Elisha Boone Built Home, Heritage For His Family

By Cleveland Fields, Jr.

Bay City Tribune, Sunday, February 29, 2004, page 5A

The strength of a man begins with his beliefs, and the marksmanship of his wisdom in knowing what to do, skill in knowing how to do it, and the virtue in doing it well. He has a heart that loves, rejoices and bleeds. His role calls for firmness, sternness and readiness for life's battles, for he has to go out into the world of challenges and strength to strive for those he loves. Thus was the life and legacy of Elisha Boone, who was born in 1813, the son of Alabama slaves who eventually migrated to Brazoria and Matagorda counties in Texas.

Elisha had one brother who drowned while crossing the Sabine River in Louisiana coming to Texas

Little was known about his parents and the family left behind in Alabama. However, once in Texas, he began a family that, over the course of time, became enormous among the African-American community.

           
Boone's ambitions and hardships, successes and failures were mingled together seemingly without plan, but with definite results. Living in an era when the Negro history was not recorded in history books, the philosophy of Elisha Boone was that "a man becomes the story of his own deed," for in his own views, "history is lived, not written."          Therefore, he set forth goals to accomplish, and worked hard to achieve those goals.

           
Boone's descendants included 16 children and some 85 grandchildren.

           
His first marriage was to a woman of American Indian ancestry whose name through research thus far has not been obtained. She died sometime between 1862 and 1867. Their union brought forth 11 children. The following includes an almost complete survey of their names and offspring.
 

            Laura Boone Webb (1834-    )

                        Victoria Rugeley, Henry Wrenn and Andrew Webb

            Martha Boone Edison (1840-    )

                        Ranson Edison, Louisiana Powell, Theophilus Edison and Jack Edison

            Catherine Boone Richardson Stanford (    -1920)

Thea Richardson, Taylor Richardson, Adam Richardson, Elijah Richardson, Phillip Stanford, Ellry Stanford, Alice Stanford, Matthew Stanford, Vassie Stanford and Edward Stanford

            John Boone (1844-    )

                        Ed Boone and Eliza Mack

            George Boone (1845-    )

            William Boone, Buna Overton, Jane Glassford, Annie Armstead, Louisa Brooks, George Boone, Jr., and Classie Glassford.

            Elijah Boone (1848-    )

            John Boone, Wesley Boone, Clister Boone, Charlie Boone, Phillip Boone, Elry Boone and Martha Boone.

            William Boone (1850-    )

                        Victor Boone, Sally Lewis, Daniel Boone, Henry Boone, Leonard Boone and Tennessee Boone

            Shedrick Boone (1855-    )

                        Hampton Boone, Catherine Dykes, Larkin Boone, Christopher Boone, Alice Baldridge, Matthew Boone and Louella Boone.

            Mollie Boone Hawkins (1858-    )

                        Hammie Hawkins, Carey Hawkins, Shedrick Hawkins and Willis Hawkins

            Henry Boone (1858-    )

                        Corean Carter

            Hamilton Boone (1860-    )

                        Fred Boone, Carrie Branch, Elisha Boone and Dewey Boone

Elisha Boone later married Rosetta Flannel in Brazoria County, Texas, on October 5, 1867. She was the mother of one daughter, three-year-old Charlotte Flannel. Elisha and Rosetta had four children. An account of their families is as follows:

            Charlotte Flannel Gatson (1864-1941)

            Enoch Gatson, Rosea Marshall, Camie Craig, Moses Gatson and Shirley Green.

            Peggy Boone Parks (1868-1922)

            Isaiah Parks, Clarence Parks, Tennessee Alexander, Alonia Cathey, Anna Bradley, Rutha Brown, Amanda Ford, James Parks, Elisha Parks and Calbertha Parks.

            Olivia Boone Baldridge (1870-    )

            Thomas Baldridge, Sherman Baldridge, Gertrude Deadrick, Melinda Ford, Eddie Jones, LeeEtta McAfee, David Baldridge, Lillie Sanders, Sallie McNeil and Lou Ethel Mack

            James Boone (1876-    )

                        Hezekiah Boone

            Adelia Boone Morgan (1876-    )

            Cuney Morgan, Ollie Fisher, Annie Morgan, Randolph Morgan and Olivia Williams

Elisha Boone built a home for his family, which stood in "stately majesty in that day." To provide for his family, hundreds of acres of land were bought, divided and farmed for the nurture and dwellings of the Boone children. According to the 1880 census of Texas, Elisha Boone housed over 38 family members at once. Over the course of time, some land was sold and some taken. However, the Boone family's association with "home and family" always struck melody in their hearts.

           
The term "Boone Settlement" of Linnville, Texas was acquired many years ago because of the notable roles of Elisha Boone--landowner, farmer, blacksmith, barber, carpenter, minister and family patriarch. These special talents nobly qualified him for the honorable character for which he was known because upon these roles, future progress depended.

           
The Boone Settlement, named for him, is accessible from Texas 35 east of Van Vleck, as well as traveling on Boone Road off FM 457 east of Bay City to Cedar Lane.

           
Research reveals that one acre of land was donated for the Linnville African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church by Boone, a Methodist minister who built the first church and became its first pastor. Strong spiritual convictions played a vital role in shaping the character of Boone's family and other worshippers.

           
Because of the years of slavery and afterwards, the toils of labor, it was evident that life did not set special tunes for special events or people, including the Boone family. Comedy and tragedy marched side by side as the years passed.

           
Elisha Boone and his children passed down a legacy of love that only a close-knit Christian family could provide.

           
All departed this earthly life in the same manner in which they lived; with quietness, courage and honor; thereby inspiring their offspring with the motto: "well done is better than well said."

           
Although research is currently in progress, the actual year of Elisha Boone's death is uncertain. However, it has been passed down through oral family accounts that he lived almost 100 years.

           
Upon his death, instead of being buried at the historic Linnville Cemetery, he was laid to rest in the yard of the original Boone family home he built that still stands today among the trees and country land of the Boone Settlement.

Editor's note:  The information provided is the careful research and years of study by Cleveland Fields, Jr., whose great-great-grandfather was Elijah Boone, and Joyce Gardenhire Wiggins, whose great-grandmother was Catherine Boone Richardson Stanford, both whom were children of Elijah Boone. Additional information was obtained from various Boone Family descendants.

Additional note: According to the Handbook of Texas Online, Linnville was on the Matagorda county line in southwest Brazoria County. In 1896 it had a school with one teacher and 26 black pupils. The school remained on the map in 1937, but by 1988 only a nearby church and Boone Cemetery appeared on state highway maps.
 

BOONE CEMETERY

Linnville, Brazoria County, Texas

Willie Alexander, 811 Pioneer Inf., March 1, 1896 - June 25, 1931, Sleep on dear child...

Alice Baldridge, 1893 - 1958

Thomas Baldridge and Wife, July 26, 1905 - Oct 18, 1968

Sherman Alfred Baldridge, Pvt US Army, World War I, 1895 - 1977

William A. Baldridge, May 28, 1882 - Sept 18, 1975, Thy Will Be Done

Alcy Boone, Age 74, Born Aug 18, 1858 - Died Oct 20, 1952, Our Loved One

Elbert Boone, Pvt US Army, Korea

Elisha Boone, April 10, 1912 - Feb 10, 1979

Elry Boone, Feb 9, 1875 - Mar 31, 1963

Hezekiah Boone, Texas, Pvt 5 Co 165 Depot Brig, World War I, Dec 16, 1893 - Aug 3, 1962

John Boone, In Loving Memory, July 11, 1911 - Nov 7, 1972

Philip Boone, In Loving Memory, June 19, 1882 - Nov 3, 1958

Wesley Boone, 1877 - 1943 & Mamie Boone 1889 - ?

Hilary Brown, 1911 - 1969 & Olivia Boone 1912 - ___

Estelle Johnson, In Memory, Dec 22, 1900 - Aug 25, 1967

Ada Morgan

Isaac Rugeley, Born 1858 - Died Sept 15, 1904

Mrs. Victoria Rugeley, Born May 29, 1868 - Died May 2, ____

Wallace Rugeley, Jan 22, 1936 - April 11, 1957
 

Copyright 2007 - Present by Carol Sue Gibbs
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