Charles Moores & Mary Harrison Family

Photos Courtesy of Judith Rochelle

ROCHELLE PLACE, located on Birdwell David Drive off Myrtle Springs Road near Hooks, is on the headright of Massack H. Janes in the Arthur Wavell Colony. When Massack Janes' daughter Elizabeth married Charles Moores Rochelle (grandson of Charles Moores & Mary Harrison). Janes gave them the land and Charles built their home. Suzanne Davis, daughter of owner Harold "Hap" Rochelle (grandson of William Collin Rochelle, the state legislator), has the original headright grant certificate from Wavell Colony signed by President Sam Houston.

 Suzanne Rochelle Davis grew up in the house, which apparently had been leased out or vacant for some time when she, her parents and siblings moved back into it after exterior restoration and some interior improvements. The original design and floor plan intact, the house looks today as it did when Charles Moores Rochelle built it for Elizabeth 150 years ago.

W. L. and Dora Dunn Whitaker's former home in Texarkana, TX, the Draughon-Moore "Ace of Clubs" House at 420 Pine Street, purchased from the Moores family in 1894 (pictured in 1903 and 2003), has been open for tours for twenty years in 2008.

Courtesy of Melissa A. Nesbitt, Draughon-Moore Collection Curator, Texarkana Museums System.

See Family Photographs from Museum Collection.

 From Mrs. Montague's Records:

Charles Moores who married Mary Harrison, settled in Bowie County, Texas, in 1837 was born in S.C. Mary Harrison, daughter of Ruben Harrison was born in VA., and who came to Richland district with relatives, the Kirklands, and others of Virginia. They are related to the Willoughby, Battaile and other prominent V. Southside families. Ruben Harrison served in the Revolutionary War, as is shown by the record in the War Department, Washington.

In 1837, Charles Moores, accompanied by five of his sons, came to what is now Bowie County, Texas (at the time Red River County), and began to "set up" a home place, near Redwater. It took more than two years for them with the help of slaves to clear land, start fields to cultivation, build a home and slave quarters. In the winter of 1839 they returned to S.C. and in February of 1840, the journey to Texas
began. The following is a true and exact copy of the log of the journey kept by Anderson Rochelle Moores. The original is in the possession of Mrs Wiley Linn Murie, Clarksville, Arkansas.

February the 27, we left our South Carolina home behind and started to Texas.

The first day we came 7 miles
28th we came to Winsborro 10 miles
29th we crossed little River 10 miles

March 1st, 1840

1st we crossed Broad River 18 miles
2, we passed Union Court house 20 miles
3, we crossed Martinburg C.N. 20 miles
4, we crossed packlett River 25 miles
5, we crossed the blue ridge 18 miles
6, we passed Ashville N.C. 24 miles
7, we camped on the French Broad River 30 miles
8, we passed warm springs 17 miles
9, we passed newport 17 miles
---------------
226 miles
End of 1st page

Page 2 of log of journey from S.C. to Texas

10, We passed Dandridge, Tenn 21 miles
11, we came 18 miles
12, we passed Knoxville, Tennessee
18 miles
13, we passed Campbell station 34 miles
14, we passed Kingston 16 miles
15, we came to Cumberland Gap 19 miles
16, we came 21 miles
17, we passed Sparta, Tenn. 18 miles
18, we crossed the Caney Fork 20 miles
19, we passed ________ville 17 miles
20, 21,22,23,24,25,26 we stayed a Uncle N's
27, we left Uncles N's 8 miles
-------------
End of second page 220 miles

28, we passed Shelbyville, Tenn 20 miles
29, we came 15 miles
30, we passed Columbia, Tenn. 9 miles
31, we passed Mt Pleseant 24 miles
April 1840
1, we passed Murfreesboro 28 miles
2, we came 19 miles
3, we came 17 miles
4, we passed Dardin 27 miles
5, we passed Collierville 25 miles
6, we passed Somerville, 22 miles
7, we came 12 miles
8 we passed Raliegh 16 miles
-------------------
220 miles
end of third page ______________

Copy-Page-2 - Log of Charles' Moores' journey from S.C. to Texas

9, we lay over at Memphis 0 miles
10, we ferried the Mississippi River
14 miles
11, we came 5 miles
12, we crossed Black Fish Lake 4 miles
13, we came 3 miles
14, we came 2 miles
15, we came 5 miles
16, we came 6 miles
17, we camped
18, we crossed St. Francis River 14 miles
19, we came
20, we lay by
22, we crossed L'Angulle River 14 miles
23, we came 5 miles
------------------------------
end of fourth page 67 miles

24, we came 13 miles
25, we came 12 miles
26, we came 8 miles
27, we are camped on White River
28, we crossed White River 8 miles
29, we came 10 miles
30, we came 8 miles
_________________
Total 72 miles

May 1840
1, we came 14 miles
2, we came 6 miles
3,4,5, we lay by
6, we crossed Bayou Meta 11 miles
7, we lay by on Arkansas River
8, we come to the ferry 1 mile
-------------------------
32 miles
end of fifth page

May 9, we crossed the Arkansas River and left Little Rock
2 miles
10, we passed Benton 24 miles
11, we lay by
12, we crossed Saline River 18 miles
13, we crossed Wachita River 15 miles
14, we crossed Caddo Creek 18 miles
15, we crossed Antoine Creek 18 miles
16, we crossed Little Missouri River
10 miles
17, we passed town of Washington
18 miles
19 and 20 we are water bound by Red River
21, we crossed Red River 5 miles
22, we left lost Praire 6 miles
------------------------
152 miles
end of sixth page

23, we came to our place 14 miles
24, we arrived home 10 miles
---------------------
24 miles

226
220
234
67
104
152
24
----------
1027 miles

"UNCLE " N's" IN TENNESSEE

When the trips to and from South Carolina and Texas were made, there were certain stops that were made on each trip for visits, for renewals of old acquaintances, and laying in of provisions. One such was at Fayetteville, Tenn. at NORVELL"S. One of the daughters of Henry Moores married a Norvell and they lived in Tenn. Thomas Briggs Moores, one of the sons of Charles Moores and Mary Moores, married his cousin on the last trip. The wedding was a festive occasion and the bride accompanied the Texas-bound immigrants.

(Westward the Tide of Empire Goes to Texas) Montague's file

(Bell Buckle, Tenn.)

 This log entered by and Courtesy of Ken Moore
Fresno, California

Ken Moore's note:

The note (Bell Buckle, Tenn.) was just there at the bottom of the log. I found that Uncle Norvelle lived in Bell Buckle, Bedford County, Tennessee. John B. Moores lived in Fayetteville. His daughter Mary Moores who married Thomas Hines also moved to Texas from LCT as did several other members of the family.