1895 :: The Cozy Corner

Dallas Morning News. 
December 22, 1895.  

The Cozy Corner
. 
LENA MAY WIESE, Jones' Prairie, Milam Co., Tex. -- You see, Mr. Big Hat, I've made a resolve similar to Laurence C. Fountain's, though I don't write quite so often or regularly as he does. I notice that a great many of the cousins who write quite often steadily improve and I thought that by writing oftener than two or three times a year I might also improve. School has begun. I may get to go after christmas for a few months. Mr. Big Hat, if you get tired of printing my letters, just tell me to stop and I will do so. I will endeavor to give the cousins a description of my county. Milam county was created in 1836. It is one of the group of central Texas counties and is situated on the Brazos river, which forms its eastern boundary. The surface of the county is rolling and in many places hilly and broken. The county is about equally divided between woodland and prairie. The soil of the prairie varies. On the river and creek bottoms, it is a rich loam, producing cotton, corn, oats, potatoes, sugar cane, fruits and vegetables abundantly. Stockraising is carried on in connection with the farm. The Gulf, Aransas Pass, International Great Northern, Colorado and Santa Fe railroads cross the county. The principal towns and villages are Rockdale, Cameron, Milano, Gause, Lilac, Leachville, Branchville and Maysfield. Cameron is the county seat and has 2000 or 3000 inhabitants. Rockdale is the largest town. A coal mine is being worked there. Maysfield has 300 or 400 inhabitants and Jones' Prairie has about 300. The county has two private and one national banks. There are five or six weekly newspapers published in the county. The churches and schools are good. Almost all denominations have churches in the county. Our county superintendent is pastor of Maysfield Presbyterian church, which is about five miles from my home. I live about a mile and a half from Brazos river. The bridge which spanned Brazos river about three miles from my home fell about two years ago and killed over a hundred head of cattle. It fell the same day that Richmond bridge fell. The country about my home is rich in coal. Papa's land has coal on it. It looks like beds of charcoal. A coal mine is being worked about two miles from my home on the Brazos river and a railroad has been constructed to it. I'm going to walk to see it some time and I'll describe it to the cousins if they wish. I live nearly eight miles from Calvert, in Robertson county. I would describe it to the cousins, for it is quite a large manufacturing town, has an oil mill and ice factories and splendid schools, if I wasn't afraid Peggy would get my letter, that is. If she doesn't get it anyway. A handsome iron bridge spans the Brazos between Jones' Prairie and Calvert. Mr. Big Hat, what has become of Sallie? Did she ever get scared at any more ghosts?

1901 :: Death of Infant Twins

The two little twin infants of Mr. John Brown died last Monday. Death came to both the little ones in the same hour. Mr. and Mrs. Brown have the sincere sympathy of all in their double bereavement. Rockdale Messenger. (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 29, No. 40, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 17, 1901 Page: 1 of 12 

What! No "Sap"

The T&NO Railroad, lovably known hereabouts as the "Dear Old Sap," has filed application with the Railroad Commission to discontinue passenger train service on the road through Rockdale from Waco to Yoakum. The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 75, No. 22, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 26, 1947 Page: 1 of 12

1917 :: Take a Dip in the Surf

GALVESTON and RETURN [to Rockdale] $3.95

The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger

(Rockdale, Tex.)

Vol. 45, No. 12, Ed. 1, Page 7

Thursday, May 24, 1917

 

1920 :: Sam Houston's Daughter is Dead at Houston

A telegram received this morning by Rockdale relatives announces the death of Mrs. Nannie Morrow at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Davis E. Decker, in Houston, death occurring Wednesday night.

Mrs. Morrow was the daughter of General Sam Houston, and as such her death will be of interest to the whole of Texas. Her late husband was a first cousin of A.P. Perry Sr., of Rockdale, and Mr. Perry acted as "best man" at their wedding. She was about 75 years of age. The funeral will be held at Georgetown Friday at noon.

The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex ), Vol [48], No 12, Ed 1 Thursday, May 20, 1920

1917 :: Bats in City Hall

The city hall is being overhauled and the bat roosts which have so long made the place a nuisance are being destroyed and the cracks sealed up so that the bats may not again take over this valuable piece of public property. Carpenter Jim Copeland is at the helm, with Alderman O.K. Phillips supervising the work. The wainscoting in the auditorium was removed yesterday, and several bushels of bats were killed. The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 45, No. 11, Ed. 1 Thursday, May 17, 1917

1933 :: Old-Time Negro Resident is Buried here Tuesday

Will Gray, one of the old-time negro residents of Rockdale, was buried here Tuesday. At the time of his death and for the past ten or fifteen years, Gray had been porter on the passenger trains of the Missouri-Pacific, running from Palestine to San Antonio. In the early days of this city he worked for the firm of Ben Loewenstein & Bros. He had the esteem of many friends in this city. The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 61, No. 8, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 6, 1933 Page: 2 of 6

1896 :: The Cozy Corner

Dallas Morning News, June 28, 1896. The Cozy Corner. KATIE PLEASANT, Rockdale, Milam Co., Tex. -- Mr. Big Hat and Miss Big Bonnet: I have been a silent little girl in your department. I am a pupil at the Rockdale public school. I am in the fourth grade. We have a red-headed teacher. But I need not be talking about her having a red head, for I have one, too. Our school will be out in two more weeks. I am so glad of it. We are having some hard lessons now. My mother lives in the country on a large farm. She hasn't but two children, sister Ruth and myself. My father has been dead six months to-day.

1945 :: 100-year-old Confederate Veteran dies in Milam County

Death Comes to 100-Years-Old William Persky, Oldest Citizen of Milam County and Last of the County's Confederate Veterans; Funeral Sunday

William Persky, 100, oldest citizen of Milam county and the last Confederate veteran of the county, died at the home of his daughter, Mrs. E.J. Rinn, at Sharp on Friday night. . . .

Mr. Persky celebrated his 100th anniversary last November 21st. He was born in Germany in 1844 but at the age of six came with his family to America. They settled in Austin county, where he grew to manhood and followed the farming industry. His wife, who was Miss Theresa Rundge, also of Austin county, died fifty years ago.

Mr. Persky moved to Bell county in 1901 and remained there until nineteen years ago when he came to Sharp to make his home with his daughter. For the past few years Mr. Persky had been a semi-invalid due to his age and bad eyesight. . . . The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 73, No. 3, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 15, 1945 Page: 1 of 8

---

According to Matchless Milam: History of Milam County Texas -- A Texas Sesquicentennial Edition -- compiled and edited by Milam County Heritage Preservation Society in 1984 - Milam County (Tex.) . . . On June 12, 1982, a Texas Historical Marker honoring William Carl Persky was unveiled at his gravesite in the Sharp Cemetery in Milam County. . . . the text on the marker reads as follows . . .

Texas Historical Marker

A native of Germany, William Persky migrated to the United States with his family at the age of eight. He enlisted in the confederate army during the civil war and served time as a prisoner of war. A farmer, Persky lived in Austin and Bell counties before moving to this area in 1925. He lived to be 100, and at the time of his death in 1945 was the oldest resident and the last confederate veteran of Milam County. [see Historical Markers of Milam County, Texas]

1908 :: Death of Infant Krueger

The infant of Mr. and Mrs. A.E. Krueger died last Sunday and was buried Monday. Mrs. Krueger is the daughter of the late H. Henniger, and was here visiting her mother at the time of the death of her baby. The Kruegers live at Carmine. The Rockdale Reporter. (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 14, No. 46, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 6, 1908 Page: 1 of 8

1915 :: Death of Amiel Mitchell

One of the saddest things that has ever happened in Rockdale occurred last Sunday afternoon about 4:00 o'clock when Amiel, the little 7-year-old son of Mrs. Mary Mitchell, was burned to death at the family home on College Hill. . . . The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 41, No. 47, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 28, 1915 Page: 2 of 8

1913 :: Edwin Leroy Antony Dies

News has been received here of the death at Dallas of E.L. Antony, a former Rockdalian. 

Judge Antony spent his young manhood here, where he subsequently married Miss Houghton. 

His parents, Dr. and Mrs. Antony, came to Texas when the Judge was a youth, and settled in Cameron and Rockdale, where the Doctor engaged in the practice of his profession. 

The son attended college, and has since won many honors. 

Last summer he returned to his old stamping grounds, Cameron, but owing to ill health, left for Dallas in the early fall to be treated by specialists. 

His mother, the last of her family, and a daughter survive him, and a cousin, Mrs. J.D. Hamilton, of this place. He was very popular here among the older inhabitants.

The State Press says of him:

Dallas, Texas, Jan. 16. -- Edwin Leroy Antony, at one time United States Congressman from the Waco-Corsicana district, died here today at the age of 61 years. . . . 

The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex ), Vol 39, No 46, Ed 1 Thursday, January 23, 1913

1933 :: Death of Uncle Billy Dykes

Uncle Billy Dykes, 96-year old negro citizen of the Liberty Hill community in Milam county, died at his home in that community Saturday. The burial was held Sunday afternoon and was attended by a number of white friends from Rockdale and other sections of the county. Uncle Billy had lived in this county longer than most local citizens can remember. He was a slave before the Civil War being owned by the Lee Williams family. He acquired quite a competency in lands and property, and was recognized as a leader among his race in the Liberty Hill section. Rockdale Reporter and Messenger January 19, 1933

1918 :: Death of B.V. Arnold

B.V. Arnold died at his home just north of the city limits Sunday night at 10:45 o'clock, after an illness which confined him to his bed only for a few days, but succeeding several years of what might be termed the gamest fight ever made by a Johnny Reb for his life. . . . He enlisted in the Confederate cause in December, 1861, in the Army of Northern Virginia, Longstreet's Corps, Hood's Texas Brigade, 18th Georgia Regiment, Company F, as a private soldier. . . . Mr. Arnold was for many years a regular attendant upon the annual reunions of the Hood's Brigade, and two years ago last June, he had the honor and satisfaction of serving that command as its president at its annual reunion held in Rockdale, having been elected president at the previous year's meeting at Floresville. . . . Thus passes one of Rockdale's most interesting characters. B.V. Arnold was a fine type of the Southern gentleman. With a heart naturally as gentle as that of a child, yet with convictions which when aroused brought forth all the old ante-bellum fighting blood, he was a type of the Old South which is rapidly passing to the Great Beyond. . . . Peace to his ashes. The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. [45], No. 46, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 17, 1918 Page: 4 of 8 

1908 :: Gored to Death

The whole town was shocked on Wednesday of last week when the news was heralded over the city that Mrs. Pinkie Mitchell had been killed by a vicious cow. . . . Mrs. Rosa A. Mitchell, the deceased, was raised in Burleson county, but for the past nine years had made her home in Rockdale, where she was engaged in the restaurant business until a few years ago. . . . She is survived by a son, Mr. Will Mitchell, one of the best boys ever raised in any town. He is now night operator and ticket agent for the I. & G. N. road at Valley Junction, . . . The remains were carried to Fraimville last Friday where they were buried beside those of other members of her family. The Rockdale Reporter. (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 14, No. 43, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 16, 1908 Page: 1 of 8

1908 :: Burial in Hat Prairie graveyard

The infant of Mr. and Mrs. Ottie Alford died last Friday and was buried in the Hat Prairie graveyard. The Rockdale Reporter. (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 14, No. 43, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 16, 1908

1915 :: Mrs. Alice Riddle Dead

On the 19th of September, 1871, Mrs. Alice Riddle, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. T.E. Riddle, was born at the present residence of the doctor and family about one mile southeast of Rockdale, where she resided practically all her life, and where she died last Friday, January 8th, 1915 . . . She faded like the Autumn flower, and like that flower she leaves the fragrance of a sweet and Godly life behind her. . . . The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 41, No. 45, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 14, 1915 Page: 8 of 8

1935 :: Early Trail Driver Dies

Cameron, Jan. 5. -- Death ended the colorful life of James (Jim) Nabours in El Paso this week. He was the uncle of Homer Nabours, county clerk of Milam county. Jim Nabours was born in Milam county, but left here in 1877 and moved to Lincoln county, New Mexico. He was one of the early trail drivers and was foreman of the grand jury which indicted Billy the Kid. He also figured in the story "North of 36" by Emerson Hough. Mr. Nabours moved to  El Paso several years ago. The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 62, No. 48, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 10, 1935 Page: 5 of 8

1936 :: Re-interrment of Major Sterling C. Robertson

The remains of Major Sterling C. Robertson, founder of the Robertson Colony, the first settlement in Milam County and known as Old Nashville, were recently disinterred from the old cemetery at that point and on last Saturday were re-interred in the State Cemetery at Austin with appropriate honors. . . . The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 63, No. 47, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 2, 1936 Page: 1 of 12 [near bottom of left column]