aanarative3

Fannin County TXGenWeb
Allen Price

This is a little piece of an interview that includes the connection to Fannin County ,Texas. His interview is extensive and includes a great deal of his adventures in the far west.
"De way I comes to be born in Texas am my pappy and mammy is in de covered wagon, comin' to Texas with dere master, what am John Price, what was a Virginny man. Dey stops in Fannin County awhile and dere I'm born. Dat in 1862, dey tells me." "De Price and Blair families was first ones to come to Texas. Dey had to use ox teams and ford creeks and rivers and watch for Indians. I done hear dem talk 'bout all dis, 'cause course I can't 'member it. Once de Indians done 'tack dem and dey druv 'em off. and every night near dey hears de howl of de wolves and other wild animals. Some folks went by boat and dey had river boat songs, one like dis:

"I'm drinkin' of rum and chewin' tobaccy, Hi! Oh! The rollin' river! I'm drinkin' of rum and chewin' tobaccy,
I'm boun' for the wide Missouri.
"Dese things am handed down to me by de Price family and my grand- daddy. De Price family done fight for de Confed'racy all de way down de line of de family, to my own pappy, who went with he master when dey
calls for volunteers to stop de blockade of Galveston. My master think he gwine 'scape de worst of de war when he come to Texas and dey am livin' peaceable de year I'm born, raisin' cotton. Dey had a gin what my pappy worked in, and makes dey own clothes, too, when de Yankees has de Texas ports blockade so de ships can't git in. When dey blockades Galveston, our old master done take my pappy for bodyguard and volunteers to help. Fin'ly Gen. Magruder takes Galveston from de Yankees with two old cotton steamers what have cotton bales on de decks for breastworks. De last battle Master Price and my pappy was in, was de battle of Sabine Pass, and de Yankee general, Banks, done send 'bout five thousand troops on transports with gunboats, to force a landin'. Capt. Dick Dowling had forty-seven men to 'fend dat Pass and my pappy helped build breastworks when dem Yankees firin'. Capt. Dowling done run dem Yankees off and takes de steamer Clinton and 'bout three hundred and
fifty prisoners. My pappy told me some de Captain's men didn't have real guns, dey have wood guns, what dey call cam'flage nowadays."
      "My pappy helped at de hospital after dat battle, and dey has it in a hotel and makes bandages out of sheets and pillow cases and underwear, and uses de rugs and carpets for quilts. "
      "I 'member dis song, what dey sing all de time after de war:
"O, I'm a good old Rebel, and dat's jus' what I am, And for dis land of freedom, I do not give a damn; I'm glad we fought again 'em, and only wish we'd won, And I ain't asked no pardon for anything I've done.
"I won't be reconstructed, I'm better dan dey am, And for a carpetbagger. I do not give a damn. So I'm off to de frontier, soon as I can go - I'll fix me up a weapon and start for Mexico!
"I can't get my musket and fight dem now no more, But I'm not goin' to love dem. dat am certain sho'- I don't want no pardon for what I was or am, I won't be reconstructed, and I don't give a damn.
       "I has mighty little to say 'bout myself. I's only a poor Baptist preacher. De her'tage handed down to me am de proudes' thing I knows. De Prices was brave and no matter what side, dey done fight for dey 'lief in de
right."

Here is another section that covers where these Price's lived and his coming to Texas:
     "I was born in Fannin County Texas in a covered wagon, in 1862, when my parents was on dey way wid their Master's, John an Jim Price from Misourri ter Texas ter make their home. Dey stopped in Fannin
County fer a little while, den dey went on ter La Grange Texas, whar dey settled about six miles from this town on de Colorado river."
       "I will tell yer about my own daddy an mammy, but first let me tell yer about des family of Prices dat my ancestors cum wid in de early days from Virginia ter Missouri. I will have ter go way back ter de time dey joined de immagrants train fer de then far West. Dis country was at dat time de subject of song an' story an de spirit of adventure I suppose led dem ter give up dey home whar dey lived in comfort fer de new country. In my mind I kin see dem as dey dreamed of de riches dat was ter be found in dis place, I kin see dem as dey reads de songs of de poets of dem days,
Tar de West, Ter de West, dere is wealth ter be won,
De forest ter clear is de work ter be done."
An den I kin see dem as dey beqins ter dream about breakin' away from dey old home in Virginia an makin'de effort ter cum ter de new country, in dey minds dey thinks dis way."We'll try it! We'll do it! an' never despair,
While there's light in de sunshine an breath in de air,"
   "If I remmnbers right de Price an de Blair famblies was one of de first ones ter cus ter dis new state dat dey was er settlin' up, an de sons of bof dese pioneers was ter serve in de War wid Mexico an de war between
de North an de South. But dey was ter be on de opposite sides in de Civil War. "First let me tell yer about de trip from Virginia ter Missouri, an how dey used de oxen fer teams ter de wagons an how dey had ter ford de creeks, an cross de rivers like de Cumberland, Tenneessee, de Missippi
dey took de boat. W'en dey cross de Cumberlan river dey hear dat de Indians are on de watch fer de emigrants, dey takes de Wilderness road an dey got ter Cumberlan Gap 'bout dark. Dis was de Cuzberlan Gap dat de rebels was ter defend against Morgans men in 1862, an de one dat dey sing bout,
"Septeaber mornin' in sixty two,
Morgans Yankees all withdrew,
Braxton Bragg wid his rebel band
Run George Morgan ter de blue-grass land."
     Dey tries ter push on ter de Big Lake fer dey thought dat dey would not be in so much danger after dey passed hit, but de roads had mud holes an slippery banks, cane-brakes an some logs across de road,darkness overtook dem an dey could not leave de trail fer fear of gittin lost. De men was skeered dat de Indians would surprise dem so day let dey camp fires go out an kept some of de men on guard, dey was not disturbed dat night but de nex' mornin' w'en dey started out dey see an Indian behin' a tree an den he runs off. Dey decides ter keep on de open trail an keep de watch out fer dem, dey see plenty of sign's of dem following all along de way but as dey shoot de wild game fer dey meat de Indians seem ter be skeered of de guns. Darkness over-took dem an hit was a cloudy night, w'en all of a sudden dey hear de Indian yell, an dey cum's near enough ter attack dem wid dey bows an arrows, de boom of de guns an killin' two or three of de Indians made dem leave widout de white folks bein' hurt. Den dey tell 'bout how dey camp out in de forest under de big trees w'en dey git ter de Tenneessee river an how dey sleep under de trees an how dey hear de howl of de wolves and de wild animals, dey pass thro' de thickets in passin thro de bottom an has ter cut dey way thro in lots of places. W'en dey git ter de Missiippii River dey takes de steamboat an de wagons an de stock are put in de barge dat is pulled by de boat in de back. Dey goes up de river ter some point whar dey take another trail, I think hit was de Sante Fe, Trail, I remember a story 'bout de trip up de river bout de Indians.
"On de boat was some agents of de government, while de boat was tied up at some place dey was de sound of glass er breakin from a shot fired at de boat. It hit one of de cabin winders dis was followed by de Indians
yell an dey rush fer de boat, dey get possession of de forward part of de boat an dey tell de Captain "dey want de boat an dat if he gives hit ter dem dat dey not hurt anybody, but if he did'nt dey would kill dem, every one on hit. De Captain had a light canon on de boat an he has hit slipped up ter de deck while de Indians er prowlin aroun; de gun was loaded an ready ter fire, by dis time de Indians was all over de cabin an de Captain lit a
cigar an held de smokin stump up in front of de Indians an told dem dat if dey did not git off de boat at once dat he was er goin' ter blow dem up an dey turned an fled ter dey canoes an was gone fast as dey could go.
     "De Captain den had de canon pointed at de banks whar dey could see hit an dat was de last of de Indians dat was goin' ter take de boat. W'en de emigrants from Virginia leave de boat fer de Trail again on lands in
Missouri de country is all covered wid de spring flowers an hit looks wonderful ter de tired travellers. Some of dem goes on an takes another boat on de Missouri River, dey is goin farther, some begins ter stop at St.
Louis an some goes on ter Kansa City, dat was called Westport den. After de folks dat went on left de river dey take de Sante Fe Trail, I think hit was, I has heard dem tell bout how hit went from Franklin Missouri ter de interior of de state.
"In de early days dey had de river boat songs, but dey has been changed until dey are de ones dat was sung w'en de rebels an de Yankees fought but dey cum down from de song's of de early days, one went like dis,
"I'm drinkin of rum an chawin terbacco,
Hi! Oh! The rollin' river,
I'm drinkin of rum an chawin terbacco,
Ha! Ha! I'm bound away fer de wild Miz-zou-rye.
and another dat goes like dis, jes a little different,
"Missouri she's a mighty river,
Away-ay, you rollin' river,
De Indians camp along hits borders,
Ha! Ha! I'm bound away across de wide Missouri.
I end copying the long long narrative. More can be obtained from the National Archives and the State of Texas Archives.