urn:taro:utexas.cah.02374 A Guide to the Angelina Smith Letters, 1842-1843 Original EAD encoding by Laurel Rozema according to TARO 2 EAD 2002 Editing Instructions. February 2011 Finding aid written in English. Descriptive Summary Smith, Angelina Smith, Angelina, letters 1842-1843 Materials are written in English. 1942 3 items Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin The Angelina Smith Letters, 1842-1843, comprise photocopies of three letters to Smith in Austin, Texas, about the Comanche Indian capture of her son Fayette and his subsequent rescue. Biographical Note

The daughter of Elijah Stamps, Angelina Stamps married chief justice of Travis County, Texas, James Smith, with whom she had three children: Caroline, Fayette (also called La Fayette), and Lorena. On Fayette’s ninth birthday, January 21, 1841, James took his son to search for wild hogs in the woods near their home in Austin. Comanche Indians attacked the two, killing James and capturing Fayette. James’ brother William Smith trailed after them, eventually reaching Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he informed American tradesmen of the kidnapping. The story reached John Rowland in Taos, and he hired several Comancheros (Mexicans who traded with the Comanche tribe) to find the child. The men purchased Fayette from the Comanches near the Texas-New Mexican border and brought the boy to Rowland, with whom he then lived for over a year. In September 1842, Fayette started his journey home, meeting his grandfather Elijah Stamps in Independence, Missouri, in January 1843. The two traveled to Stamps’ home in Talladega, Alabama, finally reuniting Fayette with his mother Angelina.

Source:

Smith, Angelina, Vertical Files, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin.

 Scope and Contents

The Angelina Smith Letters, 1842-1843, comprise photocopies of three letters to Smith in Austin, Texas, two from Lewis Jones in Independence, Missouri, and one from James Sawson in Talladega, Alabama. The authors discuss the capture of Smith’s son Fayette by Comanche Indians and Fayette’s rescue and return to his mother Angelina and her father Elijah Stamps.

 Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research use.

 Index Terms Subjects (Persons) Smith, Angelina -- Archives. Smith, Fayette. Jones, Lewis. Sawson, James. Stamps, Elijah. Subjects Indian captivities -- Texas -- History -- 19th century. Comanche Indians -- Texas -- History -- 19th century. Places Independence (Mo.) -- History -- 19th century. Talladega (Ala.) -- History -- 19th century. Austin (Tex.) -- History -- 19th century. Taos (N.M.) -- History -- 19th century. Preferred Citation

Angelina Smith Letters, 1842-1843, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

 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 2G218 Letters, 1842-1843