and Pattillo Higgins funded the materials for the construction and locals such as Ed Frasier and Joe Wesley Tatum among many other New Town families put in their labor of love for the church. Gatherings such as picnics were held on the grounds.

The alter was elevated about 6" from the concrete floor, complete with a tin baptismal reservoir. A Sunday School room was to the west side of the alter and one rest room to the east side. Baptisms were done in the church and or in the "Sand Hills" stock tank on Higgins Grass Farms up on the hill along CR 334.

To the best recollection the church was built and began in 1948. The first pastor is not known yet River Oaks Church of New Town Sutherland Springs was the first church that Brother /Pastor Kenneth Wellmann pastored.

He and his daughter Roxanne and family would be invited to lunch at various homes in the area. They often rested at the Anderson home (Fred and Eileen Anderson), which is one block from the original River Oaks Church, before the Sunday evening service.

Not sure when worship services ceased at the original River Oaks Church yet since the early 1960s the Higgins Family used the structure for storage. In the 1973 or was it '74 flood 6' of water swept into the structure.

Approximately 1994, or so, Pastor Harley Johnson (son of former Wilson County Pct 3 Commissioner Ed Johnson) and his wife Joyce (Joyce is the Aunt of Christian singer Clifton Janskey) .

Harley and Joyce began a Bible Study group in their home. Then they approached Patricia Higgins Read, who owned the structure at the time, about using the structure and revitalized the River Oaks Church.

After updates/remodeling of the structure church began with friends and family. In either 1997 or '98 Harley purchased the land where the new River Oaks Church is from Robert P. Higgins.

When New Town Sutherland Springs was first plated (original map in courthouse) showed the far NE street boundary to be Olive St. which is the driveway into River Oaks Church which is where the Myrtle Fruit Tree Farm was. Before the 1998 flood the new River Oaks Church was built and the congregation moved in. Sadly the former piano, small organ, and church seats ( I do not remember if they were pews) were damaged by the 1998 flood.

When Harley retired, from full time preaching, he brought Paul and Martha Buford into the community. {Tambria Higgins Read says that she is grateful that Paul and Martha have taken such great care of the ancient riparian Oaks on the River Oaks Church property. They were part of her childhood play area. Now there is a nest of owls with babies in one of the oaks.

[Thank you Tambria Higgins Read for this great information][Barbara J. Wood]

SALTMARSH STAGE STOP ...

A critical stage stop was abandoned by its namesake, D'Alanson (D. A.) Saltmarsh,when he was convicted of 'sedition'*.

*conduct or speech inciting people to rebel against the authority of a state or monarch.

D'Alanson (D. A.) Saltmarsh, a successful stagecoach operator, came to Texas to make his fortune on the Indianola to San Diego trail. He was born on September 17, 1796 in Weston, Connecticut to John Saltmarsh and Rhoda Beach. His brother was Orlando Saltmarsh.

In 1820, D. A. and Orlando ran a light two-horse wagon with mail from Athens, Pennsylvania to Ithaca, New York. In 1824, D. A. Saltmarsh was appointed postmaster of Athens, Pennsylvania. In 1827, with his brother Orlando, D. A. began a stage line from Fayetteville to Raleigh, Louisburg, and Warrenton, North Carolina then to Lawrenceville, Petersburg, and City Point, Virginia (on the James River near Washington, D.C). They were also mail contractors on this route.

In one of the earliest appearances of Abraham Lincoln's name on a Federal document in the House of Representatives. A report by "Mr. Lincoln, from the Committee on the Post Office and Post Roads." Lincoln makes a report on the petition of Saltmarsh and Fuller. William Fuller and Orlando Saltmarsh: Jan. 19, 1848, 30 Congress-1st Session. Report #102 [To accompany bill H.R. 92].

Oct 4, 1837 the Washington Globe shows letters waiting for D.A. and Orlando Saltmarsh at the local post office. The 1840 Census recorded D. A. living in Columbus, Georgia. Saltmarsh ran a stage line from Augusta, Georgia to Milledgeville, Columbus and Mobile, Alabama. This route also carried mail. Orlando was also living in Georgia. By 1850, D. A. had moved to Texas and resided in Galveston where he had opened a stage stand.

In January 1851, D. A. and Orlando established the Saltmarsh Stage Line to carry mail and passengers from Indianola to San Antonio via Lavaca, Victoria, Yorktown, Sulphur Springs (Sutherland Springs), and Ecleto. In 1854 D.A. purchased property for a stage stand at Cottage Hill in east Bexar County.

On February 10, 1852 Orlando Saltmarsh died in Port Lavaca, Texas.

1860 Census records show D.A. living in Lavaca, TX.

In June of 1862, D. A. was found guilty of seditious language against the Confederacy States of America and sent to San Antonio. In San Antonio in July 1862 by Special Order 385, by Brig. General Hamilton P. Bee, Saltmarsh was found guilty of "seditious and disloyal language" and sentenced "to be confined for the space of twelve months, and at the expiration of that period to be sent beyond the limits of the Confederate States." During his incarceration, Saltmarsh was forced to participate in the dismantling and confiscation of his holdings.

The 1870 U. S. Census recorded D. A. as a stage contractor living in Troy, Pennsylvania.

D'Alanson (D. A.) Saltmarsh died 9 May 1871 in Troy, PA.

NOTE: D.A. Saltmarsh, his brother, Orlando, and his brother in law, William H. Overton, were all involved in the Saltmarsh stage and mail lines in the south.

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COURTESY/ Lost Texas Roads

Sutherland Springs Development Corporation's first high-water bridge

SUTHERLAND SPRINGS TEXAS ... The Sutherland Springs Development Corporation built the first high water bridge over the Cibolo in 1892.

The bridge was of iron and wood construction. It's spanned the Cibolo at the foot of County Avenue to simplify trade from within the San Antonio River Valley. They say that during the well-remembered flood of 1913, the bathhouse knocked off the end of it. It was reconstructed.

There are many memories of the old high water bridge with its loud creaking boards as vehicles traveled over it.The beloved old wooden bridge was replaced in 1958 when the Texas Department of Transportation built the concrete low water crossing and the Farm to Market Road 539. A 25 foot high concrete Bridge completed in 1995, replaced the low water Bridge.

UPDATE: Mark Johnson shares great new history information on the iron bridge in Sutherland Springs Texas. "This bridge was on hwy 539 just out of Sutherland Springs. It was built but WPA employees about the same time as the bridge at intersection of US 97 and US 87 known to us as the Y. also built by WPA. Ed Johnson worked on the one at the Y. I, Mark Johnson, drove a motor grader across the one in Sutherland Springs after it had been condemned by the state engineers. I would walk across it going to school when we lived up town. There was a kid we knew that used to dive head first off that bridge. I don't recall the years these bridges were built. This one was taken down by Tony Margraf for the metal about the mid '60s sometime after low water bridge had been constructed. Tony was a welder. They lived off hwy 123 in the Alum Creek area. Part of the old bridge is still in the Cibolo because when Tony cut it down it fell in the river and he couldn't get it all out. There were several old bridges built like that. Some are still in existence as historical sites because of their design. I can find out the dates when the bridge was built and taken down after this virus restrictions are lifted. Hope this helped with the history of this bridge. Mark Johnson"

"Santa Anna's Treasure"

SUTHERLAND SPRINGS TEXAS ... There had long been rumors and speculation in Sutherland Springs that some Mexican gold was buried in the area. The story being that Santa's Army on retreat from their loss at the Battle of San Jacinto, which had ended the Texas Revolution, buried this treasure here on their return to Mexico. For years, a number of searchers had hunted unsuccessfully for its location. One day a hard-working farmer plowing his field literally "hit gold"..... read about it straight from the "Austin Daily Statesman August 10, 1891". [Solving my curiosity Google says $17,000 in 1860 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $525,506.87 in 2019]

"Along the Line of the Galveston, Harrisburg, San Antonio Rail Yard."

COURTESY/ Southwest Texas "Along the Line of the Galveston, Harrisburg, San Antonio Rail Yard."

Telling the history of Sutherland Springs

Many years ago Rick McClasin sat at my dining room table and we began flipping through my acculated history pages on Sutherland Springs. Rick was a University student and was beginning a many year path down the road to his accomplished book, "Sutherland Springs: Saratoga on the Cibolo". [My contribution wasn't a drip in the bucket but love having been a part of the history of a place I dearly loved]

Rick was different than the many University students who had shared a glass of sweet tea in my home through out the many years. He had concerned interest in the folks who made up the history. This I liked.

Rick is now an endowed Professor of Texas History at the University of North Texas, and also the author of Tainted Breeze: The Great Hanging at Gainesville, Texas, October 1862; Lee in the Shadow of Washington; and Fighting Stock: John S. "Rip" Ford in Texas.

"Sutherland Springs: Saratoga on the Cibolo" is great reading for those with a hunger for our history. {Available on Amazon}

"Beyond the story of resort spa aspirations lies a history of the community and its people itself. McCaslin provides a complete history of Sutherland Springs from early settlement through Civil War and into the twentieth century, its agricultural and oil-drilling exploits alongside its mineral water appeal, as well as a complete community history of the various settlers and owners of the springs/hotel."

Bobcat in 1972

Sutherland Springs Wilson County...... In the summer of 1972, Richard Cardenas & Eutimio Lerma Gonzales came by Barbara Wood's home to show off the bobcat. Eutimio is the man standing on the pickup truck's bumper holding the killed bobcat. Richard Cardenas , good friend, is standing beside him.

Eutimio purchased the truck in Texas and the mud flaps on his Texas truck he purchased in Montana where he and his family worked the beet fields.

Eutimio passed away when he was 48 due to heart trouble.

Richard Cardenas passed away April 22, 2023 at the age of 90 years.

Popular clothing worn in 1922

Periwinkle, Henna and Rust .... among the beautiful colors of frocks and dresses worn in 1922. Surely many of these donned the resort grounds at New Town Sutherland Springs Texas in their prime.

Sutherland Springs Business Hours

SUTHERLAND SPRINGS WILSON COUNTY TEXAS 1937 .... Information comes from a 1937 Wilson County Directory. (Photos/Info COURTESY/ Liz Wheeler Lester )

I remember Miss Jennie Whitley so well... the typical telephone operator gray hair piled high upon her head. The office was on 5th Street somewhere between 14th & 13th. was a very small one room shed-like building. Many days I set on the threshold talking to Miss Jennie and watching her as she performed her duties. As she plugged the cords into the different sockets on the switchboard connecting the parties, it was so intriguing! The community bought her gravestone as she was loved by so many.

The Smiths of Old Sutherland Springs

Wilson County News 2016
By Columnist Lois Wauson
"Rainy Days and Starry Nights"

One day we were out driving on the old Sutherland Springs/Lodi Road and were intrigued by the Historical Marker of the Shiloh Cemetery. We stopped and I got out to read the marker and looked across the silent rolling hills and wondered about all the people buried there. Shirley and John Grammer have done so much research on the cemeteries in Wilson County, so I knew I could go to her to start my story. She has been very helpful.

Shirley and John were instrumental in getting a Historical Marker for the old Shiloh Cemetery and she sent me a bunch of pictures of the graves there and information she and John had found as they did their research. There are only 17 marked graves in the old cemetery. The last apparent burial is that of Thomas McDonald in 1939.

This is what Shirley wrote about the people in the Shiloh Community:

These early pioneers of Shiloh lived their lives struggling to survive on land they had chosen for themselves. They worked on farms near the church and school. They milked their cows, butchered their hogs, cured the meat, tended their chickens, weeded their vegetable gardens, and washed with lye soap. They most likely grew cotton as a cash crop. They worshiped their God in the Methodist Episcopal Church South and their children attended the Shiloh School. When their time on earth was over, they were buried in the Shiloh Cemetery.

Two of the graves were James Madison Smith and his wife Susan. James was a Confederate soldier in the Civil War. He was born in 1842 in Florida. James joined the 2nd Regiment Florida Cavalry. His wife stated on her application for a pension in 1914, nine years after he passed away in Sutherland Springs, "He entered the army soon after the commencement of hostilities and remained until the close."

James and Susan Bryant may have been neighbors in Gadsden, Fla. They were married on Jan. 14, 1869, after the war. James was 25 and Susan was 21. The census of 1870 said they were living in Gadsden, Fla. In 1880, according to the census, they were still living in Florida, and they had two children, Ellen, 8, and John, 5. He was farming.

In 1876, Texas still had about 56 million acres of unappropriated public domain and 20 million acres of public school land. Maybe James and Susan Smith heard the call to "Go West, young man."

So James and Susan Smith left Florida for Texas in 1882. They settled on some land on the road from Lodi to Sutherland Springs and farmed on the land there; they bought some land and started farming; in 1900 they were still living in the area, and had one child at home, named Spencer, age 15. I haven't found out what happened to their son, John, unless he passed away. In one census she said she had three children but only two were living.

Their daughter Ellen, who was 21, had married a man named William Thomas McDonald, age 25, on Jan. 14, 1891, in Sutherland Springs. The McDonald family were neighbors or maybe they all went to the same church, the Methodist Episcopal Church South. I have tried to do research on that church's history, but so far I have found nothing.

James Smith died in 1905 at the age of 62. His son, Spencer Smith, married Ola (maiden name unknown) around that same time, and they stayed on the farm with his mother Susan to continue farming. In 1910 they had three children. They lived with his mother on that farm. They probably mostly raised cotton. Susan died at the age of 85. She had outlived her husband for 29 years. She is buried in Shiloh Cemetery.

Ellen and Thomas McDonald farmed in the Sutherland Springs community also, and by 1910 they had four children. Ellen died in 1927 at the young age of 50. She is buried in the Shiloh Cemetery. So Thomas continued farming on the farm and after Ellen died, and in the 1930 census, his son Ollie Smith was still on the farm helping him. Thomas passed away in 1939 at the age of 70 and is also buried in the Shiloh Cemetery.

So what I found out was the Smith and McDonald families were related to each other. They probably attended church picnics and revivals at the Methodist church together.

So if you are out driving and you stop to listen, amid the quiet of the fields you will hear the faint sounds of voices laughing and talking amid the cows mooing in the distance. The spirits of the settlers will always be there, to remind you of a simpler life and time.

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COURTESY/ Wilson County News 2016

Old Sutherland Springs bridge

Old Sutherland Springs bridge over Cibolo Creek.

Photo Courtesy/ Sutherland Springs Historical Museum

About Wilson County Historical Society

The Wilson County Historical Society was formed to research, preserve, and promote the rich past of Wilson County, Texas. Our website provides much information about the society to include some of our research, our projects, our photos, and our events.

Public meetings are held on the fourth Tuesday each month at 6:00 p.m., in the Wilson County Archives Building, 1144 C Street, in Floresville.

1144 C Street
Floresville, TX 78114

Monday - Friday: 9:00am - 5:00pm
Saturday - Sunday: Closed

P.O. Box 101
Floresville, TX