Birdwell
BIRDWELL FAMILY HISTORY IN BLUE RIDGE, TEXAS
by Audra Womble
The story of the earliest Birdwells in America is interwoven with American history from the Atlantic shore to the first push across the mountains, the settling of Tennessee, and the great push to Texas for new land. As the descendants grew up, they were found in Old Heaton’s Station, Tenn; Davidson County, Tennessee; Robertson’s County, Tennessee; Hamilton County, Tennessee; Pulaski, Giles County, Tennessee; Rusk County, Texas; and Cook County, Texas.
Joseph Abraham Birdwell of Pulaski, Giles County, Tennessee migrated with his wife Justonia and their four children to Smith County, Texas in the year 1869. The first crop the Birdwell planted was destroyed by hail. They then left Smith County and moved to Blue Ridge, Texas in 1870.
The Mathias Mowery Survey of 2,970 acres included the whole town of Blue Ridge. It was a land grant from the Land Board Commissioners of the Red River Colony in March, 1838.
Some of the early settlers who arrived before the town of Blue Ridge was founded were W. C. Holmes who came in 1867, Wilson McDonald from Tennessee, Isadore Boren who settled northeast of Blue Ridge as the first settler in 1844, John Bowman’s family who settled two miles south of Blue Ridge, and Joseph A. Birdwell’s family who came in 1870.
Joseph Abraham Birdwell bought approximately 1,500 acres from the Sister Grove Creek to the Pilot Grove Creek and was one mile wide; this was a part of the Mowery Survey. He built the first cotton gin in Blue Ridge; the Goforth and Jenkins homes are now on this site.
The cotton gin was horse powered. His daughter Catherine’s ( Langham) job was to gin the cotton. Mollie ( Price), another daughter, carried the wicker baskets of cotton from the farmers’ wagons to the gin hopper where it was ginned into bales. They did well to gin three or four bales a day. He later sold this gin to Jim Barnett in 1878.
Joseph and Justonia Birdwell were parents of twelve children, which included three daughters. Mollie Birdwell was married to Jacob P. Price December 22, 1882, and they were the parents of 11 children. Amos Womble of McKinney is a grandson of theirs. Another daughter Catherine was married to Sidney Langham. Canzada was married to Bill Baker. All three daughters reared their families on farms inherited from Joseph Birdwell. Some of the land is still owned by the Baker and Langham heirs at Blue Ridge.
I. D. Sellers and Henry Eckles settled in the area of Blue Ridge after J. A. Birdwell. They farmed the land that is now the city of Blue Ridge.
Other settlers who came after 1870 were J. S. Sinclair, Gabe Warden, Jessie Short, Jack Smith, George Hart, William Pruette, Robert McCarley, J. A. Barnett, James and John Griffith, William Christian, Ike Dodson, and William Warden.
William and James Moyers operated the first store. In 1873 it was located just south of the present square. The store was a square log cabin building. The next year a one-room log cabin was built beside the store. This building burned in 1875, and the new store was built a block north of the old store. In 1876 Zoe Alexander built a combined drug and dry goods store.
In 1876 Julius Connor and William Moyers purchased the town site from Zoe Alexander, surveyed, and divided it into lots. The town began to grow rapidly. A new school was built on Pilot Creek from logs hauled from Jefferson in east Texas.
In 1898 the town was moved two blocks to its present location. The town was incorporated in 1936 with a population of 500 people. In 1937 some of the streets and the square were black-topped. By 1939 Blue Ridge had built a $30,000 school and installed $30,000 worth of water works equipment.
by Audra Womble
The story of the earliest Birdwells in America is interwoven with American history from the Atlantic shore to the first push across the mountains, the settling of Tennessee, and the great push to Texas for new land. As the descendants grew up, they were found in Old Heaton’s Station, Tenn; Davidson County, Tennessee; Robertson’s County, Tennessee; Hamilton County, Tennessee; Pulaski, Giles County, Tennessee; Rusk County, Texas; and Cook County, Texas.
Joseph Abraham Birdwell of Pulaski, Giles County, Tennessee migrated with his wife Justonia and their four children to Smith County, Texas in the year 1869. The first crop the Birdwell planted was destroyed by hail. They then left Smith County and moved to Blue Ridge, Texas in 1870.
The Mathias Mowery Survey of 2,970 acres included the whole town of Blue Ridge. It was a land grant from the Land Board Commissioners of the Red River Colony in March, 1838.
Some of the early settlers who arrived before the town of Blue Ridge was founded were W. C. Holmes who came in 1867, Wilson McDonald from Tennessee, Isadore Boren who settled northeast of Blue Ridge as the first settler in 1844, John Bowman’s family who settled two miles south of Blue Ridge, and Joseph A. Birdwell’s family who came in 1870.
Joseph Abraham Birdwell bought approximately 1,500 acres from the Sister Grove Creek to the Pilot Grove Creek and was one mile wide; this was a part of the Mowery Survey. He built the first cotton gin in Blue Ridge; the Goforth and Jenkins homes are now on this site.
The cotton gin was horse powered. His daughter Catherine’s ( Langham) job was to gin the cotton. Mollie ( Price), another daughter, carried the wicker baskets of cotton from the farmers’ wagons to the gin hopper where it was ginned into bales. They did well to gin three or four bales a day. He later sold this gin to Jim Barnett in 1878.
Joseph and Justonia Birdwell were parents of twelve children, which included three daughters. Mollie Birdwell was married to Jacob P. Price December 22, 1882, and they were the parents of 11 children. Amos Womble of McKinney is a grandson of theirs. Another daughter Catherine was married to Sidney Langham. Canzada was married to Bill Baker. All three daughters reared their families on farms inherited from Joseph Birdwell. Some of the land is still owned by the Baker and Langham heirs at Blue Ridge.
I. D. Sellers and Henry Eckles settled in the area of Blue Ridge after J. A. Birdwell. They farmed the land that is now the city of Blue Ridge.
Other settlers who came after 1870 were J. S. Sinclair, Gabe Warden, Jessie Short, Jack Smith, George Hart, William Pruette, Robert McCarley, J. A. Barnett, James and John Griffith, William Christian, Ike Dodson, and William Warden.
William and James Moyers operated the first store. In 1873 it was located just south of the present square. The store was a square log cabin building. The next year a one-room log cabin was built beside the store. This building burned in 1875, and the new store was built a block north of the old store. In 1876 Zoe Alexander built a combined drug and dry goods store.
In 1876 Julius Connor and William Moyers purchased the town site from Zoe Alexander, surveyed, and divided it into lots. The town began to grow rapidly. A new school was built on Pilot Creek from logs hauled from Jefferson in east Texas.
In 1898 the town was moved two blocks to its present location. The town was incorporated in 1936 with a population of 500 people. In 1937 some of the streets and the square were black-topped. By 1939 Blue Ridge had built a $30,000 school and installed $30,000 worth of water works equipment.