The Arnett and Merritt
Family Reunion
David Nathan Arnett
Joseph Green Merritt
June 10-11, 2010
Abilene, Texas
The Arnett Family
The Arnetts are of aristocratic French peoples, and those in America are descendents of a family who
migrated from France to the shores of Eastern Maryland in order to escape persecution. Later, however, a
branch of the family went to South Carolina, and it was in South Carolina that our great-great-great-greatgrandfather, John Arnett, was born. John served in the Revolutionary War against the British and Tories.
I.
John Arnett
(4x great-grandfather)
b. 20 Jun 1760, Virginia, d. 1840, Screven County, Georgia
married Mary Cullen (b. 1764, Virginia)
1790 census, living in Dobbs County, NC
1800 census, living in Fayetteville, Anson Co. NC
Children of John Arnett and Mary Cullen:
1. David B. Arnett
2-10 Nine daughters
II.
David B. Arnett
(3x great-grandfather)
b. 18 Aug 1785 in Buncombe Co., NC, died 14 Feb 1854, Polk Co. TX)
married 1802 in South Carolina to Rhoda Tabitha Curlee
(b. 11 Nov 1781, d. 28 Aug 1837, Leake County, MS)
Children of Rhoda Tabitha Curlee
1. John Curlee Arnett
2. Rebecca Elizabeth Arnett
3. Cullen Curlee Arnett
4. Milton Arnett
5. Calvin Arnett
6. William Washington Arnett
7. Mary Arnett
8. James Arnett
and David B. Arnett:
b. 12 Mar 1812, Franklin Co. AL, d. 29 Nov 1865
died in infancy
died at age 5 years
b. 5 Jan 1823, Franklin Co. AL, d. 23 Dec 1892, Brackettville, TX
Child of David B. Arnett and Margaret Elizabeth Kirkwood:
9. John Calhoun Arnett.
III. Cullen Curlee Arnett
(2x great-grandfather)
b. 12 Mar 1812, in Mississippi
(another source has 27 March 1812 in Alabama)
d. 29 Nov 1865 in Burnet County, Texas
(another source has 24 Jul 1854 in Guadalupe Co., TX)
Married Elizabeth Norred Warren on 12 Aug 1834 in Leake
County, Mississippi (b. January 12, 1815, d. October 18, 1895)
Cullen Curlee Arnett migrated from Alabama to Texas in 1836 before the Texas Revolution and fought in the
Battle of San Jacinto. In 1839, he received a land grant in Liberty County. He served in the House of
Representatives of the 5th Congress from Liberty County when Texas was a republic. Five years later, he was
appointed Notary Public of Taylor County, and in 1851 he was elected commissioner of Milan County.
Cullen Curlee Arnett was an ordained Methodist minister and a circuit rider who had many local pastorates.
He was appointed Captain of the 17th Regiment Texas Infantry, Confederate States Army and resigned in
1862. He died in 1865, having left a wonderful heritage to his son and our great-grandfather, David Nathan
Arnett.
Cullen Curlee Arnett, Republic of Texas congressman, son of David and Rhoda (Curlee) Arnett, was born in
Alabama on March 27, 1812. He moved to Madison County, Mississippi, in 1828, and four years later to
Leake County, where he was elected sheriff. He married Elizabeth Norrid (sic) on August 12, 1834, and had
at least six children. In 1838, after the death of Cullen's mother, the Arnett family moved to Texas. Arnett
secured a land grant in Liberty County on December 5, 1839. He represented Liberty County in the Fifth
Congress of the Republic of Texas, from November 2, 1840, to February 5, 1841. By 1845 he had moved to
Wolf Creek in Tyler County, and he was appointed notary public there on May 22, 1846. He and his family
were living in Milam County by 1850; that year's census reported his real estate to be worth $500. He was
elected county commissioner in February 1851. Arnett died at Seguin on July 24, 1854. BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Texas House of Representatives, Biographical Directory of the Texan Conventions and Congresses, 1832–1845 (Austin:
Book Exchange, 1941).
Children of Cullen Curlee Arnett and Elizabeth Norred Warren:
1. William Thomas Arnett
b. August 29, 1835
2. Alonzo Marcus Arnett
b. December 9, 1837
3. Rebecca E. Arnett
b. September 18, 1840
4. Joseph D. Arnett
b. November 27, 1842
5. George Cullen Arnett
b. September 21, 1844, Co. G, 17th Reg., Texas Inf. CSA
6. David Nathan Arnett
b. January 20, 1847
7. Mary Jane Arnett
b. January 27, 1842
8. James Daniel Arnett
b. December 14, 1851
9. Callie Arnett
b. January 25, 1867
10. John C. Arnett
b. February 7, 1854, m. Josie Hall
11. Albert Henry Arnett
b. August 5, 1856
IV.
David Nathan Arnett
(Great Grandfather)
Born January 20, 1847
Died April 2, 1934, Colorado, Texas
Married Ophelia Moreland in 1872 (born December 8, 1850 near
Granville, TN and the Cumberland River, died 22 Dec 1937,
Colorado, Texas)
Ophelia migrated to Texas with her family to Burnet County, Texas when she was seven years old. Her family
moved one mile from Cullen and Elizabeth Arnett. Ophelia’s father was in poor health and consequently the
family sold the plantation in Tennessee and migrated to Texas for his health (see obituary for Rev. Samuel W.
Moreland.)
Children of David Nathan Arnett and Ophelia Moreland:
1. Elnora Fields Arnett
b. 26 Dec 1876, m. Joseph Green Merritt
2. Samuel Cullen Arnett
b. 1 May 1876, Burnett Co. TX, d. 5 Jul 1856, Lubbock, TX
3. Rowena Arnett
4. Elizabeth Arnett
5. David Nathan Arnett, Jr.
6. Mary Virginia Arnett
7. William Dudley Arnett
8. Ophelia M. (May or Mae) Arnett
9. John Hampton Arnett
10. Nell Ruth Arnett
ARNETT, WILLIAM WASHINGTON (1823–1892). William
Washington (Fuzzy Buck, Judge) Arnett was born three miles from
Tuscumbia in Franklin County, Alabama, on January 5, 1823, the son of
David and Rhoda (Curlee) Arnett. The family moved to Mississippi in
1828 and settled first in Madison County, then in Hinds County, and
finally near the site of present Carthage in Leake County. In 1837
Arnett's mother died, and the boy contracted "inflammatory
rheumatism," from which he never fully recovered. After living with a
brother in Tipton County, Tennessee, for a while, Arnett returned to
Mississippi in 1839, and on March 1, 1843, became tax assessor of
Leake County. He held this position until 1845, when, his proposal of
marriage having been rejected by a local heiress, he departed for Texas.
In Texas Arnett resided with his older brother in the Tyler County
communities of Town Bluff and Wolf Creek, where he taught school.
There he married Emiline Varnell; they eventually had seven children.
The couple resided briefly in Milam County. During the Mexican War
Arnett served as a private in Capt. John A. Veatch's company of Col.
Peter H. Bell's regiment of Texas Mounted Volunteers. This company was recruited primarily in Tyler
County, mustered into federal service on October 23, 1847, and left federal service on September 20, 1848.
On February 10, 1852, the Arnetts moved to the present site of Uvalde, then a wilderness. There Arnett built
a shanty on the banks of the Leona River and delivered hay to Fort Inge under a contract to the army. For
years after the family settled in Uvalde County they had no close neighbors and were in constant peril from
Indians, wolves, and mountain lions. From January 1 until December 31, 1856, Arnett served as a private in
Capt. Reading Wood Black's company of minutemen.
Mrs. Arnett died in 1871, and Arnett married Mrs. Mary Herrington Copeland at Salado on July 27, 1874.
She was a teacher and the daughter of H. H. Herrington, a founder of Marshall, Texas. She and Arnett had
five children. Arnett was elected treasurer of Kinney County in 1876, a position he held until his death. In
1885 he began writing a delightful memoir, now on deposit at the Barker Texas History Center, University of
Texas at Austin.
Arnett died in Brackettville on December 23, 1892, and was buried there. He was a Mason, a member of the
Disciples of Christ, and a frequent contributor of editorial and historical materials to the Castroville Quill and
the Uvalde Hesperian. His widow died at Uvalde on January 11, 1925.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
W. W. Arnett Papers, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin.
Frances Terry Ingmire, comp., Texas Ranger Service Records, 1847–1900 (St. Louis, 1982).
Charles D. Spurlin, comp., Texas Veterans in the Mexican War: Muster Rolls of Texas Military Units
(Victoria, Texas, 1984).
Portrait of William Washington Arnett from http://www.lindaletard.com/ancestors/memoirs.html
The Barber and Curlee Families
I.
John Barber
(5x great-grandfather)
Born 1738 in Buncombe County, North Carolina, died 1802/07
Married in 1754 to Mary Ann Allen (born 1739, died 1807)
John served as Captain of a company in Graham’s Regiment of Tryon County, North Carolina, Revolutionary
War, and that the company participated in the Cross Greek Expedition, an expedition against insurgents. His
name appears on an undated account covering the period February and March, 1776, and it is shown that the
company received £70, 2s, 6d, for this service.
Child of John Barber and Mary Ann Allen:
1. Mary Barber
Born 1767, North Carolina, died 9 Mar 1829, Anson County, North Carolina
II.
Mary Barber
Born 1767, died 9 Mar 1829, Anson County, NC
married John Curlee in 1781 (4x great-grandfather)
(born 1761, died Apr 1812. Source: DAR records)
Children of Mary Barber and John Curlee:
1. Rhoda Tabitha Curlee
b. 11 Nov 1781, married David B. Arnett in South Carolina
2. Elizabeth Curlee
3. Cullen Sr. Curlee
b. 5 Jan 1786, d. 21 Jan 1853, m. Eleanor McFerrin 25 Aug 1818
(b. 25 Aug 1800, d. Jan 1886)
4. Calvin Curlee
5. Ann Curlee
House of Representatives of the 5th Congress from Liberty County when Texas was a Republic.
He was appointed Captain of the 17th Regiment Texas Infantry, Confederate States Army and
resigned in 1862. In 1858, Reverend Sam W. Moreland, an ordained Methodist minister,
migrated from Tennessee to Burnet County in Texas with his family. They had a daughter Ophelia,
who was seven years old at the time. She had known very little about hard times. The family
settled one mile west of the Arnetts. David Nathan and Ophelia grew up together and the two
families became one great family. (see the newspaper article “Two Prominent Pioneer Women of
Colorado….”).
·
In those days, times were hard and the boys in the family were expected to work hard and help out
with the family chores.
·
Although the boys went to a little log cabin school and were taught the blue-back speller, they did
not get to go to school very much, as there were many other things that the boys had to do to help
their father.
·
In 1861 the Civil War broke out and Cullen Arnett became a Captain in the Home Guard which was
organized for the benefit of the younger men to protect the women and a children. At about age 16,
David Nathan Arnett joined the Home Guard and then later the Confederate Army. He had
many “thrilling battles with Indians.”
·
In 1870 at the age of 23, David and his brother, Lon decided to drive a herd of cattle from
Georgetown, Texas to California. They knew the dangers, thirst in the desert, Indians in every mile
of the way, cattle rustlers looking longingly on their herds, but the Arnetts were used to danger.
They came from adventurous stock.
·
He was attacked by Indians and outlaws on this trip. In front of his herd of cattle was Captain Al G.
Boyce who was driving a “good big herd to California.” One night outlaws came into Captain Al
Boyce’s camp and killed one of his men. In turn, the Captain’s men killed the outlaws. They buried
them in the camp and continued on driving the herd. A few days later David Nathan came across
the graves of the outlaws. The coyotes had dug up the bodies and only a few bones were left.
·
When David reached California, he wintered his cattle in San Diego. In the spring, he drove the
cattle to San Francisco and after selling them, he started homeward.
·
In order to reach home, he rode a train to St. Louis, Missouri, went down the Mississippi River in a
steamboat to New Orleans - an eight-day journey - and continued on a steamboat to Galveston, Texas.
From Galveston, he took a train to Bremond. This was a far as he could go by train. At Bremond, he
and his companions bought horses and saddles and made the rest of the way home on horseback.
·
During that entire trip among all sorts of outlaws, desperate men, and Indians, David carried over
$10,000 in gold from the sale of the cattle. He carried a belt about around his waist so heavy with gold
pieces that it sagged about the hips. Its weight cut him so heavily that he bought a leather trunk,
loaded it with the gold, and shipped it to Austin by Wells Fargo Stage Express from Keokuk, Iowa.
The trunk arrived with its contents untouched. David was a young man of twenty-three.
·
His sweetheart Ophelia Moreland nursed an invalid father for three years, but her father died, so there
was no reason to put off their marriage any further. On December 11, 1872, David Nathan was
married to Ophelia. They mounted horses and rode off to their little pioneer cabin.
·
In 1877, 1878 and 1879, David Nathan was manager of a “trail outfit” for the Snyder brothers—D.H.
and T.M. He drove 2,500 head of cattle from the Gulf Coast to Pale Creek and Cheyenne, Wyoming,
where the Snyder brothers had bought or leased a ranch on the Little Missouri River in Wyoming.
(Read from Incidents Along the Trail, “Further Experiences on the Trail,” pg. 9)
·
During those trips, David Nathan and his cowboys suffered many hardships and difficulties for they
had no tarpaulins or chuck wagon boxes. Such conveniences were unknown. They encountered
swollen streams and rivers, and hostile Indians who tried to stampede and steal the cattle and kill the
cowboys. He learned how to negotiate with the Indians by giving them beef and other things.
(Read this story in newspaper article, “Family’s History, That of C-City Intertwined” also read about
the 1870 David’s and Lon’s cattle drive to California.)
·
In 1881, at age 34, the Snyders offered him the management of their ranch in Tom Green County, the
part that is now Coke County, with headquarters at the junction of the Colorado River and Yellow
Wolf Creek. In the fall his young wife, Ophelia, and their children at the time—Elnora, Sam, Rowena
and Elizabeth—came westward to live there—near Colorado, Texas. There was a big bunk house with
a male cook. The Arnetts lived in their own house and Ophelia cooked for her own family. At that
time, Colorado was the terminus of the T and P Railroad and a cattle center. Practically all of the
supplies for the cattlemen upon the plains were bought at Colorado. (Read from Light and Hitch about
the Rain/Hail storm while living on Yellow-Wolf River and Listen to River Journey.)
·
In the late 1880s, David bought the Scissors herd and added the letter “A.” After that he made a
change in his living. He still worked for the Snyders, but he moved his herd to the Southern part of
Mitchell County, and settled at the little town of Seven Wells, about six miles from Colorado City,
while he continued to manage the Yellow Wolf Ranch. Here he helped start a school, the first rural
school in Mitchell County, and was trustee for years.
·
David hired a school teacher, Alec Ross, from Boston who lived in the Arnett home. He came to Texas
due to his asthma and needed a change of climate. For four years he taught those children and made
one definite impression on them.
·
I.L. Ellwood of DeKalb, Illinois became interested in Texas when he and his partner, Joseph Glidden,
introduced Glidden’s invention, barbed wire, into the state. They shared ownership in the Fying Pan
Ranch near Amarillo, and Ellwood looked about for other ranch holdings. He met David Arnett, who
suggested to him that he buy from the Snyder Brothers, the Renderbrook Ranch, twenty-five miles
southwest from Colorado City. It was a beautiful place with many springs near the headquarters and
lovely walnut trees so large that a grown man could not reach around the trunks.
·
Eventually, I.L Ellwood bought the Renderbrook ranch (entrance pictured below left) and Arnett
marveled that Ellwood invited him, a man with ten children, to be manager and live on the ranch at
the headquarters. He accepted, and a dream life began for his family. There was a comfortable house,
plenty of horses, swimming holes all over the place and fishing at their very door. They had a
governess and kept her even after the older children went off to college.
·
Ellwood expanded his holdings
- ranches in Sterling County, Coke,
Mitchell, Terry, Lamb, Borden, and
Hockley.
·
For 26 years, David Arnett was
general manager of the Renderbook and
the Spade Ranches in Texas.
·
“The development of ranching
in Texas from the 1880s forward was
strongly related to two mechanical
inventions which were born of Yankee
ingenuity but found their true potential
on the vast and often thirsty ranges of ex-Confederate Texas - the water-pumping windmill and barbed
wire. The hundred-year-old Spade Ranch has a unique tie to the history of barbed wire. It was
established as an investment for earning which barbed wire had brought to Illinois farmer/
entrepreneur Isaac Ellwood. Though Ellwood did not invent the concept of barbed wire, his
shrewdness and ingenuity in producing and marketing that concept made him by far the mos
successful of its early manufacturers and would have earned him a prominent place in ranching
history even if he had not become a ranch owner himself. After a full century, the Spade today still
belongs to Ellwood descendants. Relatively few of the many investor-created ranches of that transition
period between the Civil War and the turn of the century remain in the family hands, making the
Spade Ranch unusual in that regard.” (“Renderbrook, A Century Under the Spade Brand,” by Steve Kelton,
Texas Christian University Press, Fort Worth, Introduction.)
·
David Arnett rode from ranch to ranch in a buckboard or by horse, and no one ever questioned his
judgment, still less his honor. He was considered a “super-cattleman.” (Read some of the business letters.)
·
The Ellwoods made trips to the ranches several times a year. Those visits were gay events for the little
Arnetts, for the Ellwoods brought so many gifts that it always seemed that Christmas and Santa Claus
had come again. (Read the letter from I.L Ellwood to the family.)
·
David Arnett owned a ranch in Sterling County, and one on the High Plains, which he entrusted to his
older sons. However, he felt that he was neglecting his own business far too much, and so, in 1912,
after 26 years of managing the Spades, David resigned. He devoted himself to his Scissors “A” herd.
(Read letters from the sons to Papa and Mama.)
·
In 1912 David purchased the house at 605 Chestnut Street that was built by F.E. McKenzie in 1899
and sold to a rancher, A.B. Robertson. Four generations of the family lived in the house - D.N. Arnett,
his daughter, Elnora and her husband, Joseph Green Merritt and their son, Ford Merritt and his wife
and three children.
·
David continued ranching and helped organize the City National Bank of Colorado City, Texas where
he served as bank vice-president.
·
David Nathan Arnett died on April 2, 1934 in Colorado City, Texas. When her husband died, Mrs.
Arnett’s quiet courage impressed her children and friends. “We have lived our lives getting ready for
this,” she kept saying quietly when he was known to be dying. “Now, I must let him go.”
The David Arnett family about 1912.
The David Arnett home in Colorado City, Texas.
S
pade Ranch was the name of two separate West Texas ranches, both of which were invariably linked through the
innovation of barbed wire. The two were under separate ownership.
The first Spade Ranch was begun in the Panhandle in 1880 by John F. “Spade" Evans, who had formed a corporation
with Judson P. Warner, an agent who sold Joseph Glidden's barbed wire. On 25 August 1880 J.F. Evans and Company
purchased 23 parcels of land in Donley County, Texas, near Clarendon, from J.A. Reynolds.
Their first camp was established near Glenwood
Creek and they erected a log cabin on Barton
Creek which they designated as their permanent
headquarters. In the end, neither Evans nor
Warner had the time to devote to active ranching.
They turned over operations to such able
ranchers as Baldy Oliver and Dave Nall. Alfred
Rowe worked at Spade for a time before he
started his own RO Ranch.
It is unknown who designed the ranch's
distinctive brand. The brand, which resembles a
shovel or a "spade," was first used on a cattle herd
that Evans and Warner had gathered in Larmer
County. The wranglers trailed the cattle to the
open grasses of the Panhandle and turned the
herd loose near Saddler Creek.
Dogies in the Renderbrook corral, 1917.
While Evans and Warner's startup ranch operated
J. Taylor Barr was operating the Renderbrook Ranch. Renderbrook was near Renderbrook Springs in Mitchell County,
about 25 miles south of Colorado City. In 1882 Barr was bought out by brother Dudley H. and John W. Snyder. The
Snyder's enlarged the operation in the five years that ensued. By 1887 the Renderbrook Ranch encompassed 300,000
acres (1,200 km) in four counties.
Isaac L. Ellwood came onto the scene after Texas was ravaged by terrible drought and blizzards during the late 1880s.
Ellwood was co-owner of the barbed wire patent with Joseph Glidden. Ellwood bought the Spade Ranch from Evans
and Warner during this time period, along with his purchase came the ranch's unique brand and 800 head of cattle.
Ellwood then purchased the sprawling Renderbrook Ranch from the Snyders and began to stock it with Spade cattle.
In 1889 Ellwood acquired the 128,000 acre (518 km) north pasture of the Snyder Brothers ranch and renamed it Spade
Ranch, the second Spade Ranch was born. Ellwood registered the ranch's distinctive brand in Mitchell County in 1889
and Hale and Lubbock counties in 1891.
In 1902 Spade was enlarged further when Ellwood
acquired adjacent land tracts totaling 262,000 acres
(1,060 km²). The ranch was ten miles wide by 54
miles long. The ranch's main headquarters was
located in southeastern Lamb County and the
south pasture operations were headed up in eastern
Hockley County, near present-day Smyer, Texas.
“If you’ve got time to sit down, you’ve got time to lie down.”
- W.L. Ellwood.
Ellwood made his oldest son, William Leonard,
manager of his Texas ranches. In 1910, after
Ellwood's death, W. L. and a younger brother,
Erwin Perry Ellwood, jointly inherited the Spade
and Renderbrook ranches. Both ranches were
enclosed with six-wire fences, and five-wire cross
fences divided them into pastures averaging forty
sections each. The water problem was solved by
the use of wells and windmills placed at intervals
of four miles.
The Spade and Renderbrook were stocked with about 15,000
cattle each. Although the Ellwoods first used Red Durhams, they
soon found that Hereford cattle were better suited to the dry
South Plains environment and so changed to Hereford bulls in
1919.
The Renderbrook, being farther south, was used principally as a
breeding ranch, and the young steers were transferred to the
Spade to graze.
J. Frank Norfleet was the first foreman of the Spade Ranch in
1889. He was succeeded by D. N. “Uncle Dick” Arnett in 1905.
This marked the beginning of the Spade's "Arnett Dynasty,"
during which Arnett relatives ran the ranch.
Branding for an audience, 1932.
Each year before 1908 three to five thousand head of steer were
transported to market in Kansas by freight train, usually at Bovina or Amarillo. From 1908 until 1912 were driven to
Abernathy. In 1912 the Santa Fe Railroad built its line up to Littlefield which allowed Spade to ship its cattle without
having to drive them long distances.
In 1924 W.L. Ellwood put the northern
acreage of Spade ranch up for sale as
farmland. In October the ranch shipped
6,000 three-year-old steer and another
5,200 the following spring, in a second
roundup. By 1926 about 80% of the north
land had been sold.
Subsequently the ranch headquarters was
moved to the South Camp. Three Santa Fe
Railroad branches across the Spade gave rise
to the towns of Anton, Ropesville,
Wolfforth, and Smyer. By 1938 Ellwood
Farms, as the enterprise was called, had sold
approximately 189,000 acres, most of which
had been placed under cultivation. Of the
The headquarters of Renderbrook, 1915.
914 original purchasers, 84 percent were
Texans. By 1947 the sales of the former
Spade land was completed. The Ellwood family retained only 21,754 acres (88.04 km) in Hockley County. In the early
1980s Spade cattle were still being run from the nearby Renderbrook Ranch by some of Ellwood's heirs.
Nearly half of the buyers secured Federal Land Bank loans, and during the 1930s a federal government model farm
rehabilitation project was located on former Spade land. By 1947 colonization of the old Spade Ranch lands was
completed, with the Ellwood estate retaining only 21,754 acres in Hockley County. Spade cattle were still being run in
the 1980s on the Renderbrook Ranch by some of the Ellwood heirs.
In 1970 the Ellwood estate gave the old Renderbrook-Spade blacksmith shop to the Ranching Heritage Association in
Lubbock; it was one of the first buildings to be reassembled on the grounds of the Ranching Heritage Center. Over the
years the Spade Ranch has been praised for its innovative use of modern technology.
During the early twentieth century, ranch managers installed a telephone system and used automobiles on the ranch. In
the 1970s they used embryo transplantation in breeding practices.
The historical marker on the property reads: “Renderbrook Ranch,
founded in buffalo and Indian days of 1870s by Taylor Barr. Owned
1882-1889 by D.H. and J.W. Snyder. They built “White House”
headquarters. Sold ranch 1889 to Isaac L. Ellwood, an inventor of
barbed wire in DeKalb, Illinois.
“Ellwood paid in wire for Space cattle from Donley County to stock
ranch. Added Sterling and Coke lands to original 130,000 acres. To
distinguish this from range, bought 1902 near Lubbock, called this
Renderbrook (from name of spring where Indians shot a U.W. cavalry
officer in the 1870s.) Ellwood heirs still run Spade-brand on 2 ranches.”
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Lillian Brasher, Hockley County (2 vols., Canyon, Texas: Staked Plains,
1976).
Gus L. Ford, ed., Texas Cattle Brands (Dallas: Cockrell, 1936).
Richard C. Hopping, "The Ellwoods: Barbed Wire and Ranches,"
Museum Journal 6 (1962).
Steve Kelton, Renderbrook: A Century under the Spade Brand (Fort
Worth: Texas Christian University Press, 1989). Pauline D. and R. L.
Robertson, Cowman's Country: Fifty Frontier Ranches in the Texas
Panhandle, 1876-1887 (Amarillo: Paramount, 1981).
Evalyn Parrott Scott, A History of Lamb County (Sudan, Texas: Lamb County Historical Commission, 1968).
Jesse Wallace Williams, The Big Ranch Country (Wichita Falls: Terry, 1954; 2d ed., Wichita Falls: Nortex, 1971).
www.wikipedia.com.
Photos from Southwest Collection and Spade Ranches Collection, Texas Tech University. From the book
“Renderbrook: A Century Under the Spade Brand” by Steve Kelton, Texas Christian University Press.
The White House on Spade Ranch, where Elnora Arnett and Joseph Merritt were married in 1892
(Atto Jones and his wife are in this picture.)
Photo below made June 2008.
Joseph Green Merritt Genealogy
I. Thomas Merritt 1
GGGGGG Grandfather
Born: 1757
Married Mary ______
1. William Merritt 1
2. Benjamin Merritt
3. James Merritt
4. Mary Merritt
5. Martha Merritt
6. Margaret Merritt
7. Fanney Merritt
8. Barbara Merritt
II. William Merritt 1
GGGGG Grandfather
Born: 1784
1. Thomas Merritt 2
2. Richard Merritt
3. Absalom Merritt
III. Thomas Merritt 2
GGGG Grandfather
Born: Unknown, Died: 1811
Married Phoebe_____
1. Nathaniel Merritt
2. Sension Bishop Merritt
3. William Merritt 2
4. Anny Merritt
5. Henry Writter Merritt
6. Ann Merritt
7. Rebecca Christenberry Merritt
8. Stephen Merritt
9. Mary Ann Merritt
10. Thomas Merritt Jr.
IV. Nathaniel Merritt
GGG Grandfather
born between 1756-1759, Halifax County, North Carolina
died 1847, Pickens County, South Carolina
Married ________Williams
1. Elisha Williams Merritt 1
2. Temperance Williams Merritt
3. Sarah Williams Merritt
V. Elisha Williams Merritt 1
GG Grandfather
born 6 Aug 1799, Pendleton District of South Carolina
died 28 Aug 1886, Hall County, Georgia
Married Anna Mahala Garvin in Pendleton District (now Pickens Co.) SC
(b. 28 Apr 1807, Pendleton District, SC, d. 1897, Hall County, Georgia,
daughter of Thomas Garvin (b. 3 Mar 1775, d. 11 Oct 1859, Pickens Co.,
SC) and Sarah Johnston)
1. Sarah Ann Merritt
b. 1823, Pendleton District, SC
m. Hezekiah Cicero Langford (b.1823, d. 1896)
1. Joseph Warren Langford
b. 1848, 1929
2. Elisha Harrison Langford
b. 1850, d. 1908
m. Flora O. King (b.1849)
2. Thomas Joseph Merritt
b. 20 Jan 1826, Pendleton District, Pickens Co., SC
d. 1 Dec 1893, Hall County, GA
married Rilla Bell (b.1827, d. 1900)
3. Ferdelia Mahala Merritt
b. 23 Jul 1827, Pendleton District, SC
d. 30 Aug 1896, Hall County, GA
m. (1) Alexander “Sandy” Leckie
m. (2) Richard Major Bell
4. Martha D. Merritt
b. 8 Jul 1829, Pendleton District, SC
d. 29 Apr 1861, Hall County, GA
m. Ezekiel F. Fight (b. 1830)
5. Arizona Aaron Merritt
b. 6 Jun 1831, d. 8 Mar 1892, Hall County, GA
m. Francis Cicero Bell (b. 1825, d. 1893)
6. Elisha Adchristian Merritt
b. 31 Jan 1833, Hall County, GA
d. 30 Mar 1903, Moran, TX
m. Martha Jane Tate (b. 1847, d. 1916)
7. Joshua Presley “Pret” Merritt
b. 1835, Hall County, GA, d. 1903, Texas
m. Arvarilla “Rilla” Morrow (b. 1845)
8. Nancy Merritt
b. 27 Sep 1838, d. 25 Dec 1859, Hall County, GA
9. David Greenberry Merritt
b. 30 Oct 1840, d. 27 Jul 1910, Stephens Co. TX
m. Avarilla Virginia Tate (b.1850, d. 1926)
10. John Nathaniel Merritt
b. 20 Nov 1842, Hall Co., GA, d. 6 Mar 1886, Hall Co.,GA
m. Mary Josephine Doss (b. 1844, d. 1902)
11. Mary M. (or E) Merritt
b. Oct 1845, d. 1926
m. George H. Rainey (b. 1842, d. 1933)
12. Lucy Hannah Merritt
b. 1847, d. 1927, Hall County, GA
m. Magwood D. Hudson (b.1842, d. 1915)
13. James Frederick Merritt
b. 12 Dec 1849, d. 27 Oct 1874, Hall County, GA
VI. Thomas Joseph Merritt
Great Grandfather
born 20 Jan 1826, Pendleton District, Pickens Co., South Carolina
died 1 Dec 1893, Hall County, GA; married Narcisus Sarilla “Rilla” Bell
(b. 22 Jun 1827, d. 9 Nov 1900, Hall County, GA,
daughter of James Montgomery Bell and Nancy Major)
both buried Oak Grove Baptist Church Cemetery, Hall County, Georgia)
1. Elisha Williams Merritt 2
b. 4 May 1847, d. 4 Sep 1938
buried Oak Grove Baptist Cem., Hall Co. GA
married Ida Doss (b. 1871, d. 1921)
2. Nancy A. Merritt
1.
Elisha Williams Merritt 2
2.
3.
4.
b. 1849, d.1926
married Flavius Joseus “Bruce” Eberhart
(b. 1850, Hall Co. GA, d. 1928, Texas)
Bruce Johnson Eberhart
b. 1882, d. 1953
m. Eudora Edna McRee (b. 1888, d. 1961)
1. Gwen Eberhart
Charlie Eberhart
Elizabeth Eberhart
m. Schuwirth
Fred “James Fredrick” Eberhart b. 1887,d.1937
3. Sarah E. Merritt
b. 1851, d. 1935
married James M. Leckie
(b.1839,d.1924)
4. Unnamed Merritt
b. 1856
5. Ferdelia Melvina Merritt
b. 1861, d. 1862
6. Unnamed male Merritt
b/d 1866
Nancy Merritt and Flavius Eberhart
7. Joseph Green Merritt
b. 1863, d. 13 May 1940 Grandfather
married 28 Dec 1892 to Elnora Field Arnett b. 1873, d. 1955 Grandmother
1. Junius Field Arnett
b. 16 Jan 1894, d. 24 Dec 1917
2. Josephine Merritt
b. 1895, d. 1898
3. David McCall “Jake” Merritt
b. 1900, d. 1988
4. Joseph Ford “Ford” Merritt
b. 1903, d. 1981
m. Imogene “Jean” “Honey” Sanders (b.1906,d.1994)
5. Robert Brooks “Rod” “Chicken” Merritt
b. 1906, d. 1975
m. Joan Bailey (b. 1917, d. 1985)
6. John Thomas Merritt
b. 1914, d. 1991
m. Mabel “Sissy” Ratliff Majors (b. 1917, d. 2006)
Joseph Green Merritt
8. Robert J. Merritt
b. 1868, d. 1940
married (1) Florence Reeves (b.1876, d. 1955)
1. Fred Merritt
2. John Merritt
3. Elnora Merritt
4. Robert J. Merritt Jr.
married (2) Pauline Scott
5. Cora Lee Merritt
Robert J. Merritt
b.
b.
b.
b.
1906
1908
1912
1915
b. 1872, d. 1938,
m. W.C. Kennedy
Family History of Joseph Green Merritt
·
The name Merritt is of Anglo-Saxon origin. It was derived from the Saxon manor of Meriet in
Somerset County, England, which is now called Merriott. It is found on ancient records in the various
forms of Meriet, Mariot, Meryet, Merriot, Meryott, Merritt, Marriott.
·
Families of this name were early settlers in the counties of Berks, Buckingham, Cornwall, Essex, Kent,
Devon, Surrey and other Counties in England.1
·
All are believed to be descended from the Somerset branch. Eadnoth, Saxon Thane of Somerset
County in the early eleventh Century is said to have been the progenitor of all of the families
of the name of Merritt. Among the early settlers in the South (U.S.A.) we find Charles Merrett, a
member of the Militia of Surrey County, Virginia in 1650; William Merritt who is said to have settled
in Cecil County, Maryland, Richard Merritt in Virginia in 1660.2
·
Many Merritts were in the Revolution, the War of 1812 and the War Between the States as discovered
in their war records, sworn statements in their application for pensions and other records. Colonial
sailing lists show a Robert Merritt in Virginia in 1649, William in 1653, and John in 1651; also there
was the ship Marry Merritt that brought immigrants to Virginia before 1624.3
·
It has been impossible to connect the Merritts in Duplin and Sampson Counties in North Carolina
with the earlier Merritts in Virginia and in Edgecombe, Chowan and Halifax counties in North
Carolina; however, the similarity in given names and the general trend of migration at that time
strongly indicate a connection. Records at the time are incomplete as they were largely Parish records
and Parish names and borders frequently changed; this is also true of counties later formed. Also at
times records were not kept or were not properly preserved. Even at best many courthouses burned or
were destroyed by hurricanes. It has also been impossible to establish any connection with the early
Merritts in Wake, Person and Surrey counties or with General Wesley Merritt who served with the
Union forces in the War Between the States.4
·
Our Merritt ancestors can be traced back to Halifax County, North Carolina. It is necessary to
understand the process of the creation of North Carolina counties. Halifax County was created in
1754 from Edgecombe County. Edgecombe County was created in 1741 from Bertie County. Bertie
County was created in 1722 from Bath and Chowan Counties. Bath was created in 1696 and
discontinued in 1739. Chowan County was created in 1670 from Albermarle Precinct, one of the
three original subdivisions of North Carolina. Albermarle was discontinued in 1739.5
·
The Merritts in the area of northeastern North Carolina now known as Halifax, Bertie, Chowan, and
Hertford Counties are thought by most researchers to have been descended from a Charles Merritt.
Historical Perspectives of Charles Merritt (1652-1718) by King Merritt Jr. gives information from the
will of Charles Merritt - 6 April 1718, proved 21 October 1718 by oath of Peter Evans. Wife:
Elinor, sons: Charles, Nathaniel William, John; daughters: Ann, Sarah, Hardy. Chowan Court
(records in Hertford County). Area near Winton, North Carolina.
·
There is information that Charles Merritt, Jr. moved his family to Duplin County, North Carolina.
Sampson County was later created from parts of Duplin Co. Exactly whom, if any, of Charles Jr.’s
brothers is our direct ancestor is not known as of this writing. There are many deeds, wills and estate
settlements involving Merritts in Edgecombe and later Halifax Counties.
·
The earliest direct Merritt ancestor that Jim Bell is reasonably sure is our ancestor is a Thomas
Merritt.
We do not know his date of birth. Thomas Merritt made his will 29 August 1757. He was our
GGGGGG Grandfather. His wife was Mary. His son William received 200 acres that Thomas had
of Mitchell, with tools, etc. Benjamin received 100 acres that he had of Taylor, 100 acres adjoining
plantation and mill after Mary’s death. James received 300 acres in Granville County and the mill.
His daughters Mary Ingraham and Martha Merritt received 100 acres. Margait and Barbary
Merritt received 100 acres south side of the mill. Fanney Merrit and Shalaty (Charlotte) Merrit
received 50 acres each in Granville County - 1,000 acres in all.
·
William Merritt, son of the above Thomas Merritt Sr. is our GGGGG Grandfather. William’s
will was written 10 August 1778, proved February 1784. His son, Richard received 4 Negroes (Jude,
Jean, Rodger, and Jack). His son Thomas received 3 Negroes (Mingo, Sumpess, Abram). His son
Absalom received the plantation where where William lived and all lands. His grandson, Thomas
Turner received 1 Negro (Rone or Rose). His son-in-law, Solomon Turner received 1 Negro
(Hannah). His grandson, Thomas Merrit received 20 shillings. Richard and Thomas were appointed
executors.
·
Thomas Merritt Jr. was our GGGG Grandfather. He wrote his will 16 January, 1811. The will
listed his wife as Phoebe Merritt and talked about younger children and older children, implying two
different wives. At Phoebe’s death her 1/3rd share of the land was to go to son William Merritt. The
four youngest children were Sension Bishop, Henry Writter (Henrietta) Merritt. The other children
were given money - Nathaniel Merritt, Mary Ann Merritt, grandsons Joseph Burges, John Burges,
and Thomas Burges. Thomas was not 18 years of age. It was said that he was a lunatic and wife
Phoebe was assigned to care for him. Wife and son-in-law Wilie Bishop were named executors.
Among his bequests were his slaves including a man named Mingo, one of three slaves given him by
his father William Merritt as part of William’s will.
·
Nathaniel Merritt, son of Thomas Merritt was our GGG Grandfather. He was born between
1756 and 1759 in Halifax County, North Carolina and died in Pickens County, South Carolina about
1847. His wife’s name is unknown. Jim Bell believed that her maiden name was Williams due to the
fact that ‘Williams’ was used as all their children’s middle name. There children were Elisha Williams
Merritt, who was born August 6, 1799 in South Carolina and died August 28, 1886 in Hall County,
Georgia; Temperance Williams Merritt was born about 1805 in South Carolina and died June 2, 1875
in Pickens County, South Carolina; and Sarah Williams Merritt.
·
It is not know when Nathaniel and wife moved to South Carolina. We do know that Elisha Williams
Merritt always stated to census takers that he was born in South Carolina. Given his birth date of
August 6, 1799, it can be determined that Nathaniel was in South Carolina by that date.
·
Our Great-Great-Grandfather was Elisha Williams Merritt. He was born August 6, 1799,
Pendleton District of South Carolina and died August 28, 1886 in Hall County, Georgia. He married
Anna Mahala Garvin, born April 28, 1807 Pendleton District, South Carolina and died in 1897 Hall
County, Georgia. They were married in Pendleton District (now Pickens County.)
·
Our Garvin ancestors can be traced back to Ireland and to further into Scotland. Anna’s parents were
Thomas Garvin Jr., born March 3 1775 and died October 11, 1859 in Pickens County, South Carolina
and Sarah Johnston. Her grandfather, Thomas Garvin Sr. served in the Revolutionary War. This is
the ancestral line through which Mary Ann Merritt joined the Daughters of the American Revolution.
·
Elisha Williams Merritt and Anna Mahala Garvin were married in Pendleton District, South Carolina
and their four oldest children were born there.
·
The family then moved to Hall County, Georgia about 1828, where they were the second owners
of land taken from the Cherokee Indians.
·
Later in life, Elisha moved into Gainesville, Georgia where he had numerous properties as well as
in rural Hall County. Additionally, he owned 2,078 of South Carolina property which his wife
Anna Garvin Merritt received from the estate of her father, Thomas Garvin.
·
The home place is located on a knoll along the old Athens Highway outside Gainesville.
It commanded a lovely view to the north, south, and east. The Merritt House was known as the
“round house.” The house was not round, butin the 19th century, Gainesville folk enjoyed taking
rides in buggies from Gainesville south on the road - now US 129 - and turning around at the
intersection of present US 129 and the road to Gillsville at the Merritt House. The “turning around
house” was shortened to “round house.” It is now the Highway Department’s office location, but
the view of the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains is still quite incredible.
·
Thomas J. Merritt (the oldest son) petitioned the Court to declare his father, Elisha W. Merritt
incompetent and to name him guardian. The language used to prove he was incompetent was very
severe. All immediate family members in the Hall County area signed the petition dated December 4,
1876. At the time Elisha was 77 years old. A letter from David Green Merritt, Commanche County,
Texas, December 8, 1875 to his brother Thomas J. Merritt offers a strong clue as to why the petition
was made. Thomas Merritt had written his brother in Texas describing actions of J. Davis and Sam
Lesser using terms such as “swindling” and “open robbery” of his father by these “so-called friends.”
David urged the brothers to take whatever means necessary “to stop them from preying on Papa” and
“if there is any way to stop the abuse given to Mother, don’t hesitate to stop it.” He asked Tom to find
a way to gain control of the property and throw those men out of the house. This implies that they
were living with the Merritts.
·
Four years later, in 1879, Elisha W. Merritt had a severe stroke. An article in the Gainesville Eagle
newspaper of December 3, 1880 reported: “Last week, Mr. Elisha Merritt, an old and esteemed
citizen, was stricken with paralysis, which prostrated his right side from heat to foot. Dr. Long says his
condition is precarious.”
·
Elisha and Anna and a number of their thirteen children and other family members are buried in the
family cemetery which is on US 129 near the Oak Grove Baptist Church. The land for the church and
cemetery was donated in 1884 by Lucy Merritt Hudson, one of the Merritt daughters. Elisha is said to
have owned all the land from the church to the homesite. In addition, he had extensive land holdings
in South Carolina and around Gainesville, Hall County, Georgia.
·
Why did Elisha Williams Merritt and brother David Green (Greenberry) both leave Georgia for
Texas following the close of the War? According to Jim Bell, a great-grandson of E.A.’s sister,
Arizona Merritt Bell, Georgia was in very bad shape after the War. The railroads were destroyed,
Atlanta was burned to the ground, and the land between Chattanooga and Atlanta was damaged by
battles and large armies. A sixty-mile swath from Atlanta to Savannah was essentially laid to waste.
Reconstruction was a very difficult period. Many white males were denied the vote. The U.S. Army
was in control and the Republican Party took over the state government. It was mostly Yankees
who were state officials during that period.
·
Jim continues to write that, “...until about 1918, Texas was inhabited nearly entirely by Southerners.
Texas was one of the few - if not the only state - where a former Confederate soldier could file on a
homestead. Texas’ control of public lands likely provided a powerful incentive to Southerners who
faced bleak conditions and changed political and economic realities at home. The State Bureau of
Immigration estimated that in 1873, of some 125,000 people who arrived, 80 percent came from
other Southern states. Texas population in 1860, before the outbreak of the War, stood at 604,215.
During the following decade, the population increased by 35 percent to 818,579, followed in the next
decade by a near-doubling to 1.6 million in 1880.”
·
In 1883, Joseph came to Texas to work for his uncle and namesake Captain Joseph Bell of Waco, who
is credited with having drilled the first artesian well in Waco. Bell bought the Tuff Ranch, which was
sixteen miles southeast of Colorado City, now known as the Nail Ranch. He sent Joseph Green to
manage it and made him 1/3 partner in the ranch.
·
At age 29 on December 28, 1892, he married Elnora Arnett, age 19, who was the firstborn of David
Nathan Arnett and Ophelia Moreland. They were married in the “White House” on the Spade Ranch.
·
Joseph and Elnora lived on the Tuff Ranch until the spring of 1903 when they moved to Colorado
City. He became a district cattle inspector and became known to cattlemen all over this section of
West Texas. They had six children.
·
She was widely known in West Texas for her activities in the First Methodist Church and in various
womens’ clubs. She was a “Gold Star Mother,” and was one of the first presidents of the local
American Legion Auxiliary and a past State Chaplain. She was a charter member of the Hesperian
Club, a past president of the Mitchell County Federation of Womens’ Clubs, and District and State
Chairman on the State level. She was a conference officer in the Methodist church, serving as
secretary of the Conference for years. She maintained her interest in all her organizations until
illness confined her to her bed.
·
Elnora Merritt died June 21, 1955 at her home in Colorado City where her husband, mother, and
father lived and died.
·
Some of the tales her fond sons loved to tell of their mother are Colorado City legend. One of them
is said to have declared that “Nobody was at home when I was born except Grandma, because it was
on Friday and Mother was at the Hesperian Club!”
·
Another is credited with having said, “Ma’s such a joiner, that when the phone rings, she just
answers “I’ll be glad to join. What kind of a club is it?”
Sources:
1
“The Merritts of Sampson Duplin Counties, North Carolina,” Introduction, pg. V.
Compiled By Edward Merritt and Leora Hiatt McEachern, 1968
2
ibid.
3
ibid.
4
Merritt & McEachern, Introduction, pgs. II-III.
5
“Information About Our Merritt, Williams and Garvin Ancestors,” pg. 1, compiled by James T. Bell,
Ridge Forest Drive, Grayson, GA 30017.
Our Revolutionary Patriots
John Barber
DAR Ancestor #A005869
Service: North Carolina
Rank: Captain, Patriotic Service
Birth: 1738
Death: (Ante) Feb 1784, Anson County, North Carolina
NC Rev War Pay Vouchers, #15, roll #68.4 Saunders, Col. Recs of NC, vol. 10 pp 120, 247, 913, 915 Clark,
State Recs of NC, vol. 12, p. 265
Service Description: 1) Mem of Comm of Safety, Prov Congress
2) Member of General Assembly
(Source: Daughters of the American Revolution Patriot Index)
John Arnett
John Arnett enlisted in July 1776 or 1777 and served three months as a private in Captain John Culpepper’s
company in Colonel David Love’s North Carolina regiment. He went on an expedition against the Cherokee
Indians and aided in burning the Hiwassee and Valley towns. While living in Chesterfield, South Carolina, he
enlisted in April 1779 and served three months as a private in Captain McManis’ company in Colonel Hicks’
South Carolina Regiment. He was allowed pension on his application executed 6 May 1833, at which time he
was a resident of Decatur County, Georgia, having previously lived in Screven County, Georgia.
Our Gallant Confederates
Elisha Williams Merritt 2 (son of Thomas Joseph Merritt) served in Company B, 30th Regiment, Georgia
Infantry, CSA as a private. He is also listed on the roll with the 11th Georgia Cavalry. He appears on a roll of
prisoners of war captured 16 Nov 1864 at Waynesboro (Lovejoy) Georgia and sent to Hilton Head Island on
1 Feb 1865. He was released 29 Jun 1865 after taking the Oath of Allegiance. He is described as being a
resident of Hall County, Georgia, fair hair, light complexion, gray eyes, height 5’ 4”. His grave at the Oak
Grove Baptist Church near Gainesville, Hall County, Georgia, is marked with a government marker denoting
his gallant service.
The 30th Infantry Regiment was assembled at Milledgeville, Georgia, in the fall of 1861. Many of its
members were recruited in the counties of Butts, Bartow, Fayette, Clayton, and Chattahoochee. The unit
served at Charleston and in February, 1863, had about 300 effectives. Later it was assigned to General
Wilson's, C.H. Stevens', and H.R. Jackson's Brigade, and in September, 1863, was consolidated with the 29th
Regiment. The unit took an active part in the operations of the Army of Tennessee from Chickamauga to
Atlanta, moved with Hood to Tennessee, and ended the war in North Carolina. In December, 1863, the 29th/
30th totalled 341 men and 195 arms, but few surrendered in April, 1865. The field officers were Colonels
David J. Bailey, James S. Boynton, and T.W. Mangham; Lieutenant Colonel Miles M. Tidwell; and Majors
Henry Hendrick and Cicero A. Thorpe.
Elisha’s uncles Thomas Joseph Merritt and Elisha Adchristian Merritt also served the Confederacy,
joining Companies B and C (Anderson’s Battalion, Randolph Rangers), 24th Battalion, Georgia Cavalry.
Elisha Adchristian Merritt enlisted as Private E.A. Merritt on 15 Sep 1862 in Hall County, Georgia with O.L.
Buffington for the duration of the war. He is listed as present from November 1862 through February 1864,
with a notation on his August 1863 card that he was a “teamster.”
Thomas Joseph Merritt enlisted on 3 December 1862 at Camp Forrest in Hall County, Georgia, also with
O.L. Buffington. He must have been the recruiting officer for the area. On 19 June 1863, Thomas was
promoted to the rank of 4th Corporal. His card from October 1863 notes that he is a 2nd Corporal. He is
listed as present through February 1864.
The 24th Cavalry Battalion was formed during the early spring of 1863 with three companies, later increased
to four. The unit served in the Savannah River area and in January, 1864, totalled 298 effectives. In the spring
it merged into the 7th Georgia Cavalry Regiment. Major Edward C. Anderson, Jr. commanded the battalion.
(Source: http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/regiments.cfm)
Their brother David Greenberry Merritt enlisted as a private in Company F, 27th Regiment, Texas Cavalry
(Whitfield’s Legion, also the 1st Texas Legion Cavalry) in Clarksville, Texas by Ed West on 7 March 1862, for
the duration of the war. He was present through August 1863 (in the brigade provost at that time.) His next
card shows him “absent dismounted” as of June 1864. His name appears as a patient on a hospital muster roll
on 29 Feb 1864 (he was admitted on the 28th) at the Loring’s Division Hospital in Marion, Alabama.
Apparently he was captured, although the date is not given. He is listed as a resident of Titus County, Texas,
on a roll of “Prisoners of War, 2nd Squadron, Whitfield’s Legion, Tex. Cavalry, Confederate States Army,
commanded by Capt. J.M. Ingram, surrendered at Citronelle, Ala., by Lieut. Gen. R. Taylor, C.S.A., to Maj.
Gen. E.R.S. Canby, U.S.A., May 4, 1865, and paroled at Jackson, Miss., May 13, 1865.”
The 27th Cavalry Regiment [also called 1st Texas Legion] was organized during the spring of 1862 using
Whitfield's 4th Texas Cavalry Battalion as its nucleus. Many of the men were recruited at Daingerfield,
Clarksville, and Paris, and in Titus County. After fighting at Elkhorn Tavern as a battalion, only nine officers
and one hundred eleven men were present. The unit moved east of the Mississippi River and was dismounted.
It then fought at Iuka and Corinth and during the fall was remounted. Later it saw action in Mississippi, was
assigned to Ross' Brigade, took part in the Atlanta and Tennessee Campaigns, then returned to Mississippi.
This regiment was organized with 1,007 officers and men, lost twenty-two percent of the 460 engaged at
Iuka, and surrendered only a handful on May 4, 1865. The field officers were Colonels John W. Whitfield
and Edwin R. Hawkins, Lieutenant Colonel John H. Broocks, and Majors Cyrus K. Holman and John T.
Whitfield.
George Cullen Arnett and his father Cullen Curlee Arnett both served in Company G, 17th Regiment
(Allen’s) Texas Infantry. 18-year-old George enlisted with his father Captain Cullen at Camp Terry in Burnett
County, Texas on 25 March 1862. By August 1863 he was a 4th Corporal. His last record of service was 30
April 1864 when he was sick in a hospital at Princeton, Arkansas.
Captain Arnett enlisted himself in the regiment on the same day as his son George. In October 1862, he was
absent on detached service. He resigned from the regiment on 13 December 1862. Another card notes that he
was appointed on 14 May 1862 and resigned 29 Nov 1862. His formal written discharge is dated the 29th.
CSA Surgeon Dr. Smythe’s assessment of his health states that Cullen’s disability (illegible on the handwritten
note) “...has rendered his vision very imperfect - and when exposed to cold or in camp life it is much
aggravated. He has chronic rheumatism and his general body strength is quite feeble and infirm. In my
opinion he could not safely continue in the service.” And all this for a fifty-year-old! During his short time in
command, he made special requisitions including one for seventy-five canteens and another for a total of 1186
yards of fabric for clothing.
The 17th Infantry Regiment completed its organization at Camp Terry, Austin, Texas, in March, 1862. Men
of this unit were recruited at Austin, Belton, and Columbus, and in Burleson, Smith, and Angelina counties. It
was assigned to McCulloch's, Flournoy's, Scurry's, and Waterhouse's Brigade, Trans-Mississippi Department,
and saw action in Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas. It lost 21 killed, 68 wounded, and 3 missing at Milliken’s
Bend, had 1 officer and 39 men captured during Banks' Red River Campaign, then participated in the fight at
Jenkins’ Ferry. In 1865 it was stationed at Hempstead, Texas and was included in the surrender in June. The
field officers were Colonels Robert T.P. Allen and George W. Jones, Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Z. Miller,
and Majors R.D. Allen and John W. Tabor.
Private David Arnett joined Company G of the 4th Regiment, Texas Infantry on 19 July 1861 at Anderson,
Grimes County, Texas by J.W. Hutcheson. He was present at the Battle of Gaines Mill on 27 June 1862. On
30 August 1862 he was absent sick. Following his illness, he was detailed to provost guard duty on 22
September 1862. By October 31 he was back with his regiment. On 3 Feb 1864 he was promoted to 4th
Corporal. He was present with his unit until he was taken prisoner at Gettysburg on 2 Jul 1863. Sometime
between July 7th and 12th he was sent to Fort Delware, Delaware, and remained there until he was paroled
on 9 June 1865. His name is on a list of soldiers who were released upon taking the Oath of Allegiance, and
he is described as being a resident of Roberson County, Texas, with a dark complexion, auburn hair, blue eyes,
height 6’ 2 1/2”.
The 4th Infantry Regiment completed its organization at Richmond, Virginia. Its members were recruited in
the counties of Goliad, Travis, Robertson, Falls, Guadalupe, McLennan, Bexar, Grimes, Walker, Hill,
Montgomery, Freestone, Navarro, Ellis, and Henderson. It became part of Hood's Texas Brigade and served
under Generals Hood, J.B. Robertson, and J. Gregg. The 4th participated in the campaigns of the Army of
Northern Virginia from Seven Pines to Cold Harbor except when it was with Longstreet at Suffolk,
Chickamauga, and Knoxville. It continued the fight in the Petersburg trenches north and south of the James
River and in various conflicts around Appomattox. The regiment had 470 effectives in April 1862 and lost
fifty-four percent of the 200 engaged at Sharpsburg and more than twenty-five percent of the 415 at
Gettysburg. On April 9, 1865, it surrendered 15 officers and 145 men. The field officers were Colonels John
P. Bane, John B. Hood, John C.G. Key, and John Marshall; Lieutenant Colonels Benjamin F. Carter, Bradfute
Warwick, and Clinton M. Winkler; and Majors William H. Martin and W.P. Townsend.
Unit source information: http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/regiments.cfm
Sons of Joseph Green Merritt and Elnora Arnett:
Clockwise: Junius, Rod, Joseph, and John.