From Beverly Rutledge:

Thomas Lafayette Rutledge Sr. was born on Sept 24, 1820 in Maury County, Tennessee. He received a third class land grant from the state of Texas for 320 acres on March 20, 1839 in Washington County, Texas. He appeared on the census on October 30, 1850 in Grimes County, Texas. He appeared on the census on July 9, 1860 in Pond Springs, Williamson County, Texas. He inherited 320 acres of Elisha Allen grant through wife's father J. B. Camp on January 29, 1868 in Pond Springs, Williamson County, Texas. He sold 116.5 acres of Elisha Allen grant for $327.00 on April 5, 1868 in Pond Springs, Williamson County, Texas. He appeared on the census in August 1870 in Pond Springs, Williamson County, Texas. He sold 1.36 acres of Elisha Allen grant to form Pond Springs Cemetery for $5.00 on February 16, 1877 in Pond Springs, Williamson County, Texas. He appeared on the census on June 4, 1880 in JP #2, Pond Springs, Williamson County, Texas. He sold 203.5 acres of the Elisha Allen grant for $1,800.00 on April 7, 1885 in Pond Springs, Williamson County, Texas. He bought 320 acres in Burnet County, 17.5 miles NE of Burnet on Rocky Creek on May 25, 1885 in Bachelor's Peak, Burnet County, Texas. He died on October 13, 1898 in Bachelor's Peak, Burnet County, Texas. He was buried in Bachelor's Peak Cemetery, Burnet County, Texas.

Tom Rutledge grew up in Maury County, Tennessee, where his father was a farmer. He followed his older brother, William Pinckney Rutledge, who had moved to Texas between March 2, 1836 and October 1, 1837, to Washington County, Texas where Tom received a 3rd. class 320 acre land grant on March 20, 1839. His brother, W.P. Rutledge, received a 2nd. class land grant there and became a Captain in the Texas Army, fighting in the Mexican War of 1842.

Tom Rutledge was on the 1840 Republic of Texas census in Washington County. On Dec. 21, 1848 he married Helen Camp, daughter of J.B. Camp in Grimes County. Her older sister had married W.P. Rutledge. Tom Rutledge was on the federal census of 1850 in Grimes County, living with his father-in-law. Rutledge moved to Pond Springs, Williamson County, about 1852, where he purchased a portion of the Elisha Allen Land grant through his father-in-law, J.B. Camp (Travis County, 4/42). He was later joined there by his younger brother, Edward Armstrong Rutledge.

At Pond Springs, Tom Rutledge built a store, post office and blacksmith shop across the road from the log school house at Pond Springs. Rutledge became the first postmaster on March 16, 1854. His store became a stop on the Austin to Lampasas stage line, and Rutledge built a rock fence on each side of the road, "giving a elegant appearance as the stage approached and passed between the store-post office and blacksmith shop on the west, and the log school on the east". He was residing here in the federal census of 1860.

According to Helen Rutledge's Confederate widow pension #36829, Tom Rutledge served the Confederacy transporting freight for the confederate government between Mexico and Texas. According to the pension record, Fred Peck served with Rutledge, as well as Augustus Horst and Frank Hale. Peck says in the record that they went out to Eagle Pass and hauled cotton for the Confederacy. Horst also confirmed this in the record.

After the war, Rutledge returned to Pond Springs, and was on the 1867 voting register there (Williamson County, p. __), where he stated that he had been in Texas__ years and in Williamson County__ years.In 1867 J.B. Camp deeded to H. M. Rutledge land (Travis County, 10/507). In 1870 T.L. was on the federal census for Pond Springs. On February 16, 1872, donated a part of his land to become the Pond Springs Cemetery (Williamson County, p. 575).

In the federal census of 1880 he was still in Pond Springs. When the Austin and Northwestern railroad was built in 1882, it bypassed Pond Springs, creating a new village two miles to the northeast. Rutledge's store declined and on Mat 25, 1885, he purchased 320 acres of land on the waters of the Rock Springs Creek, about 17 1/2 miles northeast of Burnet, Texas (Burnet County, p. 389).

On December 27, 1889, Rutledge and his wife sold their land in Burnet County to their daughters Marion and Cornelia for one dollar. Rutledge lived there until his death in 1898. He is buried in Bachelor's Peak Cemetery, which was near his property. His wife and family continued to live on the family land.

His son W.O. Rutledge, grandson W.M. Preece , and daughter Eliza East relinquished claims to this land in 1905 and 1906. Helen Rutledge moved to Austin about 1911, and lived with her daughters Cornelia Olive and Marion Stanton Rutledge in South Austin. She died in 1922 of dengue, and is buried alongside her husband at Bachelor's Peak.

There must have been a dispute over the disposition on T.L. Rutledge's estate, as William Preece relinquished claims to the Burnet County land for $50 on March 20, 1905 (Burnet County). Eliza East did the same for $50 on August 21, 1905 (Lampasas County), and W.O. Rutledge the same for $100 on April 12, 1907 (Lampasas County). Helen Rutledge also relinquished claims for $10 on May 3, 1910 (Burnet County). T.L. Rutledge's estate was finally processed in Lampasas County, Texas, as proof of heirship was filed there on December 22, 1910 (volume 49, p. 107)

List of family

Parents:
Father: James Rutledge Death date and place is unknown
Mother: Nancy Armstrong Rutledge Born 1792 in North Carolina Died in Maury County, Tennessee.

Siblings:
Son Rutledge Born in 1812 Maury County Tenn. Died before 1843.
William Pinckney Rutledge
Samuel Johnson Rutledge
Edward Armstrong Rutledge
Mary J. Rutledge
Nancy Melissa Rutledge
Eliza A. Rutledge

Wife: Helen Mariah Camp

Children:
Anna Melissa Rutledge
John Camp Rutledge
Eliza Camp Rutledge
William Obed (Obediah) Rutledge
Laura Rutledge
Susan Rutledge
Marion Stanton Rutledge
Cornelia Olive Rutledge
Ira Ola Rutledge
Ammi Givens Rutledge
Thomas Lafayette Rutledge, Jr.