The Junior Historian, Volume 30, Number 2, November 1969 Page: 2
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THE JUNIOR HISTORIAN
production of cattle and cotton. His sym-
pathy lay with the South, and his support
cost him his fortune. After Reconstruc-
tion he doggedly rebuilt his enterprise,
including the first grist mill and steam
cotton gin in the area. He boasted 600
bales of cotton ginned annually, 50 per-
cent of which was raised on his own
plantation. The remainder came from
neighboring farms in the central Texas
area.
SEu
One of the founding fathers of the Re-
public was a prominent citizen who
settled near the mouth of Cedar Creek
in 1832. Bartholomew Manlove, in 1835,
became a member of the Committee of
Safety and Correspondence at Mina (the
first step toward organized resistance
against Mexico). In 1837 he became the
first mayor of Bastrop. Priding himself
on fine horses, the mayor owned the
fastest in Austin's colony. His major
trouble with this enterprise proved to be
the moonlight raids of Comanche war
parties. Occasionally he would elicit the
aid of the Tonkawa chief, Placido, in
retrieving the horses. The Comanches
were especially intrigued by the largest
of Manlove's horses, believing it to be
the swiftest. For this reason they stole
it many times. Actually it was Manlove's
best plowhorse and among the slowest
of the stock. Because the horse was in-
dispensable in farm work and dis-
appeared so often, Manlove was extreme-
ly irate. One evening at a party, after
learning of the horse's disappearance
once again, he half-jokingly remarked
to one of his daughter's suitors that he
could claim his daughter's hand in mar-
riage if he returned with the horse alive.
Unfortunately Manlove was forced to
keep his bargain.Still standing is the first log cabin of
Cedar Creek, constructed by one of the
most colorful figures of Texas history.
Born in London in 1819, John Day
Morgan came to Philadelphia with his
parents at the age of eight. As a young
man seeking adventure, he went to Texas
to fight in the War of Independence in
July, 1836. He served his new country
well.
When, in 1841, President Lamar or-
ganized an expedition to Santa Fe, in
order to make that territory a part of
the Republic, Morgan volunteered. Due
to their weakened condition from the
long march and the treacherous actions
of a traitor among them, the Texans were
forced to surrender to the Mexican gov-
ernor of Santa Fe. They were then
forced to march to Mexico City where
they were imprisoned. A year later they
were freed by Santa Anna as part of
his birthday celebration.
Morgan did not have long to wait for
revenge, for six months later he was en-
gaged in battle against the Mexicans in
the ill-fated Mier Expedition. Again the
Texans were taken captive and marched
to Mexico City. On the way, however,
176 of the prisoners, Morgan included,
escaped. All were recaptured, and Santa
Anna ordered one-tenth of them to be
shot. Those who were able were forced
to draw beans from a jar; those who
drew black beans were shot. By pre-
tending to be ill, Morgan avoided the
drawing. Suspicious of the ill and wound-
ed, the Mexicans decided to determine
the validity of their condition by running
at each of the men with a fixed bayonet.
Being able to understand Spanish, Mor-
gan successfully passed the test by not
flinching. He was marched with the oth-
ers to Mexico City and imprisoned in
the Castle Perote.
After his escape and return to Texas,
his taste for adventure was somewhat
abated, and he settled down. During a
trip to visit his parents in Cincinnati, he
fell in love with Rebecca Rogers, They
married and returned to the Texas fron-
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Texas State Historical Association. The Junior Historian, Volume 30, Number 2, November 1969, periodical, November 1969; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth391288/m1/4/: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.