Mary Frances Phenix Nelson Meridith - 1847-1917

Mrs. Mary Frances Phenix Nelson Meridith was a pioneer and from a long line of pioneers.  Before giving something of her life, a background of her parents would be interesting in showing something of the preparation she had for meeting responsibilities as a homesteader and settler in the West.

                                  
ONE HUNDRED YEARS ON THE FRONTIER

                                                 
Tennessee, Illinois and Texas
(This story was told  by Mary Arminda Nix Phenix (Mrs.. Preston Kemper Phenix), in l914, to her granddaughter Mary Arminda Meredith Wilson and her husband J. Andy Wilson while visiting in their home in Lubbock, Texas.  Some names and dates taken from Mrs. Phenix’ Bible have been added.  It is written in the first person as Mrs. Phenix told her story).

I was born in Madison County, Tennessee, May 4, 1820 and was the first white child born in the county.

My father, Obedia Nix, had a water mill and hauled the products to the mouth of Obion River.   He signed some notes, with a man whose name I do not know, to put in a  stock of goods.   He had two flat boats built and they were ready to put on the river when father became ill with “fever”.  This was about 1827.  The co-signer of the notes failed to assume his responsibility and placed what he had in his wife’s name leaving my father to pay the notes.  Everything they had was sold at Sheriff’s sale leaving father and mother destitute - father was confined to his bed for the fever had settled in one limb leaving him unable to walk and unable to provide for the family.

My parents had one pony, a cow and calf and in 1827 father traded the cow for a cart, killed the calf and preserved the meat to be used for a trip to Morgan County, Illinois, where father had a brother living.

There were, when the trip began, four children:
             Mary Arminda,  8 years old - born May 4, 1820
             John Edward, 6 years old - born January 27, 1822
              William Anderson, 4 years old - born March 11, 1824
              Lucrita, 2 years old - born May 7, 1826
Five other children were born after we moved to Illinois:
               Jasper Levi - born April 28, 1929
               Newton Thomas - born March 29, 1831
               Francis Marion - born April 28, 1833
               Harriett - born January 29, 1836
               Maning Lafayette - born September 5, 1838
There was room in the small cart for father and the two youngest children.  My mother, John Edward and I had to walk.  The grass was high and I remember that in some places the dew was heavy.  At Springfield, Illinois, there were only three or four houses.

Two freighters driving oxen overtook us.  One of the men was named Morton.  When we asked hour far it was to Morgan County he told us ‘three days’ drive and that he lived there.’  When father asked him if he knew his brother who lived there, he said ‘he did and that he lived within one-half mile of him and that Mr. Nix was a fine man.’

We were without money and had very little to eat.  Mother made a trade with Mr. Morton to knit socks for him from some of the yarn he had on his wagon.  He took this as pay for some food.   As mother walked behind the cart she did the knitting.

When we arrived in Morgan County, with the help of father’s brother, we rented a farm and mad a small crop that year.  Mother and the children did most of the work - we had only the one pony to use.  After the crop was laid by, Father made a lathe for turning out chair rounds.  My oldest brother and I held to the frame and turned the lathe as father could not stand on his good leg and turn it.  He made some chairs which he sold for $1.00 each in Quincy, Illinois.  There were very few chairs on this frontier - most families used benches.

Father sold the first crop and we moved between the Mississippi and the Illinois rivers on what was know as the “Military Tract”.  Here we made the second crop with the same pony.  Mother hauled rails to fence the farm.  At this farm we could not get water and had to haul it about one-half mile to so father traded this farm for a yoke of oxen and moved about eight miles where there was a spring of good water.  We were at Mount Stirling before the town was layed out.  Here father took up some land.  He moved his feed, corn, and a barrel of pork.  He built a log house but before it was completed there was a big snow storm.  He worked here for about three months without bread but did have kraut, pork and hominy and the deer were plentiful in the timber.

The next year there were three or four more families who settled near us.  All our crops were short and we harvested just a little frost-bitten corn.  Father made a hand mill out of sand stones to grind the corn and all the neighbors used it.

Father found some good sand stone and he marked them out and mother helped him cut them for grind stones.  He made frames and handles for them and with his ox team he hauled these stones to Quincy, Illinois, where he sold the larger ones for $5.00 each and the smaller ones in proportion.  While he was gone a big snow and sleet storm came up.  He was gone for nine days.  The families in the settlement were about out of everything to eat - just a little frost—bitten corn from which to make meal.  Father was delayed because the oxen could not climb the hills on account of the ice.  The night he got home all the neighbors were at home with us, very anxious about him.  He had brought a barrel of pork, some white corn meal.  From that time on we had plenty to eat.  We stayed on this place for two of three years, then sold that farm and took a  Soldier’s Claim.  While we were living on this land General Levenworth ate dinner with us.  He had bought a lot of Soldier’s Rights and was attempting to locate the land.  The town of Levenworth, Kansas, was named for him.  The Nix family lived on this land for several years:  father was well again, was prosperous, and we had a good house, bar, and other buildings.

It was while we were living on the “Soldier’s Claim Farm” that I married Preston Kemper Phenix, October 30, 1838, near Quincy, Illinois.  He was born October 30, 1815 as son of Henry Phenix (born February 11, 1778) and Nancy Todd (born August 2, 1781) who were married February 11, 1798 at Davidson County, Tenneseee.

Preston Phenix began the study of medicine under the supervision of H. H. Witty, MD and studied from him in 1840 and 1841, at Mount Stirling, Brown County, Illinois.  Our six oldest children were born in Illinois:

1.  Thomas J. born November 15, 1839, died June 1865 (single person)
       (murdered and robbed on way home from Confederate Army.
2.   John - born April 7, 1841, died September 12, 1866 (single person)
3.  Sophronia L., born April 5, 1843.  Married J. G. Thomas, Jacksboro, Texas March 9, 1860. (FROM CHRISTINE - ACTUALLY 1859)
4.   Columbia Ann born January 3, 1845.  Married George W. Bullion December 5, 1869.  (born September 25, 1845 - died September 14, 1885, buried Rock Creek Church Cemetery, Paluxy, Texas)
5.  Mary Frances, born July 3, 1847, Died January 29, 1917.
             Married Tandy James Nelson 1871.  Married William Lewis Meridith May   
              21, 1882.   He was born November 15, 1838, died July 23, 1888.    
      6   William Preston born June 11, 1849, died 1817 or 1918
             Married Mollie Moore and they had one girl who died as a child
      7   Harriet Lavicy, born November 11, 1851.  Married Dr. J. A. Pharr
       8 .  Newton Jasper Phenix born January 16, 1861.  Died December 12, 1916
              Married Lillian Alberta Clark.  He died in Colorado City Texas
       9  Francis Lafayette Phenix born September 11, 1862

It was about 1847 that Dr. Phenix’s health failed and in 1848 we moved to Texas and located at Pin Hook, now Paris, Lamar County.  A great deal of distance we traveled by boat and landed at Port Jefferson which was the furtherest we could go by boat.  This was another frontier and settlers were few.

When we arrived at Pin Hook, we traded a suit of home-made clothes and several yards of jeans for a log house and filed a claim on 310 acres of land.  We had about $40.00 or $50.00  in money.  Dr. Phenix had learned how to make bed steads and chairs.  He put in a lathe, made a bed stead but did not have the money to buy the varnish for finishing it.  We borrowed a yoke of oxen and took the bed to Honey Grove, Texas, where he sold it for $10.00 and he was then in the business.   We hired two boys for $15.00 each, per month, and on this next trip to Honey Grove he sold ten beds for $10.00 each.  Our supplies had been very low and we had borrowed corn meal to tide us over until the beds were sold.

We sold our first claim and bought 200 acres on the old freight road from Port Jefferson.  There I bargained with a rancher for the privilege of milking 30 of his cows.  I then made cheese and butter which I sold to the freighters.  We lived on this 200 acres farm for about 8 years.  Dr. Phenix and improved and was able to ride a horse and to practice medicine.

About 1856 or 1857 we moved to Jack County, Texas, before the county was organized.  This was a real frontier and there was danger from the Indians.  They stole most of our stock and some of our neighbors were killed by them.

If there was more to the written story, it has been lost.  We know that the Phenix family also lived in Hood County and there are memories of stories told by Mrs. Phenix of Indian fighting and of all members of the community gathering in their home, the Old Rock House.

        Dr. Preston Kemper Phenix, born Nashville, Tennessee, October 30, 1815  Married Mary Arminda Nix, October 30, 1838
       He died November 7, 1898, at the home of his son Dr. N. J. Phenix,
        Alvin, Texas, age 83 years, 7 days
        Mary Arminda Nix, born May 30, 1820, Madison County, Tennessee
      Daughter of Obedia Nix (born May 11, 1789) and of Lavicy
       Bruce Nix (Born April 29, 1789)    Died August 6, 1915, at home of son, Dr. N. J. Phenix, Colorado City Texas.  Age 96 years, 2 months.