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I live in Matagorda, TX. Ask me a question.
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My Texas Brothers and Sisters, have ya'll ever been out here to Matagorda? One of the best kept secrets in TX, I think! Although, I have a sneaking suspicion there are many, MANY more secrets buried in the sands here. What do you think?
Here's a little history:
"Hugh Walker Hawes (1798 - 1883), my great grandfather, first came to MGI from Kentucky in 1839. He was a fairly wealthy man for his time and, by the mid 1800s, had established a lucrative receiving and forwarding business on Saluria bayou, on the NE end of MGI, where deep draft ships could unload their cargo without plying the shallow bay waters to their destinations.
Hawes also entered the ranching business, seeing the big advantage of the MGI grasses and year-round grazing. When the Civil War ended, his fortune decimated, his improvements and his home lay in ruins. He continued and expanded his ranching operation.
He died in 1883 and is buried near his homesite on the NE end of MGI; a large white tombstone overlooking Pass Cavallo marks his grave. After his death the ranching operation on the island continued on by family members until, without warning, a devastating blow was dealt to owners of all the property on the NE 28 miles of MGI.
The US government served papers (CA-55) and took away their lifelong heritage, and for many, their only livelihood. This was in November 1940, a time of national emergency and the threat of war.
On February 6th, 1941, at a hearing addressing the condemnation, at the Victoria, Texas courthouse, General Gerald C. Brant told the owners that they would get their land back when it was no longer needed for military purposes, the stated purpose for which taken. General Brant was spokesman for the government, and the landowners had to believe what he said to be fact; and binding. Interesting point- the minutes of the Feb. 6th, 1941 hearing disappeared from the Federal Court records though we do have depositions from some very prominent individuals who were present at the hearing. This hearing was conducted by Maj. L. H. Hewitt, Corp. of Eng., Galveston district.
In November 1940, some 19,000 acres on the NE end of Matagorda Island were condemned and taken for military purposes.
The stated and accepted procedure for acquiring undeveloped real estate for military usage is to negotiate with the owners and if an agreement cannot be reached, then and only then, initiate condemnation procedures.
The MGI taking (CA-55) was just the opposite; the first the longtime owners knew of the seizure by the government was when they were served papers by a US marshal, and the posting of condemnation notice (CA-55) at the county courthouse.
The owners were given ten days to remove all livestock and personal belongings; any livestock left would be shot, they were told.
The irony of this livestock removal order was that the wealthy, politically powerful and influential owners of the adjoining land on the SW end of MGI (the T.L. Wynne - Clint Murchison interests), whose land was not taken, used and grazed the condemned land all during the war an even after (1941-1947) while displaced former owners were deprived of their livelihood and suffered both physical and financial hardships."
SOURCE: [link to www.matagordaisland.com]
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"Matagorda, Texas is the 3rd oldest town in Texas, established in 1827 by Elias R. Wightman, one of Stephen F. Austin's early surveyors. At the time, this area belonged to Mexico. Afraid that the French and Native American Indians would take over the territory, the Mexican government hired Stephen F. Austin to bring colonists to the area. In exchange for a free land grant, the colonists had to become Mexican citizens and Catholics. In 1828 Wightman journeyed to his native state of New York and one year later arrived back in Matagorda with a colony of 60 immigrants (50 from New York and 10 from New Orleans).
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The Rev. Caleb Ives established the first Episcopal Church in Texas, the "Mother Church", in Matagorda in 1838"
SOURCE: [link to www.matagordachamber.com]
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