urn:taro:utexas.cah.02053 A Guide to the Elizabeth Ross Clarke Narrative, [ca. 1920] Original EAD encoding by Laurel Rozema according to TARO 2 EAD 2002 Editing Instructions. November 2010 Finding aid written in English. Descriptive Summary Clarke, Elizabeth Ross Clarke, Elizabeth Ross, narrative [ca. 1920] Materials are written in English. 1 vol. Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin The Elizabeth Ross Clarke Narrative, [ca. 1920], contains Clarke’s biography of her father Sul Ross and his father Shapley Prince Ross entitled, YA-A-H-H-OO, Warwhoop of the Comanches: The Cry that Struck Terror to the Hearts of the Pioneers in the Early Days of Texas.. Biographical Note

One of nine children, Elizabeth Ross Clarke (b. 1878) was the daughter of Lawrence Sullivan Sul Ross (1838-1898) and the former Elizabeth Dorothy Tinsley. Sul Ross was the son of Shapley Prince Ross (1811-1889) and his wife Catherine, who moved to Texas in 1839. After serving in the Texas Rangers (1842-1847), Shapley settled in Waco, where he built the town’s first hotel, served as its first postmaster (1850), and was an Indian agent (1855-1858).

Upon graduating from Wesleyan University in Florence, Alabama, in 1859, Sul Ross joined the Texas Rangers and eventually raised his own company, who recovered Cynthia Ann Parker from Comanche Indians in December 1860. The next year, Ross joined the Confederate Army, commanding the Texas Cavalry Brigade, also known as Ross’ Brigade. Following the war, he entered politics, serving as sheriff of McLennan County (1873-1875), Texas state senator from the 22nd District (1880-1882), and governor of Texas (1887-1891). Upon leaving the governorship, Ross became president of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, now Texas A&M University, a position he held until his death in 1898.

Sources:

Benner, Judith Ann. Ross, Lawrence Sullivan [Sul]. Handbook of Texas Online. Accessed November 8, 2010. http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fro81.

Kemp, L. W. Ross, Shapley Prince. Handbook of Texas Online. Accessed November 8, 2010. http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fro86.

 Scope and Contents

The Elizabeth Ross Clarke Narrative, [ca. 1920], contains Clarke’s biography of her father Sul Ross and his father Shapley Prince Ross. Covering the period 1838 to 1898, the narrative is entitled YA-A-H-H-OO, Warwhoop of the Comanches: The Cry that Struck Terror to the Hearts of the Pioneers in the Early Days of Texas. It discusses Indian raids on the early Texas frontier as well as Sul Ross’s activities during the Civil War and as Texas state senator, governor, and president of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas.

Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research use.

 Index Terms Subjects (Persons) Clarke, Elizabeth Ross -- Archives. Ross, Lawrence Sullivan, 1838-1898. Ross, Shapley Prince. Ross family. Subjects (Organizations) Confederate States of America. Army. Texas Cavalry. Ross’ Brigade Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas. Subjects Indians of North America -- Texas. Frontier and pioneer life -- Texas. Places Waco (Tex.) United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865. Texas -- Politics and government -- 20th century. Preferred Citation

Elizabeth Ross Clarke Narrative, [ca. 1920], Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

 Related Material

See also Ross (Lawrence Sullivan) Letters

See also Ross Family Papers at the Texas Collection, Baylor University, Waco, Texas.

 Processing Information

Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s History Revealed: Bringing Collections to Light project, 2009-2011.

 Detailed Description of the Papers Inventory 2J143 Narrative, [ca. 1920]