RED RIVER CAMPAIGN
& BATTLES OF MANSFIELD, PLEASANT HILL AND YELLOW BAYOU
General Banks was determined to make a name for himself by invading and conquering Texas for the Union cause. He designed a mixed-up multi-pronged attack which was doomed to fail, but give the Texas boys a taste of war. Magruder sent as much help as could be scrounged up on short notice to save Louisiana and prevent any further incursions into Texas. Madison's 3rd Texas Cavalry answered the call and saw plenty of flying lead to satisfy the most serious case of war fever.
[I snipped this from the Texas Historical Association website:]
In June 28, 1863, Col. Phillips' "Bloody Third" took part in an ill-fated attack on Fort Butler at Donaldson, Louisiana. During this battle a slightly wounded Lieutenant Colonel Madison and his men were pinned down by relentless rifle fire in a brick-lined ditch with no easy means of withdrawal at their disposal. They fought until dawn when they were finally able to escape under a flag of truce. George Madison assumed command of the Third Arizona, which suffered casualties equaling more than one-third of its former strength.
The Yankees were stalled for a season...
Madison's regiment, what was left of it, left Louisiana for Texas along with the rest of the Arizona Brigade, and manned the coastal defenses through the winter of 1863–1864. They stayed at Galveston where they attempted to rest and replenish their commands.
Later the Yankees, once again led by General Nathaniel Banks made one last attempt to take Texas, this time by floating the Union army up the Red River.
Green's Cavalry would be there to greet them. General Tom Green was a much-loved Texas congressman, Indian fighter and veteran of the Texas Revolution. Later he fought on the Somervell Expedition and with Jack Hayes during the Mexican War. General Green was considered a Confederate hero after the Battle of Valverde in New Mexico, and had led the men aboard one of Magruder's cottonclads at Galveston, and was one of the mightiest warriors that Texas had to offer. Just a part of his brigade, after the Fort Butler episode his 3rd Texas Cavalry was known as "Phillip's Bloody Third." But in fact it was commanded by Colonel George Madison. Their experience in Louisiana would be invaluable to the next conflict.
Madison's (Phillip's) 3rd Texas Cavalry had earned high praises during the first Union invasion, also providing reconnaissance and cavalry support during the battle of Sabine Pass. They were to distinguish themselves again in the Red River Campaign at the battles of Mansfield, Pleasant Hill, and Yellow Bayou, in 1864.
Major General Richard Taylor's approximate force of 9000 marched off to face a well supplied Federal invasion of upwards of 30,000. Numerous Texas brigades moved back to Louisiana in April of 1864 to help counter the Federal movement of naval vessels, supply wagon trains cavalry, heavy artillery and battle hardened infantry borrowed from Sherman's army up the Red River. On April 8th and 9th the Texas welcoming committee encountered the enemy's main line in a running battle that stretched from near Mansfield to Pleasant Hill, Louisiana and over the next several weeks participated in several skirmishes. Between hard hitting, bloody, sometimes reckless attacks, and deceptively noisy and grandiose marches to fake a much larger force, The Confederate forces caused the Union to turn-tail and run. This was made possible by unhorsing hundreds of cavalrymen, including the 3rd Texas. Madison's "Dismounted" Cavalry provided the top jaw of at least two of these legendary Confederate victories, often so far into the fray they were fired upon by other Rebel brigades.
But not without great cost. Generals Buchel and Green were killed, and over 2600 men with them. The 3rd Texas fought a number of battles in Louisiana under General Tom Green, drawing much praise from Taylor, son of former President Zachary Taylor, and Commander of the Trans-Mississippi. He once wrote:
“The fighting was severe for a time, but Walker, Green and other leaders lead on our tired men, and we camped on the creek as night fell, the enemy forced back some 400 yards beyond, the conduct of our troops was beyond all praise. There was no straggling, no plundering.”
Incredibly, still full of pluck, on May 27, 1864, Col. Madison, with only 200 men left, the "Bloody Third," engaged three Union regiments totaling almost 2,000 men. After retreating to Bayou Fordoche, Madison's forces held their ground and managed to push the Federals back toward Morganza.
Leading his faithful cavalry in a charge, the legendary General Green was killed at Blair's Landing, in a bizarre battle between Confederate Cavalry and Union gunboats! The Texans swarmed a beached gunboat like Texas Comanches, and gained the awe and respect of the United States Navy, as they riddled the ironclad vessels with relentless fire. The gunboat responded with deadly accuracy, killing the Confederate General. Their General dead, the Texans attacked even more furiously, until all were exhausted from the heat. Even though this made General Major the ranking officer, he allowed General Parsons to lead his blazing Partisan Rangers in the firefight, where the bloodied Texans poured an Alamo style of rage into the stranded gunboat, making the return fire almost impossible. It was a costly exercise to have lost this general, and would only be the beginning of Parsons Partisan Rangers dominating the field. They would prove to be fearlessly game, and their Texas bravado was a difficult and sometimes foolish act to follow.
Upon Green's death, command was taken over by Brigadier General John Austin Wharton, who had cut his teeth in the Army of Virginia, and the Texas cavaliers soon got a taste of the "big leagues," and the value big time generals put on their lives. Having requested a transfer to the Trans-Mississippi after a personal squabble with General Wheeler, Wharton came to save face and whip the Yankees, no matter what the cost, and drive them back to the Gulf. Now he had his chance. He succeeded in turning the Yankees around, but his thoughtless orders cost many lives. Finally they met their match at Yellow Bayou, when the Yankees turned in the middle of retreat to give the Texans a spanking they would never forget. In a plantation bottom near Simmesport, Louisiana, they stumbled into one of the most deadly and significant battles west of the Mississippi.
Captain Durant was wounded near Vidalia, Louisiana, which would have been behind enemy lines during the battle of Yellow Bayou. Before the day would end, he had two horses shot out from underneath him in the heat of battle, and a third one wounded like himself. Over 450 of his countrymen died here as they paid the ultimate price to satisfy Wharton’s whim to harass the Union retreat down the Red River and frustrate General Banks and his army. A poorly orchestrated engagement, the Texans dismounted and charged straight into the Federal lines, ordered by General Wharton to plunge into the jaws of death. Parson's elite Partisan Rangers were decimated.
The Union had lost only 38 men, but 226 were wounded. These seasoned veterans, on loan from the Union's General Sherman, would later remark that these Texans attacked "with a stubbornness and impetuosity" that reminded them of Nathan Bedford Forrest. But these words of respect and admiration from the enemy were hardly worth the casualties inflicted. Yellow Bayou was remembered by both sides as one of the most severe battles of the war. Madison's "Bloody Third" had lived up to its name as well and eventually limped back to Texas.
Later Colonel Debray would call it an "unfortunate and unnecessary affair." Thank God that the Union invaders were battle weary and exhausted from the Louisiana heat and humidity, and resumed their retreat. Both sides lost in this epic struggle. General Grant later called the affair a disaster. That, in some minds, made the CSA the winner.
Grimes County men who fought under Capt. G. W. Durant, Company B, Madison’s 3rd Texas Cavalry, and buried in Grimes County, Texas. Many more were left behind in Louisiana and buried there after the battles of Mansfield Pleasant Hill, Ft. Butler and Yellow Bayou.
Sargents:
Magee, Felix Winchester 1845--1924, Sgt. Co B, Madison’s Reg Tx Cav
Taylor, Wilson Sgt. Co B Madison's - Tx CAV
Wise, Sherwood Sgt. Co B, 3rd Cav
Privates and Corporals:
Barrett, Charles W. Pvt Co B Madisons - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Bock, Isadore 5-14-1844 11-20-1891 Pvt Co B, 3rd Reg Cav
Brown, George Thomas 1840- 1908 Pvt Co B, Madison's 3rd Tx CAV: We know from the dogged research of Lawrence T. Jones that young George Thomas Brown was recruited at some point later. Jones has published a wonderful photo of him in his series of Confederate calendars which someday he may grant me permission to share with you.
Byrne, D. D. 1830 8-31-1888 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Chaney, Hiram C. 1832 1912 Co B, Madison's TX Cav
Churchwell, W. Daniel 1865 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Davis, James C. 8-15-1844 12/02/33 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Dowell, James 3-23-1827 1-13-1877 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
? Flynt, Henry L. 1825- 1864 Pvt. Co B TX CAV 3rd Regt.
Fulgham, Ezekial Wood 9-26-1846 8/7/1905 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Mallett, John Collier 10-10-1817 02/19/02 Pvt Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
McKeown, John H. 9-7-1835 7/18/1903 Pvt Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
McNair, Rodrick 6-1-1800 3-24-1870 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
McWhorter, Andrew N. 1833 2-29-1904 Pvt Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
McWhorter, W. B. W. 1828 1875 Cpl Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Mize, J.N. 6-21-1841 9/22/1924 Pvt Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Moon, Jesse N. 1835 1896 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Neely, David Madison's - Tx CAV
Neely, G. M Madison's - Tx CAV
Neely, Henry 9-16-1829 6-2-1882 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Neely, J. C Madison's - Tx CAV
Neely, J.H. Madison's - Tx CAV
Neely, J. W. Madison's - Tx CAV
Neely, John 1803 1874 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Neely, Terrell L. 4-29-1840 7-29-1890 Co B, Madison's Reg Tx Cav.
Neely, William Madison's - Tx CAV
Rogers, Arthur T. 01/17/05 02/14/05 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Savel, J. Perry 7-4-1834 11/12/1906 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Smoot, Oliver H 01/03/05 02/17/05 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Taylor, Robert Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Trant, Samuel 1843 1905 Pvt Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Turner, J. W. 4-3-1832 8 -10-1896 Pvt Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Upchurch, Jesse M. 12-7-1850 4-10-1916 Co B Madison's TX Cav
Wells, Hugh J. Cpl Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
White, Joseph 1829 5/14/1911 Pvt Co B Madison's-Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Williams, Alex 1845 1917 Co B Madison's - Tx CAV (Durant's Co)
Meanwhile back home, brother James Durant was working to fill a CSA contract, making barrels for the government. He ran an advertisement the Houston Tri-Weekly Telegraph, which read;
Wanted to Hire -- Thirty Good Coopers for whom I will pay a liberal hire to be
employed in making flour barrels for the C.S.A. Persons hiring them to me will
be entitled in the Labor Bureau to a credit of two common hands for each cooper
thus hired.Address me through McKEEN & Co., Houston; TRABUE & DEADRICK,
Millican; or myself at Wheelock.
J. B. DURANT, Wheelock, January 23, 1864.
My guess is these barrels would have had a more warlike purpose than flour, as in the storage of gunpowder. But the war was grinding to a halt, even as Texans found a second wind. Captain Durant had finally tasted of defeat and General Wharton would never recover politically from his callous disregard for the lives of his fellow Texans. Generals Debray, Baylor and others believed that Wharton wasted too many lives with an attack that lacked purpose, and in fact hindered the Union retreat.
During a shortage of Generals in Texas at the end of the war, Major Durant served in the capacity of a Brevetted Brigadier General on the Confederate Board of Inquiry, which commissioned Confederate engineers in the state. Since the war ended in defeat, his promotion never became official, and he mustered out of the Confederacy as a Major. But this son of a South Carolina planter had farming in his blood, and would add much more to his legacy in peacetime.
After the war he was known simply as "the Major", and enjoyed great respect from the community and his loyal men of the Magnolia Rangers, and others who fought with him. He was cut from the same cloth as Stonewall Jackson, whom he favored in appearance as well as popularity, in spite of defeat. It was the South that produced the most beloved leaders that inspired generations of loyalty. They were throwbacks to the old Scottish chieftains like William Wallace and Robert the Bruce. Many family clans organized and fought the whole war together. The battles, whether won or lost, tempered the steel of their kinship and the undying friendship that lasted all the way to their graves.
A UDC meeting under the grand old flag, around 1900.
One such family from League City, ironically named Coward, provided numerous recruits to serve under the Major, including his First Lt. Miranda Coward. These were the kinsmen of the fifteen year-old lass who lovingly presented that large flag, which according to legend was matched only by her enormous crush on their color sergeant named John Kipp. It was she that helped to sew and present the flag, and her kinsmen who brought it home and stored it for safe keeping, faithfully draping it over the caskets of their fallen Confederate brethren as they passed on over the years.
PUTTING DOWN
(shallow)
ROOTS IN BRYAN
After the war Major Durant had a different kind of kinship on his mind. He headed straight into romance. During the war he had met someone special. His family had moved into the middle Brazos Valley, and settled in Bryan near his cousin, Senator John Wesley Durant. He spent some time in Leon County, where he took serious note of his distant (enough) cousin Emma Durant, whom he married in 1865. She was barely sixteen, half of his age, and today their affair would be a scandal. But they were of French Huguenot stock, and intermarrying between distant cousins was preferable to mixing with infidels!
PATENTED INVENTIONS
and
TRAGEDY
While living in Bryan, brothers George and James Durant invented this improved fence post socket in 1873.
Major Durant, his wife, his father, sister Eliza and brother James and his family stayed in Bryan during the next fifteen years. The two brothers farmed and experimented and invented and patented inventions to improve the science of agriculture. In the 1870's, they were granted patents on such things as an "improved fence post socket," and a water well strainer, or a kind of well screen. Nearly a hundred years later, my father, who worked for a company that manufactured well screens, discovered his great grandfather had originally held the patent on it! Proof that the acorn does not fall far from the tree.
The Durant water-well strainer patented in 1895.
But this was a very sad time for the Durants. Pioneer life, yellow fever, and primitive medical facilities took their toll on this Texas family. In 1868 brother James' first daughter died before the age of 2 years, then his wife gave birth to another daughter. Then she died and the second baby followed a couple of months later. In 1875 brother James himself died and their sister Eliza, the mother of five children, died soon after. Major Durant's father passed away at age 77 in 1879.
On his tombstone in the Bryan City Cemetery reads: "His last words. Jesus take my soul."
Besieged by tragedy, the G. W. Durant family around 1880, right before they returned to Mustang Slough, (Alvin) in Brazoria County.
After all of this tragedy, it is easy to understand why they chose to get a fresh start at their old property in Brazoria County. They were still calling Bryan home when the 1880 census was taken in July and are believed to have relocated sometime in the later part of that year.
All the Durants left behind in Bryan were a cluster of curious marble tombstones... the location of which remained a mystery to descendants for almost a hundred years.
Gravestone of James Durant.
You might find my great, great grandfather's, brother James' gravestone interesting. It would have probably been Major George Durant who oversaw design and installation of this marker for his closest brother and co-inventor. Members of my family had never seen it, for generations, as it was out of our new epicenter in Houston and this line was strangely neglected. Their father, my XXX grandfather, Frances B. Durant is buried there as well. One day I drove into the Bryan Cemetery, and only knowing from my father it was supposedly there, instinctively drove to the highest ground and within literally minutes walked straight to it.
You can imagine my amazement. No wonder Ginny never took anybody to see the markers... they were scary! But someone had planted yucca and cedar, which had prospered for perhaps a hundred years... and the caretakers had carefully repaired the markers over the years as necessary. Apparently, brother James, a Civil War veteran as well, was best memorialized with a skull and crossbones! Around what appears to be St. Andrews Cross, are the words in Latin, "by this sign conquer." These are all allusions to the symbolism known to be used by the Knights Templar, and although some is reminiscent the Southern Confederacy, most of it is much, much older, at least back to when French buccaneers adopted the "Jolly Roger" as a popular challenge to the Roman Church, after the Knights Templar, who originally adopted the symbol, were supposedly exterminated. But it seems at least their symbols were not, and venerated for hundreds of years later...
{NOTE: Thanks to blog reader "Ed G" we are told that the skull and crossbones on the Maltese cross was a symbol known to The York Rite of Freemasonry (as opposed to the Scottish Rite).}
ALVIN: A NEW START
IN AN OLD HAUNT
Years earlier, the Major had been instrumental in convincing the Houston Tap & Brazoria, predecessor to the Santa Fe Railroad to build its tracks through the land that would become Alvin someday. Mustang Station was established because Durant wagered with his friend, and then president of the railroad that a line from Houston through Brazoria County would be shorter and better. Durant offered to pay for the survey necessary to establish the feasibility of the route, if the Santa Fe did so and then still decided against it. He never had to pay on that bet, and continued to invest in land around the area, with full intentions of establishing a town there. But the young surveyor would fight a war, start a family and then bury almost all of his extended family in Bryan before returning permanently to Brazoria County.
By 1880, Alvin Morgan had been operating the Santa Fe Station for at least four years, and had built his house and established a frontier watering hole for the trains and cattle drives, bringing their Texas longhorns to market. He ran a store out of an abandoned boxcar. There is no doubt that he was the first one to take advantage of the geographic advantages of Mustang Switch. They called Morgan's little cluster of commerce "Alvin," after this colorful character.
There is probably no truth to the legendary deal whereby Alvin Morgan gave up claims of "squatter's rights" to George Durant in trade for giving the town his name. The Major never quibbled about the name of the town. In fact all of the myths that have fed the supposed animosity and trouble between the two are fantasy. The two men had known each other for years. Both had worked with and for the railroad. Both were Confederate veterans. Both saw great potential in the area. Both came to take advantage of their investments there. The future looked so bright for Durant's old stomping grounds that a silly feud with Alvin Morgan would have been considered counterproductive to both of their ambitions; to make money.
There was a healthy dose of friendly competition and teamwork necessary in any frontier outpost. There was room for everybody. If the Major had been jealous of other players, he would not have spent his own money to advertise Alvin as a gardener's paradise. If I accomplish one thing, I hope it will be to put this silly controversy to rest. It was probably fed by some of my own family, who worried that George Durant would be forgotten by future generations, since the town was named for Alvin Morgan. If Alvin was the founder, then they contended that Durant was the "Father of Alvin".
Major George Durant built this modest frame house for his family in Alvin.
The Major saw irresistible opportunity in Alvin and moved his home there to establish orchards and gardens that would occupy him for much of his life. He had many friends in the Alvin area, including Alvin Morgan, and many that had served under him during the war, and he found a perfect place to raise his family and his crops.
He and Alvin Morgan swapped lands back and forth, while the Major attracted partners to join him in sub-dividing tracts of land for the development of Alvin. Major Durant and two partners, Hobbs and LeClere, subdivided the site that became the main business district of Alvin. Acting as a self-appointed chamber of commerce, he and partner L. M. Disney advertised their residential lots in newspapers in the North.
Sash Fastener invented and patented by G. W. Durant in 1901.
Ultimately George Durant purchased 83 acres of prime Alvin Real Estate, and prospered as he farmed and subdivided the land. These subdivisions provided lots for new families and businesses, so the town could develop into more than a stockyard. While Alvin Morgan managed this frontier whistle stop, he saw an economic crossroads blossom. There were no neighborhoods, churches or streets, no business district. But George Durant saw a community in the making. The Durants were instrumental in the donation of land and money needed to build the First Christian Church, and were known throughout the community as great contributors to the success of Alvin as a town.
Brown's Indian Wars and Pioneers of Texas described George Durant as always ready "to forward any cause that gave promise of promoting the welfare of his town and people."
Jasminum Grandiflorum- Cape Jasmine, one of several varieties grown by G. W. Durant.
A patented inventor, George Durant was a natural problem solver. Coastal Texas proved to be a unique climate, but popular fruits did not do well down here. A devoted nurseryman, he kept experimenting until he found compatible species for this area. He planted pear orchards, (hence Pearland) pecan groves and experimented with peaches, figs and even kumquats to find the best cash crop for Brazoria County. He loved to grow and crossbreed roses, and it is a firm memory in my family that he successfully bred a "blue" (green) rose, which he tried to patent.
But he is remembered best for the cultivation of his hardy varieties of cape jasmine, better known around here as gardenia. Commercial demand was so great for his flowering plants that they worked their greenhouses 24 hours a day. He pioneered the use of rail cars to ship produce and flowers to market, engineering methods to get them to market fresh and unspoiled, and was known to have sent as many as 1,000,000 blooms a year to Chicago for Decoration Day parades. From 1887 to 1898 he and his employees filled the air in Alvin with the sweet perfume of Texas grown gardenias, which were shipped all over the country.
His success in this industry attracted many other competitors, who also saw the natural resources and climate in Alvin as ideal for the nursery business. Alvin became the "Land of Plenty" and was advertised as the "Bright Summer Land of Fruits and Flowers". Promoters would claim that it was the "Educational and Commercial Centre of South Texas." I will leave it to history to decide who created the vision of what Alvin was to become, but surely Major George Durant had his finger in the stew.
The Major about 1910.
Satisfied to work behind the scenes, my great great grandfather just enjoyed being a part of the solution to any problem in his community. Most of his contributions were just practical solutions to everyday needs to help growers succeed in the region. He never cared about wealth or fame. He just loved to grow things, and growing Alvin, Texas was just a result of the passion he had for life. He was more than happy for others to run the town. Remembered today by some as the "Father of Alvin," he would have chosen merely "friend of his fellow man". According to family lore, he objected to giving the town his own name and even left it to others to incorporate his little community. Today a street downtown bears his name. I'm sure that was enough for him, and it pleased him as much as it does his great-great grandchildren.
Emma Durant wearing a beautiful corsage... a fitting decoration for the wife of a renowned Brazoria County flower grower.
The Durants only had one child, a daughter Virginia, who was his perfect rose, but unlike her father's fruit, fairly spoiled. A pretty Southern Belle, she relished in the prosperity and status of her family, and was readily received in the highest circles in Brazoria and Galveston society. She loved marriage and did so twice, first to John Louis Bering, with whom she had three daughters; May, Martha (Daisy), and Emma. Later she married George McDougald, who gave her two more daughters, Nell, my grandmother, and Mildred. My grandmother was born in Alvin on January 1, 1900. During the 1900 storm, which took a great toll on the community, she was laid in an iron bathtub, while the Storm threatened the Durant home and destroyed others. Her mother temporarily moved to Navasota, and Houston, and elsewhere, but "Home" was always back at the farm in Alvin. Her daughters would also be spoiled by the old Major, who loved having them around, and kept them often.
The spittin' image of Emma Durant, my grandmother Nell McDougald and her mother Jennie Durant McDougald.
The next to youngest, my grandmother, told me many times about loving to swim and ride horses on her grandparent's farm.
Nell swimming with the Blakeleys on Galveston Bay. She was pegged to marry a Blakeley boy but fooled everyone.
One of my prized possessions are her riding spurs, which she wore during those times. She remembered as a child camping out with the cowboys who worked the cattle, eating from the Dutch ovens at the Chuck wagon, and sleeping under the stars in the open coastal plains. She had the permanent smell of salt grass in her nostrils, and would often reminisce about riding through Durant's orchards with "the wind and the rain in her face". She once told me "We didn't care about a little thunder or lightning. We loved to be out of doors, in any kind of weather".
Granddaughter Daisy Bering was the looker in the family.
While her mother enjoyed high society and looked for a husband, Nellie spent a great deal of time in Alvin, soaking up the simple country life, where she "could be a tomboy". Happiness to her was a sun-ripened piece of fruit, right off of the tree; Homemade mayonnaise; A sudden squall out of the Gulf blowing in and soaking the land; A big family gathering where everybody piled in the house for a party. The more the merrier. She learned many of these things from her grandparents, especially the Major, who left her a legacy of self-improvement and selfless service, and the daily goal of making the world a better place. Although she was just a young woman when he died, and he had been old and blind for years, he still managed to convey to his granddaughters a lasting impression...
And she to me. And my brothers and cousins as well.
Three of G. W. Durant's granddaughters; Daisy Clark, Emma Gray and Nell Cushman.
My grandmother was an extraordinary person. A relentless peacemaker and hostess and an indulgent mother, I am sure that her character was largely shaped by this man. Although she was an invalid, paralyzed from numerous strokes, she had the mental power of a general, and directed her household from a sofa rocker in the living room. When she left the room, usually with assistance, her life-sized portrait took watch over us, and we acted as if she were still in the room. We were so devoted to her, she could command that we come to her and lay across her lap for spankings, and we would comply, never considering that she could never chase us down. This would rarely happen, because pleasing her was foremost in our minds.
A delightful conversationalist, she loved to expand our youthful minds about art, religion, history, and always, our family heroes. She carried George Durant's legacy with natural zeal and never, ever complained about her disability. She never thought of herself, and always put others first, and was of course, the most popular person in the neighborhood. All of the children in Park Place and most of the available cousins chose to hang out at her home in Houston, which was always open to guests and new friends.
She would not tolerate disloyalty or ingratitude, and never cultivated malicious gossip. One favorite saying of hers that I remember went like this:
"There is so much bad in the best of us,
and so much good in the worst of us,
that it little behooves any of us
to say anything about the rest of us."
The Major at his Alvin home with a great grandson.
George W. Durant died in 1918, and was buried in Glenwood Cemetery in Houston where Ginny had made her home. To me this was a mistake, not placing his body in the town he loved and gave the better part of his life to. I regret her decision, but at the time, she was like the rest of us, unaware of how important Alvin and our heritage here would be to us.
The Major with great grandson Jack Clark.
George Durant descendants at a Confederate marker dedication; left-right-
Tristan Cushman, Ralph B. Cushman Jr., Russell Cushman, Robert Cushman, Joy Cushman and Richard Cushman. Note the similarity between Major Durant and Ralph Cushman, his great grandson.
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