Historic Walker County

2.2 million yards of cotton and 293,298 yards of
wool, which were sold for both Confederate
uniforms and civilian clothing. The sum total of
profit for Texas during this twenty-one month
period was $800,000. 38
R E C O N S T R U C T I O N
Following Robert E. Lee’s surrender at
Appomattox in April 1865, much changed in
Walker County. To begin with, many families
had to adjust to the loss of a loved one who had
died in the war, while other families welcomed
home men who had to find a new place in the
civilian community. For some, this adjustment
was easier than for others. Thomas Goree, for
instance, returned home to take control of
Raven Hill plantation, which his mother had
purchased from Sam Houston before the Civil
War. In 1868, Goree married Elizabeth Thomas
Nolley, the head of Andrew Female College in
Huntsville, and soon he was selected as the
Superintendent of the Texas Prison System.
Leonard Abercrombie had similar success
transitioning back to civilian life, returning to
his legal practice in Huntsville and winning
election to represent the Ninth District as a state
senator in the 20th and 21st Texas legislature.
Other local figures proved less successful,
however. For instance, Anthony Martin Branch
returned to Huntsville to resume his political
career, but Republican legislators in the U.S.
House of Representatives refused to seat him
despite his electoral victories in 1865 and 1866.
At the same time, African Americans in
Walker County reveled in their newfound
freedom. With the abolition of slavery and the
recognition of black citizenship and voting
rights, a new day dawned in the county. African
Americans established churches, celebrated
Juneteenth, and participated in opportunities
provided by the Freedmen’s Bureau. Despite
these advances, however, most freedmen found
themselves at an excruciating crossroads. They
had no formal education, owned little property,
and had few options outside the agricultural
world to which they had so long been shackled.
There were few exceptions to this rule, but
Joshua Houston was one of them. A former slave
of Sam Houston’s, Joshua used his talents as a
blacksmith to establish a place for himself in the
new world taking shape around him. In January
1866, he purchased his own land, built a house,
and opened a blacksmith shop. He then won
election to the office of city alderman in 1867
and 1870, and was elected county commissioner
in 1878 and 1882. Joshua worked tirelessly on
behalf of local blacks and stood as a beacon of
hope to a downtrodden community. 39
Houston was not the only one to lend a
helping hand. Other prominent African
Americans in the county included: Richard
Williams, a state representative in both the 12th
❖
Above: The black “Union Church,”
which became St. James Methodist
Episcopal Church in 1869.
COURTESY OF THE HUNTSVILLE
ARTS COMMISSION.
Below: The Joshua Houston family in
October 1898 at the wedding of
Joshua Houston, Jr. ,and Georgia
Carlina Orviss.
COURTESY 0F THE SAM HOUSTON
MEMORIAL MUSEUM..
C h a p t e r I I I ✦ 1 9