David Avis (1817 - 1868)

Born 14 Jan 1817 in Maryland, United States

Husband of Mary Ann (Deming) Avis — married 2 May 1837 (to Sep 1843) in Monroe County, Indiana, USA

Husband of Josephine (Falkner) Avis — married 16 Apr 1857 in Cooke County, TX, USA

Husband of Mahala Catherine (Webb) White — married 1859 in Montague, Montague County, TX

Descendants

Died 16 Feb 1868 at age 51 in Montague, Texas, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Charles Avis [send private message]

Biography

We currently have no information on David’s parents or first two decades of life. He repeatedly said that he was born in Maryland^[1][2], and his tombstone reports 1-14-1817 as his birthdate^[3]. This is consistent with his age of 44 on the 1860 census^[4] and his age of 36 when he enlisted in 1854^[5]. When, how, why and with whom David migrated from Maryland is not yet known. That he "removed with his parents to Missouri in his boyhood days and there resided until he had attained early manhood"^[6] has not been substantiated (and that source has many errors).

David first leaves a trace in history at age 20 when he married Mary Ann Deming in Monroe County, Indiana on 5-2-1837.^[7][8] There were no other Avis families in that part of Indiana at the time, indicating that he was there without his parental family. There could be a connection to the Avis families of Perry Co., Indiana which had also come from Maryland (whose matriarch was Mary wife of John Avis). This is an area of ongoing research.

Mary Ann was the daughter of Frederick Deming. This was her second marriage. Her first husband had left her (and one child) and went to Texas to fight in the Revolution.^[9]

David and Mary Ann started a family and had 2 children: James Frederick Avis^[10] and Lida Avis^[11]. According to Mary, David abandoned this young family on 3-9-1841^[12], curiously taking the same exit strategy of Mary’s first husband and headed to Texas (perhaps not directly). This was 18 days before their second child was born. Mary Ann filed for and received a divorce two years later.^[13] There is no record of David responding to this filing.

By his own account, David arrived in Texas as early as 1852^[1] giving us an information vacuum of about 11 years.

An early settler of the little north Texas town of Montague said that after 1854 “a hotel was put in by George Cox and a saloon by somebody named Avis.” That probably refers not to George Cox but his father J. H. Cox because George was born in 1852. George Cox himself stated that David Avis boarded at his family’s house in Montague and sold groceries and whiskey.^[14] With that he started his mercantile career.

Soon after settling in the area, David began near-continuous service in the defense of this community really on the edge of civilization. He first served as a private in the local Texas militia in 1854^[15] having enlisted at McKinney at age 36.^[5] W. A. Morris said that this “Montague Pioneers” volunteer infantry defended Texas frontier against “marauding bands of Indians and Kansas Jay Hawkers”.^[16] Jayhawkers were guerrilla abolitionist fighters raiding from northern states. David received a bounty of land (in Louisiana) for this service (which he assigned to another man in 1860).^[17]

The region suffered greatly from Indian raids and depredations in the mid-1850’s through the mid-1870’s. All settlers were armed and would rally to each other’s aid when attacks occurred.

In 1854, David bought 320 acres in Grayson County from a colonist of Peter's Colony, Harvey Slack.^[18] The record of that transaction indicates that David was the County Clerk at the time. In 1855, he owned another 13 acres (with no stock or other property) on Post Oak Creek elsewhere in Grayson County.^[19] A year later, David entered a claim for 160 acres of vacant land in adjacent Cooke County.^[20] He stated that he settled this land on Denton Creek about 1-19-1856 and reported having 4 horses and 11 cattle.^[21]

By 1857, he owned 320 acres on Denton Creek and the 320 acres back in Grayson County.^[22] The Cooke County land became part of Montague County when it was split off in 1858.^[23][24] David apparently abandoned the land before the required three-year residence requirement to acquire outright ownership. The land was later claimed by someone else (that claim was witnessed by David himself).^[20] He witnessed other claims in 1856, 59, 60 and 61. Perhaps he left the exposed claim for the safer environs of the town of Montague.

David Avis married Josephine Falkner on 4-15-1857.^[25] This was recorded in Cooke County. We do not know if they had children or what happened to Josephine.

David again officially took up the defense as a corporal in the Texas Mounted Rangers from 10/28/1858 to 3/28/1859 after enlisting at Gainesville. He was "discharged in consequence of the exposure of family on the frontier."^[5] Given this statement, it seems likely that during this service period, he had no family ties (i.e., Josephine was no longer in the picture). However, in 1859 he courted and married Mahala Webb in Montague.^[26][27] Then he had the reason he stated for discharge.

Mahala was the 17- or 18-year-old daughter of Jacob Webb and Mary Elizabeth Wray of Missouri.^[26] David and Mahala lived in a log house that stood west of the Montague courthouse, on the corner of the west block of the square. The old homestead was turned into a fort for defense against Indians with a stockade 8 or 9 feet high.^[6]

David told the 1860 census taker he was a carpenter. However, as the county developed, David Avis turned his saloon into a prosperous mercantile career. He became involved in the public affairs of the county. He served as a county treasurer and county commissioner of Montague County during part of its first 15 years (1857-1872).^[28] Petitions were sent to the state government in 1859 regarding frontier protection, moving the county seat and the location of the county boundaries.^[29][30][31] David signed all three.

With the outbreak of Civil War hostilities, the federal troops protecting the frontier settlements withdrew and the Confederate government did not replace them. Some of the more western frontier areas had to be abandoned due to the lack of security. The communities still had to use volunteer troops for protection from the Indian raids. David enlisted again as the Civil War raged and between 1862 and 1864 was listed in Texas State Troops.^{[2][32][33][34][35]} These troops were not used against Yankees but only for local service.

During this turbulent time, David and Mahala had four children: James David Avis (b. 1860), Frank Marion Avis (b. 1864), Mary Victoria Avis (b. 1865), and Nancy Belle Avis (b. 1867).^[14][36] James was the first settler’s child born in Montague.^[27][37] George Cox said, “He was about the first baby I had seen since I was a babe.”^[14]

Although the end of the Civil War brought a surge in settlers, the Indian raids from the nearby Indian Territory continued for a while. Family oral history says that David “died as the result of wounds inflicted in an Indian raid at Montague.”^[38] His grave marker notes his death date as 2-16-1868.^[3] Interestingly, this is only 3 weeks after the last big Indian raid into Montague County. That occurred on January 5th and 6th of 1868 and involved over a hundred Indians.^[39][40] Perhaps his wounds were acquired in that raid.

David was buried in the Montague Cemetery^[3] and has an official marker recognizing him as a Texas Ranger.

Mahala carried on with her four small children. She eventually married a dry goods clerk by the name of Cornelius White^{[14][26][41][6]} who may have worked for David Avis and thus she became known in the family as 'Grandmother White'. C. C. White became very prosperous in the mercantile business.^[6] Mahala outlived her second husband by 30+ years^[42] and was buried next to David in Montague.^[3]

Research Notes

• Have not located David in the 1840 or 1850 census yet
• Mary (Unknown) Avis is possibly the mother of David. Associating him with her family as a child of John and Mary is logical, but currently tenuous. However, the following data apply:

1. His birthplace is Maryland (as were all her known children)
2. His birth year (1817) fits with the rest of the family
3. The first record of him is his marriage in Monroe Co., Indiana in 1837 (at 20 years old). This is 84 miles north of Perry Co. where Mary died in 1840.
4. Mary's family and this David are the only known Avis' who were born in Maryland but who were not still there in 1850/1860.

• David has not yet been linked with her family in WikiTree (as of 8/21/2023) pending further research.

• The 1820 Calvert Maryland census shows a David Avis together with David Avis junior (presumably father and son). These were the only contemporary local records found ^[43], ^[44]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Montague County, Texas Voters 1867 - 1869. Texas State Archives Transcript
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Footprints. Fort Worth Genealogical Society. v. 22, p. 160 Transcript
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3} Montague Cemetery, Montague, Texas Transcript
4. ↑ U. S. Census 1860, Montague County, Texas. Dwelling no. 682 Transcript
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2} Texas Muster Roll Abstracts. Texas State Library. Transcript
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3} Paddock, Capt. B. B.. A Twentieth Century History and Biographical Record of North and West Texas. Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Co., 1906. pp. 579-580. Excerpt
7. ↑ Indiana Marriages Through 1850 “A-B”, Indiana State Library Genealogy Division. Transcript
8. ↑ Monroe County, Indiana Marriage Records. p. 149 Transcript
9. ↑ email from another researcher
10. ↑ Death Certificate of James F. Avis 1913 Transcript
11. ↑ Death Certificate of Lida Avis Hunter Transcript
12. ↑ Monroe County, Indiana Court Records. Divorce Petition of Mary Ann Deming vs. David Avis 6-5-1843 Transcript
13. ↑ Monroe County, Indiana Court Records. September term 1843. Mary Ann Deming vs. David Avis Transcript
14. ↑ ^{14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3} Cox, G. W.. Pioneer Sketches. Montague County, Texas: Montague County Historical Committee, 1911. p. 17. Cox remembers Avis family of Montague
15. ↑ David Avis Indian Wars service record Transcript
16. ↑ W. A. Morris letter to J. D. Avis (son of David Avis) 5-12-1925 Transcript
17. ↑ U. S. Bureau of Land Management Military Bounty Land Warrants. vol. 295, p. 325 Transcript
18. ↑ Texas General Land Office File 1837 Transcript
19. ↑ 1855 Tax Assessment, Grayson Co., Texas (familysearch.org: "Texas, County Tax Rolls, 1837-1910", Grayson county > 1855 > image 5) Transcript
20. ↑ ^{20.0 20.1} Texas General Land Office File 2912 Transcript
21. ↑ 1856 Tax Assessment, Grayson Co., Texas (familysearch.org: "Texas, County Tax Rolls, 1837-1910", Grayson county > 1856 > image 2) Transcript
22. ↑ 1857 Tax Assessment, Cooke Co., Texas (familysearch.org: "Texas, County Tax Rolls, 1837-1910", Cooke county > 1857 > image 2, 18) Transcript
23. ↑ 1858 Tax Assessment, Montague Co., Texas (familysearch.org: "Texas, County Tax Rolls, 1837-1910", Montague county > 1858 > image 2) Transcript
24. ↑ Troxel, Navena H.. Early Records of Montague County, Texas. Gregath Pub. Co., 1982. p. 1-2 Transcript
25. ↑ Grammar, Norma R.. Cooke County Marriages 1849-July 1879. M. D. Mullins, 1957. p. 3 Transcript, Transcript
26. ↑ ^{26.0 26.1 26.2} Fenoglio, Melvin E.. The Story of Montague County. Texas: Montague County Historical Committee, 1989. p. 91, 92, 855. Excerpt
27. ↑ ^{27.0 27.1} Johnson, Frank W., Barker, Eugene, Winkler, Ernest. A History of Texas and Texans. Chicago: American Historical Society, 1914. Vol. 4, p. 1957. Excerpt
28. ↑ Footprints. Fort Worth Genealogical Society. v. 30, p. 189 Transcript
29. ↑ 1859 Petitions in Texas State Archives Petition1
30. ↑ 1859 Petitions in Texas State Archives Petition2
31. ↑ 1859 Petitions in Texas State Archives Petition3
32. ↑ Dallas Herald, 1-22-1862, p. 3 Transcript
33. ↑ Dallas Herald, 1-29-1862, p. 3 Transcript
34. ↑ Confederate Military Service Record Index (microfilm of index cards). Texas State Library Transcript
35. ↑ Donnell, Guy R.. “History of Montague County, Texas”. Montague Co. Historical Commission, 1992. p. 180, 182, 183, 189 Transcript
36. ↑ U. S. Census 1880, Montague County, Texas, Enum. Dist. 119, p. 375. Transcript
37. ↑ "Wichitan Passes", Wichita Daily Times 9-30-1935 p. 1 Transcript
38. ↑ Billie Avis Letter to Frances Brown 4-12-1987 Transcript
39. ↑ Perryman, Levi. Thrilling Indian Raids in Cooke and Montague Counties, p. 15. Forestburg, TX: 1917
40. ↑ Smith, A. M.. The First 100 Years in Cooke County, p. 47. San Antonio, TX: The Naylor Co., 1955
41. ↑ Information from A. W. "Jake” Avis (grandson of David Avis) Transcript
42. ↑ “Burial Mrs. White, Wichita Pioneer, to be in Montague”, Wichita Daily Times, 5-6-1925, p. 3. Transcript
43. ↑ "United States Census, 1820", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHLY-KC1 : Wed Oct 04 10:53:33 UTC 2023), Entry for David Avis, 1820. (accessed 30 Dec 2023)
44. ↑ "United States Census, 1820", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHLY-KCD : Wed Oct 04 10:53:33 UTC 2023), Entry for David Avis, Junior, 1820. (accessed 30 Dec 2023)

• Davis, Ellis Arthur, Shambling, Thomas S.. The Historical Encyclopedia of Texas. Texas Historical Society, 1941?. p. 1158. Excerpt
• David Avis deeds to T. M. Tatty 50 acres in 1861. The instrument was recorded in 1890. Reverse Index To Deeds A-K, Montague County, Texas. p. 3 Transcript
• David's birth date recorded as 1/14/1817, but all data apparently entered in 1910. Family Bible of F. M. and Sally Avis in possession of Bob Gilbreath in 2010 Transcript
• Vann, Virginia & Romine, Martha. Montague Memorial Memories. V. M. Vance: Montague, Texas, 1985 Transcript
• Updated Biography of James David Avis by Piner D. Avis Transcript
• Updated Biography of James David Avis by A. W. Avis Transcript

Acknowledgements

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