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Family
Marriage: Children:
  1. Mary Jane Palmer: Birth: 29 NOV 1849 in South Carolina. Death: 05 MAY 1927

  2. Emma A Palmer: Birth: 30 DEC 1851 in South Carolina.

  3. Thadeus Leullen Palmer: Birth: 22 JUL 1854 in Liberty County, Texas. Death: 12 MAR 1935

  4. Lauren Percy Palmer: Birth: 27 MAY 1857 in Liberty Count, Texas.


Family
Marriage: Children:
  1. Bernette C Palmer: Birth: 1862.

  2. Angus "A D" Douglas Palmer: Birth: 13 AUG 1867 in Raywood, Texas. Death: 10 MAR 1947 in Oakdale Cemetery Daisetta, Texas

  3. Rupert Cecil Palmer: Birth: 12 OCT 1869. Death: 1953

  4. Ella Cornelia Palmer: Birth: 21 JAN 1872. Death: 21 JAN 1949

  5. Lillie Inez Palmer: Birth: 06 DEC 1874. Death: 15 SEP 1957

  6. Ruel Rhett Palmer: Birth: 27 APR 1882.

  7. Lelia Urania Palmer: Birth: 08 OCT 1884.


Notes
a. Note:   Story provided by Mrs. Ruth Reese, Houston TX
 David Calhoun Palmer & Mary Frances Legett
 from Marion SC to Liberty TX 1852
  The trip from Marion County, South Carolina began after David Calhoun had received his inheritance of land on Cypress Bay from his father David W. Palmer, a cotton farmer who owned 20 slaves. David sold land in 1852 and departed with his 18 year old wife, Mary Frances Legett, a 2 year old child, Mary Josephine and a daughter Emma a few months old and his slaves. There were other families in the group including his brothers William and James. It is believed that they planned to go to California to join those seeking gold that had been discovered in 1849.
  The trek was a painful and slow one taking at least two months, the clumsy wagons crawling along the roads and across meadows at a snail's pace, bearing the top heavy burden of their houshold goods, including bedsteads, an assortment of pots & pans, huge slabs of bacon and the family Bible.
  In one wagon was a hyde bottom rocking chair in which Mary and the other mothers took turns rocking their babies to sleep after they made camp for the night. David, the slaves and the other men made fires and cooked anything they were fortunate enough to kill including deer, rabbits, racoon and possum or the bacon they brought with them. Water was of great concern as it was necesarry for their own use and for the oxen that pulled the wagon.
  The women rode with the children on their laps, the men with shotguns across their knees. The countryside was still untamed and was rife with dangers. It was necessary for them to keep a constant lookout for unfriendly Indians, as well as white renegades who were apt to rob their more prosperous travelers. At the time, David had two small children, two daughters, Mary J. born in 1849 and Emma born in 1852. It is believed that the slaves walked behind the wagons that moved slowly. The Palmers bought land in Liberty County in 1852 shortly after they arrived at their desitination.
  When the caravan reached Texas, David decided to stay. He and Mary Frances bought the land in Liberty County and remained there farming the land until he joined the TExas Calvary in 1862. Mary died in 1864 and was buried by the slaves on the land under a Chinqapin tree. Most of the slaves stayed and cared for the children and the farm. William reached Arizona where he decided to stay and opened a tavern allegedly known as the "Red Onion". James did continue to California where he reamained until his death in Napa, California. He married and had several children.
  The Family Heirloom Bed
 This story was related to me Mary Ruth Gott, on May 16, 1999 by my sister Edith Gott (White). She stated that she accompanied our mother, Stella Palmer Gott, and her sister Ina Palmer Stringfellow to a black neighborhood on the Trinity river (river bottom) as it was called to find a bed owned by our ancestor David Calhoun Palmer. The cherry tester bed was purchased by David for his wife Mary, who like he was born in South Carolina and came overland in an ox drawn wagon in 1852.
  The bed was shipped to Galveston where it was picked up there and transported to the homestead in Liberty County by wagon. Mary had two children Thaddeaus Leullen and Lauren Percy in this bed. Mary died in the bed. While David was fighting in the Civil War, he had loyal blacks who cared for his children until his return. He told of one of the Albros (name of black family) that he wanted them to have that bed but that he wanted to die in the bed. After his death, the bed was given to the faithful black family. Ina & Stella, daughters of Thad Palmer heard this story and decided to attempt to regain possession of the bed. They visited the very aged Albro negro and found him very frail and bedridden. They requested to purchase the bed, but the ancient negro said they could have it after his death. All he wanted was money for his burial. He was given $500 and upon his death, his son notified Ina and the bed was transported to Beaumont, TX where she lived. She had the bed refinished, beautifully draped (as it wasa 4 poster tester bed). It remained in her home until her death and as she had no children, she willed her home and furnishings to her sister Corrine Palmer Arnold. After her mother, Mary Victorine Palmer died in 1956, they sold the home on Calder Ave. and moved to another location. When she was quite elderly (she died age 96) she lived in Hull, TX with a niece Anna Lou Palmer (Brett). They bed was stored in that location and after Corrin's death in 1988, Ann Lou gave the bed to her son John Brett who lives on some of the old Palmer property in Hull, Liberty County, Texas.
  In possession: Photo of Ben Albrose - believed to be exslave of David Calhoun Palmer who was given the Palmer bed-which was recovered in the 1950's. T
  he Albrose negros lived along the Trinity river outside Liberty Texas. Ben Albrose was the son of one of the slaves who accompanied David Calhoun Palmer from South Carolina to Texas. His parents remained on the plantation while David was fighting in Likens Texas Cavalry during the Civil War. The salves cared for the four children folliwn Mary Frances Legette, their mother's, death. Thad who was about 7 when his father went to war played with Ben Albrose while a child. After the slaves were freed some remained on the place. Even after they left and acquired their own property along the Trinity River, they remained friends. That's daughter Stella Palmer remembered visiting her father and sitting on the gallery (porch) smoking their pipe and "visiting" so through the years they kept in touch. That's daughter, Ina Palmer, looked them up in 1956 to buy the bed from them. Ben Albrose, died at age 111.
  In possession: Photo of the bed
  CENSUS RECORDS
  As of 1828
 Marion County, South Carolina Georgetown
  1850 census of south carolina, Marion county, lists David C Palmer as age 22
 with wife "Mary T" or possibly "L" as age 16 and child, Mary 4/12.
 There is confusion regarding the name of his first wife who died after coming
 to Texas with him and 2 childen, In 1860 Texas census lists David C Palmer,
 age 31, and wife, Mary T,(?) as age 26 and children, Mary, age 10, Emma, age8
 Thaddeus, age 6, and Lauren, age 3. Emma was born in SC in 1852, and
 Thaddeus was born in Texas in 1854--so they came to Texas probably between
 1852 and 1854. Mary died while David was fighting in the Civil War between
 1862 and 1864 about age 28 or 30. Her 4 children were cared for by a loyal
 black woman until he returned from the war.
  1850 United States Federal Census
 about David C Palmer
 Name: David C Palmer
 Age: 22
 Estimated Birth Year: abt 1828
 Birth Place: Georgetown
 Gender: Male
 Home in 1850(City,County,State): Marion, South Carolina
 Household Members: Name Age
 David C Palmer 22
 Mary Palmer 16
 Mary Palmer 0
  1860 United States Federal Census
 about D C Palmer
 Name: D C Palmer
 Age in 1860: 31
 Birth Year: abt 1829
 Birthplace: South Carolina
 Home in 1860: Liberty, Liberty, Texas
 Gender: Male
 Post Office: Liberty
 Value of real estate: View image
 Household Members: Name Age
 D C Palmer 31
 Mary T Palmer 26
 Mary J Palmer 10
 Emma A Palmer 8
 T L Palmer 6
 L P Palmer 3
 Thos Cummins 26
 John McCoy 50
  TIMELINE
 1852
 D.C Palmer was reported to come from Marion County, S.C. abt 1853 to Liberty County Texas overland by ox wagon with his wife,Mary,age 20 and 2 daughters, Mary age 4 and Emma age 2
  He enlisted in Company F, Spaights Cavalry Battalion. his wife died during the war-He married a widow, Euphemia Moor or Moore, and had 8 more children probably between 1864 and 1866
  U.S. Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles
 about D C Palmer
 Name: D C Palmer
 Rank at enlistment: Private
 State Served: Texas
 Service Record: Enlisted in Company F, Texas 21st Infantry Regiment.
  Sources: Index to Compiled Confederate Military Service Records
 American Civil War Regiments
 Regiment: 21st Infantry Regiment Texas
 Muster Date: 26 May 1865
 Regiment State: Texas
 Regiment Type: Infantry
 Regiment Number: 21st
 Regimental Soldiers and History: List of Soldiers
  Civil War Service:
  Service Records:
 David Calhoun Palmer
 Age 33 at time of enlistment � Enrolled in Co. F Spaight�s Battali
 Mar 1862 at Liberty County by A W Spaight.
 Horse was worth $115 and equipment was worth $40.
 Was listed as a 3rd Sgt.
 Present on the Sept � Dec/62 Muster Rolls as a 3rd Sgt.
 Was �Left sick " on March from La. On 28 Jan. 1864� and listed as a pvt on the Jan- Feb 64 muster roll.
 Was �on Detached Service Tx and NO RR 29 Apr 1864� on all the muster rolls
 from April 64 through Feb 65.
  Jan 65 Muster Roll lists him as being in Beaumont.
  Application for detached service was approved because Pvt Palmer �has not seen more than 6 months of service in two years.� It can be assumed that his lengthy absence was for illness and the cause for his demotion from sgt to pvt.
  He was listed as an overseer on the RR. A later census shows that he was a railroad worker also.
  About the TEXAS AND NEW ORLEANS RAILROAD
 The Texas and New Orleans Railroad Company was one of the antebellum railroads of Texas. It was chartered on September 1, 1856, as the Sabine and Galveston Bay Railroad and Lumber Company, for the purpose of constructing a railroad from Madison (now Orange) in Orange County to the tidewater of Galveston Bay. The capital stock was originally set at $2 million, and the organizational meeting of the company was held at Liberty. The incorporators of the railroad included William Fields, Abram M. Gentry, qv William P. Herring, George W. Smyth, and William Smith. Gentry became the first president of the company. Groundbreaking for the railroad was held at Houston on August 27, 1857, and active construction began in mid-April 1858. However, work was shortly transferred to Beaumont, and the railroad was built both east and west from that point. By this time it was evident that the promoters of the line envisioned the railroad as part of a system connecting Houston with New Orleans. On November 1, 1858, the Sabine and Galveston Bay Railroad and Lumber Company issued land grant mortgage bonds totaling $1.5 million and bearing an interest rate of 8 percent. The following year rails and equipment were ordered, and by January 1860 thirty miles were graded and twelve miles of track laid west from Beaumont. On December 24, 1859, the name of the railroad was changed to the Texas and New Orleans Railroad Company. Earlier that year, on March 17, the Sabine and Galveston Bay Railroad and Lumber Company received a charter from Louisiana to build from the Sabine River to New Iberia. This charter also granted the Louisiana Division the right to accept any act of the Texas legislature changing the name of the original company to the Texas and New Orleans Railroad Company.
  By January 1861 the railroad had constructed eighty-one miles west from Beaumont and the line was completed to Houston in May. On May 1, 1862, Gentry stated that the 110-mile line was open from Houston to Orange, but that some of the rails had been laid temporarily for military transportation needs. The railroad was used extensively as a Confederate supply line, and about 1,000 soldiers were assigned to protect it and to keep it operating during the war. Scheduled service was operated from Houston to Orange from 1862 to mid-1863 and irregular service until early 1864. The completion of a line between New Orleans and Texas was a high priority of the Confederate government, and work continued on the Louisiana Division during the early months of the Civil War. qv However, the capture of New Orleans ended all attempts to build across Louisiana. Various secondary sources indicate that General John Bankhead Magruder qv took up
 the twenty miles of track between Beaumont and Orange for use as fortifications or for other military purposes. However, an inspection of the property in 1870 as part of the court case Charles Moran et al. v. the Texas and New Orleans Railroad et al., reported that the rails east of the Neches were still in place. Although the Trinity River Bridge washed out in 1867, the Texas and New Orleans continued to offer service between Houston and Beaumont until May 1868, when all operations were discontinued. The bondholders forced the company into receivership with Judge Josiah F. Crosby qv named receiver in January 1869. During 1870 the forty-two miles between Houston and West
 Liberty was rehabilitated and the railroad reopened between those two points on June 14. However, even this limited operation ended on March 1, 1871. The Texas and New Orleans was subsequently sold in two segments. The line between Liberty and Orange was sold on May 1, 1871, while the section between Houston and Liberty was sold on October 8, 1872. The purchaser at both sales was John F. Terry of the New York banking firm of J. S. Kennedy and Company. A new company, the Texas and New Orleans Railroad Company of 1874, was organized under the original charter on July 16, 1875. Terry was named president, Crosby vice president, and T. W. Houseqv treasurer of the
 new organization. Work on rehabilitating the railroad began the following month, and the first through train from Houston to Orange over the reconstructed Texas and New Orleans ran on November 20, 1876. During the rebuilding of the railroad, the track was converted from state gauge of sixty-six inches to the standard gauge of 56� inches. In 1878 the Texas and New Orleans, the Morgan's Louisiana and Texas Railroad and Steamship Company, and the Louisiana Western Railroad Company reached an agreement to finally complete a line between Houston and New Orleans. A fourth company, the Louisiana Western Extension Railroad Company, was chartered in Texas
 to build from Orange to the Louisiana boundary. The first through scheduled train left Houston for New Orleans on August 30, 1880, over what became known as the Star and Crescent Route. Although it had taken nearly a quarter of a century, the dreams of the early backers of the Texas and New Orleans for a route between Houston and the Crescent City had finally been fulfilled. In 1881 C. P. Huntington, acting for the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, bought the Texas and New Orleans and Louisiana Western. Huntington also acquired an interest in the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway Company. With the completion of the latter company's line across West
 Texas in January 1883 and the acquisition of the Morgan Line a few months later, the Southern Pacific owned or controlled a system of railroads extending from San Francisco to New Orleans. As a result, the Texas and New Orleans also found itself as part of a major transcontinental route, which fulfilled another dream of its original backers. In 1882 the Texas and New Orleans reported passenger earnings of $235,000 and freight earnings of $1.3 million; it owned thirty-six locomotives and 1,797 cars. The Texas
 and New Orleans acquired several railroads including the 103-mile Sabine and East Texas Railway Company in 1882. In 1896 the seven-mile Texas Transportation Company was merged, as was the fifty-two mile Texas Trunk Railroad Company in 1899. Other companies merged during the early 1900s included the Louisiana Western Extension in 1900 and the Burr's Ferry, Browndel and Chester Railway Company in 1914. The company also constructed nearly 200 miles of new track during this time period. Between 1900 and 1903 the railroad built about 160 miles of track between Cedar andRockland, which connected two existing lines and formed a through route between Dallas and Beaumont. In 1903 it opened seven miles of track between Nome and Sour Lake and built a short 3� mile branch into Port Arthur in 1908. The following year eight miles were built between Gallatin and Rusk. The Texas State Railroad was leased in from the state of Texas in 1921. Although the Texas and New Orleans accounted for less than 13 percent of Southern Pacific owned mileage in Texas and Louisiana, it was the company
 used to simplify the corporate structure in the two states. On March 1,1927, the railroad leased several lines in Texas, namely the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway Company, the Houston and Texas Central Railroad Company, the Houston East and West Texas Railway Company, the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway Company, and the Southern Pacific Terminal Company. The Louisiana lines of the Southern Pacific were also leased on the same day. The Texas and New Orleans had previously leased the Dayton-Goose Creek Railway Company on May 1, 1926, and the Texas Midland
 Railroad on April 1, 1928. On June 30, 1934, all of the leased Southern Pacific properties, with the exception of the Southern Pacific Terminal, were merged into the Texas and New Orleans, creating the largest railroad in Texas with 3,713 miles of track. The Texas and New Orleans lasted until November 1, 1961, when the remaining 3,385 miles were merged into the Southern Pacific Company. Howard C. Williams
  1870
 Census indicates that he is a Rail Road Laborer in Texas
  1870 United States Federal Census
 about David C Palmer
 Name: David C Palmer
 Estimated Birth Year: abt 1828
 Age in 1870: 42
 Birthplace: South Carolina
 Home in 1870: Precincts 1 and 5, Liberty, Texas
 Race: White
 Gender: Male
 Value of real estate: View image
 Post Office: Liberty
 Household Members: Name Age
 David C Palmer 42
 Mary J Palmer 20
 Euphemie Palmer 29
 Emma A Palmer 18
 Thadeus L Palmer 15
 Lauren P Palmer 12
 Augus D Palmer 3
 Rupert Cecil Palmer 8/12
 Smith Laura Palmer 10
 Bernette C Palmer 8
  Cemetery Notes provided by Kevin Ladd:
 (note: Pinkney Loami Palmer was not David Calhoun's brother...he was his cousin)
  David Calhoun Palmer and his brother, Dr. Pinkney Loami Palmer settled in Liberty County in the early 1800s, having hailed from South Carolina. His second wife was Euphemia (Moor) Palmer, the daughter of James Calvin and Lavinia (Abshier) Moor. The Palmers lived in the Oakdale community near present-day Daisetta. He was a veteran of the Confederate States Army.


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