The Dallas Journal, Volume 48, 2002 Page: 7
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Dr. Samuel B. Pryor, Early Prominent Dallas County Resident
moved to Dallas, Dallas County, Texas, where Dr. S. B. Pryor and his brother,
Dr. C. R. Pryor, practised [sic] medicine for a number of years. In 1866 Dr. S. B.
Pryor died and his wife and eight children, of whom six are now living,
moved to Arkansas. Her eldest son was the first child born in Dallas. She
and her husband were the third family to settle in Dallas. She went back to
Dallas in 1886 on a visit, but there was such a change everything was as
strange as if she had never been there. At her death her hair was
as black as it was twenty-five years ago and her memory was as good as it was
when young.
She had a fine education and was very familiar with medicines. While
she was in Arkansas two doctors offered to give her a fine paid of pill bags and
to keep her supplied in medicine if she would practice, but she refused to do so.
Dr. C. R. Pryor during the 60s published the Dallas Herald. He left many years ago, and
in 1881 or 1882 died in New York.
Mrs. Pryor was a lover of The Dallas News, and as long as she was able, never failed to
read it. She knew most all the old settlers The News has been speaking of so often. She was
confirmed in the Episcopal Church by Bishop Gregg of Galveston and always live a consistent
Christian life. W. L. PRYOR.54
None of the above sources mentioned Samuel B. Pryor's involvement in the Civil War until I checked
the microfilm roll containing biographies of Dallas' prominent people in the Texas / Dallas History and
Archives Division. Included in the section on Samuel B. Pryor, a reference was made to his military
participation in the letter dated 12 February 1957 between Lester N. Fitzhugh of Lancaster, Texas to
Mrs. J. P. Greenwood, a former historian for the Texas division of United Daughters of the Confederacy.
Mr. Fitzhugh was not able to find anything definite on Pryor's service other than him being mentioned
only once in the Official Records, "this relating to his appointment on 4 September 1861 as state
procurement agent for the purchase and collection of '[heavy] clothing, blankets, comfortables, and other
articles' for use of the Confederate Army [during the coming winter]. This appointment envisioned
establishment of a depot at Dallas... Dr. Pryor was evidently still a civilian at this time, which was prior
to the organization of most Texas Confederate units."55 Mr. Fitzhugh did further research into the books
on Texas Confederate artillery officers and was not able to find Pryor's name. He pointed out that
companies did not have surgeons, but the surgeon was a special staff officer of the regiment.
If Pryor served as a surgeon in the 19th Texas Cavalry, then he
must have been the regimental surgeon. In that case he would have had
the "assimiliated" rank of captain, but would have been officially designated
as "Surgeon Samuel B. Pryor." Technically, he would have been an
"assistant surgeon," which was the Confederate Medical Department's
classification for all regimental surgeons. As stated, these ranked as
captains. All other medical officers were full "surgeons" with assimilated
rank of major. But in practice no distinction was made and the proper
address was "Surgeon."56
As Mr. Fitzhugh suggested, the allegation that Pryor belonged to Company "K" of the 19th Texas
Cavalry, C.S.A., as a surgeon, was that ...
...it frequently happened that a physician desiring to enter a
regiment traveled to the point of rendezvous with his local company. Theregimental organization included an election of officers. This was usually
a "cut and dried" affair so far as the colonel was concerned, but the regimental
The Dallas Journal 2002 7
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Dallas Genealogical Society. The Dallas Journal, Volume 48, 2002, periodical, June 2002; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth186861/m1/11/: accessed March 29, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Genealogical Society.