Douglas McLean Hooe was born at Longwood Plantation in Fauquier County, Virginia, in 1838. Douglas' older brother Robert died in 1858 and his mother Catharine McLean Hooe died in 1859. According to family tradition, Douglas' father Howson Hooe saw war clouds on the horizon in 1859, and sent his oldest surviving son to Wharton County, Texas to keep him out of the Civil War, and to preserve as much of the family assets as possible. It is presumed they chose Wharton County because a distant cousin, William F.S. Alexander (ancestor of Sarah Hooe, daughter of Rice Hooe 1660-1726) had maintained a plantation in Wharton County since prior to 1850. Douglas arrived in Wharton County in 1859 with a group of family slaves. Alexander purchased 418 acress of land for the Hooe family in Wharton County in the Jackson League Survey near Hungerford. In 2014, David and Rick Surles located deed records regarding this purchase, but were unable to locate the exact site of the plantation. We believe it was located along present-day Owens Road to the southwest of Hungerford. We were able to locate the site of lots the Hooes purchased in town a couple of blocks from the Courthouse.
Back in Virginia, the Hooe family fled their home and buried the McLean family Bible, wrapped in rawhide, in a creekbed for safekeeping. After the war, it was found and sent to Douglas in Texas because he was the eldest surviving son. Besides containing the family records, the Bible was valuable because it was a first edition American folio Bible printed in 1791 by Isaiah Thomas of Worcester and Boston. Its sojourn in the creekbed began a deterioration which rapidly increased with each passing year. The Bible was restored and is on permanent loan to Bridwell Library of Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University.
Douglas' brother Daniel McLean Hooe (called Mack) joined him in Wharton County during the War, and the brothers farmed the land into the 1880s. Daniel died in Wharton County in 1882. No record can be found of his burial place.
Service records show that Douglas was a private in Company C of the Texas Cavalry (Brown's Regiment) during the Civil War.
Douglas married Mary Eliza Tilley on May 12, 1869. Mary Eliza and Douglas Hooe are shown in the 1870 Wharton County census living with Mary's sister Georgiana and brother Francis, who were orphaned in 1857. Douglas farmed in Wharton County until the mid-1880s. The last family letter from Wharton County (see information about the letters below) was dated February 1882. The last land transaction in Wharton County was dated January 26, 1885.
The Hooe family moved from Wharton County to Belton in Bell County in Central Texas probably in 1883. Deed records in Bell County show that Mary E. Hooe purchased Lot 1, Block 3, Alexander and Hanna's Addition in the town of Belton for $1,000 on 31 October 1883. This lot was still occupied in 2014 by a very old but much-remodeled home located at 801 N. Beal Street, northeast of the Courthouse. We don't know why they moved to Belton. Their daughter Nancy Ida Hooe was born in Belton 16 Nov 1887 and died of measles in Belton on 27 Mar 1889. She was buried in Belton but later reinterred in Dallas near her parents in Oakland Cemetery.
While in Bell County, Douglas joined Bell County Camp 122 of Ex-Conferederate Veterans. This Camp was organized in Belton on July 5, 1888 in the old Opera House -- one of the first in the country - "to the accompaniment of blaring trumpets and flying colors." Its primary purpose was social. After moving to Dallas in 1889, Douglas joined the Sterling Price Camp 31 of United Confederate Veterans, which adopted a resolution honoring him after his death in 1915.
According to the family letters, the family incurred some debts in Belton that continued to cause mental and financial stress in the family for many years. In a letter dated August 17, 1891 Mary wrote to Howson: "We were so in debt in Belton that we had to turn our place there over to try and pay our grocery bill. The time will be out the first of October and I will never agree to pay another debt we owe in Belton. [The statute of limitations for personal debt was probably 2 years, so this comment implies they left Belton around October of 1889.] Property is low here now and if we can sell our home in Belton this Fall will try and get us a house here for I do not see how we could possibly get along in Belton besides Mr. Hooe is so in debt there I hate to go back, for I know he will never be able to pay up. I wish I knew what steps to take towards trying to get his land back. He is not willing for me to try." Bell County deed records show that the lot was sold on 8 Sep 1892 for $500 "save and except for 70' by 150' heretofore sold off the north end of the lot."
The family moved to Dallas in 1889. The first family letter from Dallas back to Virginia is dated August 1891. The address in that letter was 178 Cantegral Street. The family letters and Dallas city directories show them to be living at 571 San Jacinto Street as early as 1893 through at least 1909 and then at 4320 Junius in 1912. Douglas' occupation is given as carpenter. They probably moved to Dallas because Mary Eliza's sister Georgiana Tilley Cordray and her husband had already moved there from Wharton County, although we aren't sure exactly when. Georgiana and John Cordray are shown in the 1880 census in Wharton County, but we can't locate the Cordray family in the 1900 or 1910 census. The 1906 Dallas City Directory shows them to be living at 449 Lucille and John's occupation is "carpenter" which is the same as Douglas' occupation in Dallas. The Lucille address is just a few blocks from the Hooe family addresses.
While they were in Texas, Douglas, Daniel and cousin William F.S. Alexander, and later Douglas' wife Mary, kept up a steady correspondence with the family back in Virginia. It is presumed that letters sent during the Civil War were lost or destroyed, but a number of post-war letters survived into the possession of Anne Hooe Patteson, granddaughter of Howson Hooe V, the younger brother who stayed in Virginia with the family. Anne provided copies of the letters to Emily Hereford Surles and David Hereford Surles during a visit to Fairfax, Virginia in 2002.
Back in Virginia, the Hooe family fled their home and buried the McLean family Bible, wrapped in rawhide, in a creekbed for safekeeping. After the war, it was found and sent to Douglas in Texas because he was the eldest surviving son. Besides containing the family records, the Bible was valuable because it was a first edition American folio Bible printed in 1791 by Isaiah Thomas of Worcester and Boston. Its sojourn in the creekbed began a deterioration which rapidly increased with each passing year. The Bible was restored and is on permanent loan to Bridwell Library of Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University.
Douglas' brother Daniel McLean Hooe (called Mack) joined him in Wharton County during the War, and the brothers farmed the land into the 1880s. Daniel died in Wharton County in 1882. No record can be found of his burial place.
Service records show that Douglas was a private in Company C of the Texas Cavalry (Brown's Regiment) during the Civil War.
Douglas married Mary Eliza Tilley on May 12, 1869. Mary Eliza and Douglas Hooe are shown in the 1870 Wharton County census living with Mary's sister Georgiana and brother Francis, who were orphaned in 1857. Douglas farmed in Wharton County until the mid-1880s. The last family letter from Wharton County (see information about the letters below) was dated February 1882. The last land transaction in Wharton County was dated January 26, 1885.
The Hooe family moved from Wharton County to Belton in Bell County in Central Texas probably in 1883. Deed records in Bell County show that Mary E. Hooe purchased Lot 1, Block 3, Alexander and Hanna's Addition in the town of Belton for $1,000 on 31 October 1883. This lot was still occupied in 2014 by a very old but much-remodeled home located at 801 N. Beal Street, northeast of the Courthouse. We don't know why they moved to Belton. Their daughter Nancy Ida Hooe was born in Belton 16 Nov 1887 and died of measles in Belton on 27 Mar 1889. She was buried in Belton but later reinterred in Dallas near her parents in Oakland Cemetery.
While in Bell County, Douglas joined Bell County Camp 122 of Ex-Conferederate Veterans. This Camp was organized in Belton on July 5, 1888 in the old Opera House -- one of the first in the country - "to the accompaniment of blaring trumpets and flying colors." Its primary purpose was social. After moving to Dallas in 1889, Douglas joined the Sterling Price Camp 31 of United Confederate Veterans, which adopted a resolution honoring him after his death in 1915.
According to the family letters, the family incurred some debts in Belton that continued to cause mental and financial stress in the family for many years. In a letter dated August 17, 1891 Mary wrote to Howson: "We were so in debt in Belton that we had to turn our place there over to try and pay our grocery bill. The time will be out the first of October and I will never agree to pay another debt we owe in Belton. [The statute of limitations for personal debt was probably 2 years, so this comment implies they left Belton around October of 1889.] Property is low here now and if we can sell our home in Belton this Fall will try and get us a house here for I do not see how we could possibly get along in Belton besides Mr. Hooe is so in debt there I hate to go back, for I know he will never be able to pay up. I wish I knew what steps to take towards trying to get his land back. He is not willing for me to try." Bell County deed records show that the lot was sold on 8 Sep 1892 for $500 "save and except for 70' by 150' heretofore sold off the north end of the lot."
The family moved to Dallas in 1889. The first family letter from Dallas back to Virginia is dated August 1891. The address in that letter was 178 Cantegral Street. The family letters and Dallas city directories show them to be living at 571 San Jacinto Street as early as 1893 through at least 1909 and then at 4320 Junius in 1912. Douglas' occupation is given as carpenter. They probably moved to Dallas because Mary Eliza's sister Georgiana Tilley Cordray and her husband had already moved there from Wharton County, although we aren't sure exactly when. Georgiana and John Cordray are shown in the 1880 census in Wharton County, but we can't locate the Cordray family in the 1900 or 1910 census. The 1906 Dallas City Directory shows them to be living at 449 Lucille and John's occupation is "carpenter" which is the same as Douglas' occupation in Dallas. The Lucille address is just a few blocks from the Hooe family addresses.
While they were in Texas, Douglas, Daniel and cousin William F.S. Alexander, and later Douglas' wife Mary, kept up a steady correspondence with the family back in Virginia. It is presumed that letters sent during the Civil War were lost or destroyed, but a number of post-war letters survived into the possession of Anne Hooe Patteson, granddaughter of Howson Hooe V, the younger brother who stayed in Virginia with the family. Anne provided copies of the letters to Emily Hereford Surles and David Hereford Surles during a visit to Fairfax, Virginia in 2002.
Douglas McLean Hooe was born at Longwood Plantation in Fauquier County, Virginia, in 1838. Douglas' older brother Robert died in 1858 and his mother Catharine McLean Hooe died in 1859. According to family tradition, Douglas' father Howson Hooe saw war clouds on the horizon in 1859, and sent his oldest surviving son to Wharton County, Texas to keep him out of the Civil War, and to preserve as much of the family assets as possible. It is presumed they chose Wharton County because a distant cousin, William F.S. Alexander (ancestor of Sarah Hooe, daughter of Rice Hooe 1660-1726) had maintained a plantation in Wharton County since prior to 1850. Douglas arrived in Wharton County in 1859 with a group of family slaves. Alexander purchased 418 acress of land for the Hooe family in Wharton County in the Jackson League Survey near Hungerford. In 2014, David and Rick Surles located deed records regarding this purchase, but were unable to locate the exact site of the plantation. We believe it was located along present-day Owens Road to the southwest of Hungerford. We were able to locate the site of lots the Hooes purchased in town a couple of blocks from the Courthouse.
Back in Virginia, the Hooe family fled their home and buried the McLean family Bible, wrapped in rawhide, in a creekbed for safekeeping. After the war, it was found and sent to Douglas in Texas because he was the eldest surviving son. Besides containing the family records, the Bible was valuable because it was a first edition American folio Bible printed in 1791 by Isaiah Thomas of Worcester and Boston. Its sojourn in the creekbed began a deterioration which rapidly increased with each passing year. The Bible was restored and is on permanent loan to Bridwell Library of Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University.
Douglas' brother Daniel McLean Hooe (called Mack) joined him in Wharton County during the War, and the brothers farmed the land into the 1880s. Daniel died in Wharton County in 1882. No record can be found of his burial place.
Service records show that Douglas was a private in Company C of the Texas Cavalry (Brown's Regiment) during the Civil War.
Douglas married Mary Eliza Tilley on May 12, 1869. Mary Eliza and Douglas Hooe are shown in the 1870 Wharton County census living with Mary's sister Georgiana and brother Francis, who were orphaned in 1857. Douglas farmed in Wharton County until the mid-1880s. The last family letter from Wharton County (see information about the letters below) was dated February 1882. The last land transaction in Wharton County was dated January 26, 1885.
The Hooe family moved from Wharton County to Belton in Bell County in Central Texas probably in 1883. Deed records in Bell County show that Mary E. Hooe purchased Lot 1, Block 3, Alexander and Hanna's Addition in the town of Belton for $1,000 on 31 October 1883. This lot was still occupied in 2014 by a very old but much-remodeled home located at 801 N. Beal Street, northeast of the Courthouse. We don't know why they moved to Belton. Their daughter Nancy Ida Hooe was born in Belton 16 Nov 1887 and died of measles in Belton on 27 Mar 1889. She was buried in Belton but later reinterred in Dallas near her parents in Oakland Cemetery.
While in Bell County, Douglas joined Bell County Camp 122 of Ex-Conferederate Veterans. This Camp was organized in Belton on July 5, 1888 in the old Opera House -- one of the first in the country - "to the accompaniment of blaring trumpets and flying colors." Its primary purpose was social. After moving to Dallas in 1889, Douglas joined the Sterling Price Camp 31 of United Confederate Veterans, which adopted a resolution honoring him after his death in 1915.
According to the family letters, the family incurred some debts in Belton that continued to cause mental and financial stress in the family for many years. In a letter dated August 17, 1891 Mary wrote to Howson: "We were so in debt in Belton that we had to turn our place there over to try and pay our grocery bill. The time will be out the first of October and I will never agree to pay another debt we owe in Belton. [The statute of limitations for personal debt was probably 2 years, so this comment implies they left Belton around October of 1889.] Property is low here now and if we can sell our home in Belton this Fall will try and get us a house here for I do not see how we could possibly get along in Belton besides Mr. Hooe is so in debt there I hate to go back, for I know he will never be able to pay up. I wish I knew what steps to take towards trying to get his land back. He is not willing for me to try." Bell County deed records show that the lot was sold on 8 Sep 1892 for $500 "save and except for 70' by 150' heretofore sold off the north end of the lot."
The family moved to Dallas in 1889. The first family letter from Dallas back to Virginia is dated August 1891. The address in that letter was 178 Cantegral Street. The family letters and Dallas city directories show them to be living at 571 San Jacinto Street as early as 1893 through at least 1909 and then at 4320 Junius in 1912. Douglas' occupation is given as carpenter. They probably moved to Dallas because Mary Eliza's sister Georgiana Tilley Cordray and her husband had already moved there from Wharton County, although we aren't sure exactly when. Georgiana and John Cordray are shown in the 1880 census in Wharton County, but we can't locate the Cordray family in the 1900 or 1910 census. The 1906 Dallas City Directory shows them to be living at 449 Lucille and John's occupation is "carpenter" which is the same as Douglas' occupation in Dallas. The Lucille address is just a few blocks from the Hooe family addresses.
While they were in Texas, Douglas, Daniel and cousin William F.S. Alexander, and later Douglas' wife Mary, kept up a steady correspondence with the family back in Virginia. It is presumed that letters sent during the Civil War were lost or destroyed, but a number of post-war letters survived into the possession of Anne Hooe Patteson, granddaughter of Howson Hooe V, the younger brother who stayed in Virginia with the family. Anne provided copies of the letters to Emily Hereford Surles and David Hereford Surles during a visit to Fairfax, Virginia in 2002.
Back in Virginia, the Hooe family fled their home and buried the McLean family Bible, wrapped in rawhide, in a creekbed for safekeeping. After the war, it was found and sent to Douglas in Texas because he was the eldest surviving son. Besides containing the family records, the Bible was valuable because it was a first edition American folio Bible printed in 1791 by Isaiah Thomas of Worcester and Boston. Its sojourn in the creekbed began a deterioration which rapidly increased with each passing year. The Bible was restored and is on permanent loan to Bridwell Library of Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University.
Douglas' brother Daniel McLean Hooe (called Mack) joined him in Wharton County during the War, and the brothers farmed the land into the 1880s. Daniel died in Wharton County in 1882. No record can be found of his burial place.
Service records show that Douglas was a private in Company C of the Texas Cavalry (Brown's Regiment) during the Civil War.
Douglas married Mary Eliza Tilley on May 12, 1869. Mary Eliza and Douglas Hooe are shown in the 1870 Wharton County census living with Mary's sister Georgiana and brother Francis, who were orphaned in 1857. Douglas farmed in Wharton County until the mid-1880s. The last family letter from Wharton County (see information about the letters below) was dated February 1882. The last land transaction in Wharton County was dated January 26, 1885.
The Hooe family moved from Wharton County to Belton in Bell County in Central Texas probably in 1883. Deed records in Bell County show that Mary E. Hooe purchased Lot 1, Block 3, Alexander and Hanna's Addition in the town of Belton for $1,000 on 31 October 1883. This lot was still occupied in 2014 by a very old but much-remodeled home located at 801 N. Beal Street, northeast of the Courthouse. We don't know why they moved to Belton. Their daughter Nancy Ida Hooe was born in Belton 16 Nov 1887 and died of measles in Belton on 27 Mar 1889. She was buried in Belton but later reinterred in Dallas near her parents in Oakland Cemetery.
While in Bell County, Douglas joined Bell County Camp 122 of Ex-Conferederate Veterans. This Camp was organized in Belton on July 5, 1888 in the old Opera House -- one of the first in the country - "to the accompaniment of blaring trumpets and flying colors." Its primary purpose was social. After moving to Dallas in 1889, Douglas joined the Sterling Price Camp 31 of United Confederate Veterans, which adopted a resolution honoring him after his death in 1915.
According to the family letters, the family incurred some debts in Belton that continued to cause mental and financial stress in the family for many years. In a letter dated August 17, 1891 Mary wrote to Howson: "We were so in debt in Belton that we had to turn our place there over to try and pay our grocery bill. The time will be out the first of October and I will never agree to pay another debt we owe in Belton. [The statute of limitations for personal debt was probably 2 years, so this comment implies they left Belton around October of 1889.] Property is low here now and if we can sell our home in Belton this Fall will try and get us a house here for I do not see how we could possibly get along in Belton besides Mr. Hooe is so in debt there I hate to go back, for I know he will never be able to pay up. I wish I knew what steps to take towards trying to get his land back. He is not willing for me to try." Bell County deed records show that the lot was sold on 8 Sep 1892 for $500 "save and except for 70' by 150' heretofore sold off the north end of the lot."
The family moved to Dallas in 1889. The first family letter from Dallas back to Virginia is dated August 1891. The address in that letter was 178 Cantegral Street. The family letters and Dallas city directories show them to be living at 571 San Jacinto Street as early as 1893 through at least 1909 and then at 4320 Junius in 1912. Douglas' occupation is given as carpenter. They probably moved to Dallas because Mary Eliza's sister Georgiana Tilley Cordray and her husband had already moved there from Wharton County, although we aren't sure exactly when. Georgiana and John Cordray are shown in the 1880 census in Wharton County, but we can't locate the Cordray family in the 1900 or 1910 census. The 1906 Dallas City Directory shows them to be living at 449 Lucille and John's occupation is "carpenter" which is the same as Douglas' occupation in Dallas. The Lucille address is just a few blocks from the Hooe family addresses.
While they were in Texas, Douglas, Daniel and cousin William F.S. Alexander, and later Douglas' wife Mary, kept up a steady correspondence with the family back in Virginia. It is presumed that letters sent during the Civil War were lost or destroyed, but a number of post-war letters survived into the possession of Anne Hooe Patteson, granddaughter of Howson Hooe V, the younger brother who stayed in Virginia with the family. Anne provided copies of the letters to Emily Hereford Surles and David Hereford Surles during a visit to Fairfax, Virginia in 2002.
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