Dr. Roger A. Griffin has compiled an impressive website with primary documents for studying Texas history:
"Links to Some Texas History Primary Source Documents on the Internet."
Roger has linked to a 7-page typescript of the Jan. 1-Feb. 2, 1865 part of a 300-page diary kept in Stephens County TX.
Samuel Pearson Newcomb. Diary entries, January 1-February 2, 1865. At the time of these entries, the author and 119 other persons were living within within a small area of land in Stephens County on the Clear Fork of the Brazos River. ..They referred to the area as "Fort Davis," although there were no actual fortifications. ..Newcomb comments upon the danger of Indian raids and the responsibility of the local male settlers to serve in the state frontier militia plus aspects of the daily lives of the people in the community.
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http://home.austin.rr.com/rgriffin/texhisdocs08k.html ..will link to the webpage:
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"8. Texas in the Civil War: Part K (October 1, 1864-June 2, 1865)"
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Drop down to Jan 1, 1865 to see the "Samuel Pearson Newcomb" paragraph, then click on "Link to document" that will take you to:
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http://www.bourlandcivilwar.com/Diary1865.htm
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In my 1,022-page book, I have indexed the Jan 1, 1865 to Dec 31, 1865 part of the "S.P. Newcomb: diary that I put onto two pages. This diary is significant because it ties Fort Davis of Stephens County TX to:
1) Col. James Bourland's meeting with 11 Comanche chiefs at Fort Arbuckle, Feb 6, 1865 entry.
2) Llano County and San Saba County TX residents
3) trek to Parker County TX to get breadstuffs, the nearest wheat fields and mills. It took 4-6 weeks for a teamster with oxen-team wagon to make the trip. Almost every week a wagon was leaving for breadstuffs, and arriving with full wagons.
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Since S.P. Newcomb was age 24 when he kept this diary, he called most of the men "Mister", but I identified most of the men because they were mentioned in my 240 militia listings of North Texas.
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http://www.bourlandcivilwar.com/Diary1865.htm
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Thank you Dr. Roger Griffin of Austin Community College of Austin TX. This website is a blessing for historians.
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Patti, prochette@Juno.com