TABLE OF CONTENTS
Collection Summary
Biographical Sketch
Scope and Contents
Restrictions
Index Terms
Administrative Information
Description of Series
Letters and narrative accounts
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Guide to the Thomson family of Texas papers,
1832-1898
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Creator: |
Thomson family |
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Title: |
Thomson family of Texas
papers |
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Dates: |
1832-1898 |
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Abstract: |
This collection is bound into an 8”x11” spiral
binder, and contains typed transcripts of letters and recollections of various
members of the Thomson family, describing family business, moves to Texas,
general health of Texas colonists, the Mier Expedition, the Texan struggle for
independence. Some accounts are first hand descriptions of participation, such
as James Monroe Hill’s account of the Battle of San Jacinto. |
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Identification: |
MS
288 |
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Quantity: |
0.25 lin. ft. (1 bound
vol.) |
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Language: |
Materials are in
English. |
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Repository: |
Woodson Research Center, Fondren
Library, Rice University, Houston, TX |
The Thomson family, whose relatives include the Hallowells, the Jones,
and the Hills, were a pioneer family from Georgia that settled along the Brazos
River in Eastern Texas. Alexander Thomson, patriarch of the family, was the
first member of the family to move to Texas and begin a new life there. J.N.M
Thomson and William Thomson are the two eldest sons of Alexander Thomson,
William had to be convinced to move to Texas after several failed business
ventures in the Unites States of America. J.N.M. Thompson was a member of the
ill-fated Mier Expedition into Matamoros, Mexico, and expedition with the
intent of shaking Mexico’s hold on the Texas Territory. He repeatedly wrote to
both his father, Alexander Thomson, and his brother, William Thomson, in order
to secure payment for his release from prison in Mexico. James Monroe Hill, the
great nephew of Alexander Thomson, was present at the Battle of San Jacinto and
fought alongside General Sam Houston and the Army of the Republic of Texas in
their fight against the Presidency of Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. James Monroe
Hill also was one of the various guards who was in charge of detaining Santa
Anna and was present during the first meeting between Santa Anna and General
Sam Houston. Jane Hallowell Hill was the wife of James Monroe Hill and the
great niece of Alexander Thomson. She was among the many settlers who fled
towards the Sabine River after the Alamo was taken by Santa Anna’s army. She
sold land and slaves and relied on Native Americans in the absence of her
husband and any men to assist her in settling in her temporary residence along
the Sabine.
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This collection is bound into an 8”x11” spiral binder, and contains
typed transcripts of letters prepared by Ana Gardner Thomson. It includes
letters and recollections of various members of the Thomson family, describing
family business, moves to Texas, general health of Texas colonists, the Mier
Expedition, the Texan struggle for independence. Some accounts are first hand
descriptions of participation, such as James Monroe Hill’s account of the
Battle of San Jacinto.
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Restrictions on Access
This material is open for research.
Restrictions on Use
Permission to publish material from the Thomson family papers must be
obtained from the Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library.
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Subjects (Persons) |
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Thomson, Alexander --
correspondence |
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Thomson, William –
correspondence |
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Thomson, J.N.M. --
correspondence |
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Kerr, Lucy --
correspondence |
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Hill, James Monroe --
narratives |
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Gordon, Roxie --
correspondence |
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Hill, Jane Halloway –
narratives |
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Houston, Sam,
1793-1863 |
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Travis, William Barret,
1809-1836 |
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Santa Anna, Antonio López
de, 1794?-1876 |
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Subjects |
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Travellers’ writings – Texas.
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Colonization, Texas -
history |
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Battle of San Jacinto -
history |
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Formats |
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Correspondence |
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Narratives |
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Thomson Family of Texas papers, 1832-1898, MS 288, Woodson Research
Center, Fondren Library, Rice University.
This collection was a gift donated by Jim Glass, 1980.
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Letters and narrative accounts |
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Letter 1: Alexander Thomson to William Thomson
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The first letter is written by Alexander Thomson, the
first member of the family to move to Texas, to his son William Thomson
attempting to convince William to move to Texas. The letter hints at a possible
business failing in the United States leaving his William in unfavorable
pecuniary circumstances, and features Alexander Thomson advising his son to cut
his losses and relocate his business pursuits to Texas. |
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Letter 2: Alexander Thomson to William Thomson
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The second letter is again from Alexander Thomson to
William Thomson informing William of the health and condition of his family,
followed by a related discourse on the general health of the colonies in Texas
and the reported health of different areas surrounding the Brazos River. |
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Letter 3: From J.N.M. Thomson |
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The third letter is signed J.N.M. Thomson, brother of
William Thomson and the son of Alexander Thomson, and is a urgent request for
money with which he would have freed himself from jail. J.N.M Thompson was a
part of the ill-fated Mier Expedition into Matamoros, Mexico with the intention
of shaking Mexico’s hold on the Texas Territory. The letter details the various
skirmishes that took place south of the Rio Grande and the battle in which the
insurrectionists were ultimately captured. J.N.M. Thomson then recounts his
journey from jail to jail on his way to Mexico City. |
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Letter 4: Waddy Thompson to Thomson family |
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The fourth letter if from Waddy Thompson, of no
relation to the Thomson family, informing Alexander Thomson of his son’s death
by firing squad in Salado by the Mexican Government. |
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Letter 5: J.N.O. Fontaine to Lucy Kerr |
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The fifth letter is from J.N.O. Fontaine to his cousin
Lucy Kerr, the sister of Alexander Thomson. They have just exchanges likenesses
of one another and Fontaine describes his various feelings of nostalgia from
memories of their childhood. Fontaine then transitions to his wife’s death and
his thoughts on remarriage and whether it is appropriate for his children. He
discusses his concern for his children and their possible objections to another
marriage. His next subject is his perception of the many “perplexities” that
face Texas in its infancy and his impression of the superiority of the United
States. Fontaine then briefly expresses his views on religion and his
benevolent indifference for the various subtle differences that separate the
various sects of Protestantism. After a few lines explaining his current
business in planting and manufacturing, Fontaine concludes the letter with news
of an aunt’s death that seemed to have never reached Lucy Kerr. |
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Letter 6: Roxie Gordon to Lucy Kerr |
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The sixth letter is from Roxie Gordon to her
grandmother, Lucy Kerr. The letter is asking for some type of correspondence
between the two in order to document them as family keepsakes. Roxie after
asking for a continued communication between the two of them, transitions to
the subject of her son and how it would greatly benefit him to know more
intimately his great aunt. Gordon then addresses the relationship between the
Wilcoxs and the McDonalds and the Thomsons. The letter ends by again asking for
sustained letters updating her on the familial news. |
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Narrative: James Monroe Hill |
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The following section of the booklet is comprised of
the recollection of James Monroe Hill. The account opens by explaining how the
Hill family arrived and the condition under which they lived for the beginning
of their residency. After four paragraphs discussing the early years of his
life in Texas, Hill begins to tell the story of the Texan War for Independence.
Hill narrates the play by play of his service in the Texan army from his
journey to Columbus to seek out General Sam Houston to the actual battle of San
Jacinto. He then goes into precise detail with patent zeal and pride for his
service. He depicts Houston’s bravery and gallantry in the battle and displays
many of the popular sentiments towards the Mexicans and the war effort in
general. Near the end and in an appendix by Lucy Jones, his daughter, Hill goes
into tremendous detail concerning the capture and dialogue between Santa Anna
and Sam Houston. He directly quotes Santa Anna’s first words to Sam
Houston. |
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Narrative: Jane Hallowell Hill |
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The following account is narrated by Jane Hallowell
Hill, James Monroe Hill’s wife. The account begins by Jane Hill describing her
ancestry and the region in Tennessee from where she came. After summarizing her
journey to settlement in Texas, Jane Hill begins to discuss her actions during
the Texan War for Independence. She demonstrates the fear and contempt that she
and her family felt towards the Mexicans following the capture of the Alamo and
the hurried departure from her home in Central Texas for the Sabine River.
Along with her plethora of difficult emotions regarding the war and her
family’s involvement, Jane Hill communicates the hardships that her family
faced without her husband or any older sons to protect and provide for her and
the younger children. She describes the part that the Native Americans
indigenous to the area played in helping her survive the harsh wilderness in
such trying times. In sharp change in direction, Jane informs the reader ad to
the dates of her marriage and her “Golden Wedding” as she calls it. And
described her home in Fayette County, Texas and her final home in Austin,
Texas. In yet another sharp transition, Jane talks of the time when Crockett
and Travis spent the night in their house on their way to Austin. She ends the
letter by informing the reader as to all of the men in her family that served
in the battle of San Jacinto and the Civil War. |
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