Squire Humphries (abt. 1818 - 1841)

Born about 1818 in Texas, United States [uncertain]

Died 1841 at about age 23 in Shelby, Republic of Texas

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Biography

Squire Humphrey served in the Republic of Texas from July 1836 to September 1836 and received a Bounty Land Grant on 19 Dec 1837 in Harrison County which was later Panola County.^[1] Squire was a Moderator in the 1840-1844 Regulator Moderator War in Shelby County, Texas and surrounding counties.^[2] Squire was hanged in 1841 by a group of Regulators led by their leader Watt Moorman (Charles Watt Moorman (abt.1817-1850)).

Research Notes

There is no direct evidence of Squire Humphrey's parents but it is likely that he is the son of William Humphrey as described below by Gilbert Cuthbertson. Squire's birth date is also a potential issue if his father was born about 1795. However, it is possible he was born about 1818 when his father was 23, served in the Republic of Texas at 18 and then acquired a land grant in Shelby County at 19 and died about 23. However, additional research may uncover different parents for Squire.

"In additional testimony, Robert T. Hughes knew William Humphries in 1841. He lived with Jesse, who may have been his brother, on the Attoyac River at Powdrill Settlement. Hughes ran the post office for this community. He also met Squire Humpries, who was hanged in about 1842. According to Hughes, Squire was a son of a Mrs. Humphries, probably William's widow, who married Sam Strickland, brother of 'Tiger Jim' Strickland of Regulator Moderator fame." ^[3]

Quotes from Bill O'Neal's book War in East Texas: Regulators vs. Moderators:

Page 11

"Moderator Faction, Shelby County, Squire Humphries, horse thief"

Page 36

"Jackson and his first band of Regulators, whether fourteen or twenty-three or thirty in number, pursued and captured a trio of stock thieves who had stolen about thirty horses. The Regulators seized Squire Humphries, who held an isolated headlight in northwestern Shelby County; his brother-in-law, a young man named West; and West's father."

Page 39

"The Strickland brothers often hid out in the canebrakes and forests of Shelby County and Panola District. They waylaid travelers, sometimes using Squire Humphries as an accomplice."

Page 54

"Humphries became Moorman's enemy, and Watt did not consider their score settled. Colonel Moorman settled the score shortly after the execution of the McFaddens."

Squire Strickland was born about 1819.^[4] Squire is shown in the transcribed 1836 Census of Tenaha census as female but this is likely an error as Squire was typically a male name. He/she is listed in the census with parents and four siblings. Squire's death date is unknown.

Sources

1. ↑ Republic of Texas Bounty Land Grant for Squire Humphries, 19 Dec 1837, Harrison/Panola County, Texas, USA.
2. ↑ Bill O’Neal, War in East Texas: Regulators vs. Moderators, University of North Texas Press.
3. ↑ Cuthbertson, Gilbert M. (1996) "The Mystery of Pelham Humphries," East Texas Historical Journal: Vol. 34: Iss. 1, Article 10. Available at: https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/ethj/vol34/iss1/10
4. ↑ 1836 Census Report of Tenaha, Nacogdoches Archives