Edward Rockhill Oliver Family Papers

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: Coll-136

Staff Only

This collection spans the century between the 1850s and the 1950s. It is most notable for a ledger describing the sale of three slaves in 1859, right before the Civil War broke out. It also contains large Civil War muster rolls for the 29th Texas Calvery, many Mason documents, correspondence, photographs, and surveying maps.

Dates

1855-1955

Creator

Oliver, Edward Rockhill (1819-1902) (Person)

Conditions Governing Use

No restrictions

Conditions Governing Use

This material is made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. The user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to taking precautions against infringement of copyright and respecting the publication rights of reproduced materials. All rights are reserved and retained regardless of current or future development or laws that may apply to fair use standards. Any materials used should be fully credited with their source according to the example given in the Preferred Citation note. Requests for assistance with citations and images of publication quality should be directed to specialcollections@tamucc.edu

Extent

3.33 Linear Feet

Abstract

This collection centers on the father and son of Nueces County pioneer family Oliver as they experienced multiple wars and worked through county and city positions.

Biographical / Historical

There are two Edward Rockhill Oliver’s in this collection, the father who was born in 1819, and the son who was born in 1869. The son was not given a suffix of Junior, making some records difficult to know which to attribute to. The Oliver family first came to Texas during the Mexican-American War and Oliver promptly enlisted with the Texas Rangers. He marched on Matamoros with Zachary Taylor’s Army. He married Belinda Caroline Fulbright in Red River County, Texas in 1851. In 1860 the family moved to Nueces County and was soon embroiled with the 29th Texas Calvery raising a company of soldiers to fight, and he rose to the rank of Captain. He later served as Nueces County Commissioner. He passed away in 1902.

Oliver’s same named son, Oliver was educated in rural public schools, and later managed his fathers ranch, one of the largest in the county at the time. He later moved to Corpus Christi. Oliver then served as a sheriff and then a deputy for 16 years. While a deputy sheriff he assisted with the hanging of the last man executed in Nueces County. The man had been convicted of killing his wife with an axe. Oliver went on to serve as County Tax Collector for over a decade. He was notably in office during the 1919 hurricane and assisted with refugees at the courthouse. He passed away in 1947 at the age of 79.

Arrangement

This collection is small and is arranged into twelve files and two boxes.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

This collection was given to the Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History by William McGrue of Arkansas. The materials belonged to his wife’s family and before she passed away, she requested it be returned to Corpus Christi. Curator of History Don Zuris offered them to Special Collections and Archives. They were transferred on November 11, 2000. Acquisition of this collection was assisted by Dr. Thomas H. Kreneck.

Related Materials

Asa M. French Survey Field Notebooks Hays Dix Surveying Papers Chrales F.H. von Blucher Family Papers

Processing Information

This collection was arranged by Eric Christensen, Archivist and Book Collections Librarian for Texas A&M University– Corpus Christi’s Special Collections & Archives Department.