Texas, Sabine County, July the 3, 1853
Dear Brother:
. I now take the opportunity of writing to you to let you know that we are still in the land of the living. But we are not all well. Little Simeon has the chills and fever every other day. The rest of us is in tolerable health at this time. Hoping when you get this it may find you in good health. I have not much to write to you. Times are hard but that is common in this land. I have a mighty good crop at this time of both corn and cotton ... My corn is very good. It is generally silk and tosald ... We have been a little too dry in June but we are mighty wet now... We had a very wet cold spring and backward the bigest rains and highest waters I have ever seen in my life.
I have been hard run ever since I have been here ... I bought three hogs last fall, fattened them and made the three weigh 600 pounds. And that is all so you may see we do not eat meat all the time. We do not get one drop of milk ... One cow there will give as much milk as 3 will here. Levi put some of the meanest sort on me when I first came to this country that ever was and hogs no better.
Levi's wife is dead. She died in February. I have not seen him lately. When his wife died he got a man to go to his place to live and they had a falling out ... Levi has been gone ... I understood he had come back again but I have not seen him.
Father wished to know what Levi was worth. He is not worth much. He owns 134 acres of land and it pore. He sold his cow stock for 100 dollars, and he has some hogs and a little Baldeoon of negro girl ... You wished me to write you if I would come back there. If I could sell what I have here for anything I would go back but I have got so I can make good crops and I hate to give my place away. I have starved in Texas as long as I want to if I could help myself. A man here without any money is bound to suffer ... The people here that are willing to befriend you are like myself...
Tell Sime I got his letter. Tell Wm. A. Turner I got his letter. Tell them I will write to them in a short time. I got a letter from Tilman Walton.
I have been offered 125 dollars for my mare in gold, but I could not take it. She has a fine colt now. Write to me as soon as you get this. I want to hear from you all. Tell Daniel and Ben to write me.
(signed) Wm. McDaniel"
******
The "Sime" mentioned above was the great grandfather of Evelyn McDaniel Frazier of SC. She has the original letter. William Watson McDaniel, who wrote the letter, never returned to S. C., even for a visit, and neither did Levi. The little "Baldeoon" negro probably a house servant belonging to Levi's wife, seems to have been given to Susan (Mrs. Henry Dainwood), Mozelle's daughter by her first marriage. The Windhams were said to have been wealthy. It is of record that Levi applied for a land grant in June, 1846. When he received the grant it was in Angelina County, near the Neches River. He seems to have failed to settle on it, prefering to buy land in Sabine County. It is true that his son Sam attended school in Angelina County, probably living with relatives. He and Martha Ann Martin, his future wife, attended the same school, a typical pioneer school taught by a man, a severe teacher who did not hesitate to punish with a switch any one who did not study.
The above was taken from a booklet, "They Came to Texas" by Edna McDaniel White - 12/7/2000 - kpm
Dear Brother:
. I now take the opportunity of writing to you to let you know that we are still in the land of the living. But we are not all well. Little Simeon has the chills and fever every other day. The rest of us is in tolerable health at this time. Hoping when you get this it may find you in good health. I have not much to write to you. Times are hard but that is common in this land. I have a mighty good crop at this time of both corn and cotton ... My corn is very good. It is generally silk and tosald ... We have been a little too dry in June but we are mighty wet now... We had a very wet cold spring and backward the bigest rains and highest waters I have ever seen in my life.
I have been hard run ever since I have been here ... I bought three hogs last fall, fattened them and made the three weigh 600 pounds. And that is all so you may see we do not eat meat all the time. We do not get one drop of milk ... One cow there will give as much milk as 3 will here. Levi put some of the meanest sort on me when I first came to this country that ever was and hogs no better.
Levi's wife is dead. She died in February. I have not seen him lately. When his wife died he got a man to go to his place to live and they had a falling out ... Levi has been gone ... I understood he had come back again but I have not seen him.
Father wished to know what Levi was worth. He is not worth much. He owns 134 acres of land and it pore. He sold his cow stock for 100 dollars, and he has some hogs and a little Baldeoon of negro girl ... You wished me to write you if I would come back there. If I could sell what I have here for anything I would go back but I have got so I can make good crops and I hate to give my place away. I have starved in Texas as long as I want to if I could help myself. A man here without any money is bound to suffer ... The people here that are willing to befriend you are like myself...
Tell Sime I got his letter. Tell Wm. A. Turner I got his letter. Tell them I will write to them in a short time. I got a letter from Tilman Walton.
I have been offered 125 dollars for my mare in gold, but I could not take it. She has a fine colt now. Write to me as soon as you get this. I want to hear from you all. Tell Daniel and Ben to write me.
(signed) Wm. McDaniel"
******
The "Sime" mentioned above was the great grandfather of Evelyn McDaniel Frazier of SC. She has the original letter. William Watson McDaniel, who wrote the letter, never returned to S. C., even for a visit, and neither did Levi. The little "Baldeoon" negro probably a house servant belonging to Levi's wife, seems to have been given to Susan (Mrs. Henry Dainwood), Mozelle's daughter by her first marriage. The Windhams were said to have been wealthy. It is of record that Levi applied for a land grant in June, 1846. When he received the grant it was in Angelina County, near the Neches River. He seems to have failed to settle on it, prefering to buy land in Sabine County. It is true that his son Sam attended school in Angelina County, probably living with relatives. He and Martha Ann Martin, his future wife, attended the same school, a typical pioneer school taught by a man, a severe teacher who did not hesitate to punish with a switch any one who did not study.
The above was taken from a booklet, "They Came to Texas" by Edna McDaniel White - 12/7/2000 - kpm
Texas, Sabine County, July the 3, 1853
Dear Brother:
. I now take the opportunity of writing to you to let you know that we are still in the land of the living. But we are not all well. Little Simeon has the chills and fever every other day. The rest of us is in tolerable health at this time. Hoping when you get this it may find you in good health. I have not much to write to you. Times are hard but that is common in this land. I have a mighty good crop at this time of both corn and cotton ... My corn is very good. It is generally silk and tosald ... We have been a little too dry in June but we are mighty wet now... We had a very wet cold spring and backward the bigest rains and highest waters I have ever seen in my life.
I have been hard run ever since I have been here ... I bought three hogs last fall, fattened them and made the three weigh 600 pounds. And that is all so you may see we do not eat meat all the time. We do not get one drop of milk ... One cow there will give as much milk as 3 will here. Levi put some of the meanest sort on me when I first came to this country that ever was and hogs no better.
Levi's wife is dead. She died in February. I have not seen him lately. When his wife died he got a man to go to his place to live and they had a falling out ... Levi has been gone ... I understood he had come back again but I have not seen him.
Father wished to know what Levi was worth. He is not worth much. He owns 134 acres of land and it pore. He sold his cow stock for 100 dollars, and he has some hogs and a little Baldeoon of negro girl ... You wished me to write you if I would come back there. If I could sell what I have here for anything I would go back but I have got so I can make good crops and I hate to give my place away. I have starved in Texas as long as I want to if I could help myself. A man here without any money is bound to suffer ... The people here that are willing to befriend you are like myself...
Tell Sime I got his letter. Tell Wm. A. Turner I got his letter. Tell them I will write to them in a short time. I got a letter from Tilman Walton.
I have been offered 125 dollars for my mare in gold, but I could not take it. She has a fine colt now. Write to me as soon as you get this. I want to hear from you all. Tell Daniel and Ben to write me.
(signed) Wm. McDaniel"
******
The "Sime" mentioned above was the great grandfather of Evelyn McDaniel Frazier of SC. She has the original letter. William Watson McDaniel, who wrote the letter, never returned to S. C., even for a visit, and neither did Levi. The little "Baldeoon" negro probably a house servant belonging to Levi's wife, seems to have been given to Susan (Mrs. Henry Dainwood), Mozelle's daughter by her first marriage. The Windhams were said to have been wealthy. It is of record that Levi applied for a land grant in June, 1846. When he received the grant it was in Angelina County, near the Neches River. He seems to have failed to settle on it, prefering to buy land in Sabine County. It is true that his son Sam attended school in Angelina County, probably living with relatives. He and Martha Ann Martin, his future wife, attended the same school, a typical pioneer school taught by a man, a severe teacher who did not hesitate to punish with a switch any one who did not study.
The above was taken from a booklet, "They Came to Texas" by Edna McDaniel White - 12/7/2000 - kpm
Dear Brother:
. I now take the opportunity of writing to you to let you know that we are still in the land of the living. But we are not all well. Little Simeon has the chills and fever every other day. The rest of us is in tolerable health at this time. Hoping when you get this it may find you in good health. I have not much to write to you. Times are hard but that is common in this land. I have a mighty good crop at this time of both corn and cotton ... My corn is very good. It is generally silk and tosald ... We have been a little too dry in June but we are mighty wet now... We had a very wet cold spring and backward the bigest rains and highest waters I have ever seen in my life.
I have been hard run ever since I have been here ... I bought three hogs last fall, fattened them and made the three weigh 600 pounds. And that is all so you may see we do not eat meat all the time. We do not get one drop of milk ... One cow there will give as much milk as 3 will here. Levi put some of the meanest sort on me when I first came to this country that ever was and hogs no better.
Levi's wife is dead. She died in February. I have not seen him lately. When his wife died he got a man to go to his place to live and they had a falling out ... Levi has been gone ... I understood he had come back again but I have not seen him.
Father wished to know what Levi was worth. He is not worth much. He owns 134 acres of land and it pore. He sold his cow stock for 100 dollars, and he has some hogs and a little Baldeoon of negro girl ... You wished me to write you if I would come back there. If I could sell what I have here for anything I would go back but I have got so I can make good crops and I hate to give my place away. I have starved in Texas as long as I want to if I could help myself. A man here without any money is bound to suffer ... The people here that are willing to befriend you are like myself...
Tell Sime I got his letter. Tell Wm. A. Turner I got his letter. Tell them I will write to them in a short time. I got a letter from Tilman Walton.
I have been offered 125 dollars for my mare in gold, but I could not take it. She has a fine colt now. Write to me as soon as you get this. I want to hear from you all. Tell Daniel and Ben to write me.
(signed) Wm. McDaniel"
******
The "Sime" mentioned above was the great grandfather of Evelyn McDaniel Frazier of SC. She has the original letter. William Watson McDaniel, who wrote the letter, never returned to S. C., even for a visit, and neither did Levi. The little "Baldeoon" negro probably a house servant belonging to Levi's wife, seems to have been given to Susan (Mrs. Henry Dainwood), Mozelle's daughter by her first marriage. The Windhams were said to have been wealthy. It is of record that Levi applied for a land grant in June, 1846. When he received the grant it was in Angelina County, near the Neches River. He seems to have failed to settle on it, prefering to buy land in Sabine County. It is true that his son Sam attended school in Angelina County, probably living with relatives. He and Martha Ann Martin, his future wife, attended the same school, a typical pioneer school taught by a man, a severe teacher who did not hesitate to punish with a switch any one who did not study.
The above was taken from a booklet, "They Came to Texas" by Edna McDaniel White - 12/7/2000 - kpm
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