The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 34, July 1930 - April, 1931 Page: 184
359 p. : ill., maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Southwestern Historical Quarterly
Court House gave me Rusk's address to the Grand Jury on be-
half of the bar at the close of the first session of District Court
held in the Old Stone Fort at Nacogdoches in the month of
August, 1837, with Judge R. M. Williamson presiding. Among
the members of the bar were David S. Kaufman, Richardson
Scurry, James Reilly, and General Thomas J. Rusk. As this
speech has more than once been printed in the newspapers, I will
quote only that sentence in which he says: "It is in vain we
fight, it is in vain we conquer, if we do not establish on this soil
a government of equal and just laws, that will protect the rights
and redress the wrongs of the humblest as well as the greatest
and most exalted citizen."3
In the County Clerk's office I found that on iMarch 17, 1837,
Rusk had bought the "Red House" as it was called. The "Red
House" was the second most prominent building of old Nacog-
doches. It had been built, so the tradition runs, by Colonel Jos6
de las Piedras and occupied by him as his headquarters from
1828 to 1832. Rusk made the "Red House" his home from 1837
until 1841.' He had bought the ranch called "Santo Domingo"
about half a mile north and northwest of the town of Nacog-
doches on the "North Road."5 Here he built the house that was
his home until he died.
Here, also, I found in the final records an inventory of Rusk's
estate which was valued at about $40,000 in 1858, when his sons,
John C. and Benjamin L. Rusk were appointed administrators of
the estate. Most of his property was, of course, in land. He had
twenty slaves including men, women, and children, which were
valued at $11,500. He had the reputation of being a good master
to his slaves. In fact, they were said to have been called "Rusk's
free niggers,"6 so well were they treated.
One, a negro named Wiley, played the fiddle. On one occasion
Rusk brought "Uncle Wiley" a fine fiddle from Washington.
"Uncle Wiley" played for the most of the dances and balls given
1Minutes of the District Court, Book A, District Clerk's Office, Nacog-
doches County Court House.
4C. A. Hotchkiss, Scottish Rite Herald, Vol. V, No. 6, Dallas, Texas,
August, 1914.
'Deed recorded Book I, p. 506. County Clerk's office, Nacogdoches
County Court House.
'Statement of Miss Helen Rusk, 1930.184
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 34, July 1930 - April, 1931, periodical, 1931; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101091/m1/200/: accessed May 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.