Joseph M. Cox - 1) Phebe Turpin, 2) Sara Ann Lam RogersOn September 26, 1818 Franklin County, Kentucky was the birthplace of Joseph M. Cox. He was the first born of Sowyel Cox and Louisa Moxley. After living in both Kentucky and Illinois as the frontier of this new country slowly moved westward, 1837 found him in Lewis County, Missouri. Here he learned the professions of miller and sawyer to go with all the other trades that pioneers of that day must possess. It was here, too, that he met and married Phebe Turpin. After their marriage in 1839 he settled down in his profession as a miller. Joseph and Phebe's eight children were born in Lewis County, Missouri. They were: George Washington (1840), Louisa (1842), Thomas (1844), Joseph (1846), Elizabeth (1848), Solomon (1850), Mary(1852) and Samue1(1855). In the Spring of 1855 Joseph sold his mill but kept his equipment. He loaded his equipment and possessions into oxen-drawn wagons. He, Phebe and his eight children (the youngest, Samuel, was only a few months old) joined his father, Sowyel Cox, and his family, the Turpins and a few other friends for a trip to a new life in Coryell County. After arriving in Coryell County Joseph M. Cox in 1856 purchased 200 acres of land on the north bank of the Leon River out of the Antonio Arocha Grant for $900.00 cash. R.G. Grant was operating a saw mill in Gatesville at the time, but there was a great need for a grist mill to provide the new settlers with corn meal and flour. Joseph set about building his mill on the banks of the Leon River. Until the dam and water wheel was completed the mill was run by oxen-power. In 1861 Joseph purchased a one acre tract from the R.G. Grant Estate for $450.00 across the river from the mill on its south bank. This site was known as the Joe Cox Mill Place until about 1875 when it passed on ownership to the Straw family. After this time it has been known as Straw's Mill. In 1860 Joseph Cox sold Joseph A. Haynes 90 acres off of his acreage on the Leon River. In 1870 he sold the Joe Cox Mill Place containing 10 acres to D.W. Squyres and G.W. Haley for $1000.00. In 1870 he paid John E. Elroy $4500.00 for a 300 acre tract on the Vincent Mendez Survey. In 1871 Joseph sold the residue of the original 200 acre tract to A.W. Wood. The old Joe Cox Mill passed into history evidently to lose its name. But a new life and identity awaited Joseph Cox. One of the most important features of the new tract was the water supply. Located at the foot of a mountain and at the head of a draw was a cold, clear spring. It had run clear and cool from the mountain since its creation. Man and beast had used it as a place of watering and rest for unknown years. It was now to receive a new name "Cox Spring." Joseph Cox built his house at the point where the draw widened out into the valley. A stove fireplace was built on its south end and due to the unevenness of the ground the front five or six feet was off the ground while the back was even with the ground. A separate building was constructed of logs to serve as the kitchen. Then an important building was constructed next to the draw -- the springhouse. To provide a water supply all that was needed was a little ingenuity. The slopes of the mountain were covered with cedar. Joseph cut down cedars 8 to 10 inches in diameter and with an adz hollowed out to form a trough. He placed them end to end from the spring down to the springhouse and he had a ready-made flume or pipe. The water circulated through the springhouse to provide a cooler for keeping perishables. Leaving the springhouse the water went to the troughs to water livestock. Countless numbers of Coryell County residents have enjoyed the coolness and beauty of Cox Spring. The cedar troughs were constructed in about 1869. The water as it ran down there left mineral deposits of limestone and they became petrified. They still carried water as late as 1950, but the flow of the spring has diminished and the old troughs have finally become the victims of time and a few traces are all that remain, except in the minds of the people who have enjoyed the peacefulness of Cox Springs. In about 1860 Joseph's daughter, Louisa, married John K. Shipman. Four sons were born to this marriage: John David (1862), George T. (1863), William K. (1865), and Joseph (1886). Louisa Cox Shipman died in 1866 and rests in the Wood Cemetery in Coryell County. In 1862 Joseph's sons, George and Thomas, joined their Uncle Josiah in enlisting in Company "C" 24 Texas Cavalry. Thomas Cox was sent to Arkansas and was captured by the Union forces at the Battle of Arkansas Port in 1863. Three months later on March 19 Thomas Turpin Cox was dead at the tender age of 18 years. George Cox, after his service in the Civil War, came back to help his father and his brothers, Joseph and Solomon, run the mill on the Leon River. In 1869 George was married to Lurinda Jane Wise. This marriage was blessed with three children. They were: Louisa, married John O. Bridges; Samuel, married Myrtle Johnson; and Thomas, married Claudie Johnson. For a short time after moving to Cox Springs Joseph and his sons, George and Joseph, operated a steampowered mill there. Joseph's whole family lived there for awhile. Young Joseph and his wife, Susan, were living there when their son, William, was born in 1869. Joseph died there in 1870 leaving a young widow and son. Susan later married. In 1865 Joseph Cox's daughter, Elizabeth, married Napoleon "Bud" Kelly. Elizabeth and Napoleon reared a family of ten children. In 1870 Joseph Cox's youngest daughter, Mary, married James Wise. He was the son of Levi and Louisa Wise. In about 1880 James and Mary moved to the Indian Territory of Oklahoma where their ten children were born. In 1878 Joseph's wife of 39 years, Phebe, died at Cox Spring. In 1879 Joseph Cox married Sara Ann Lam Rogers, a widow with five small children. Sara Ann was the daughter of Alvey Anderson Lam and Jane Graham. Her five children were: Sterling Price, Samantha, Sarah Jane, Washington LaFayette and Elizabeth Monroe. In 1883 a son, Richard, was born to Joseph and Sara Ann. About 1898, while Richard and his father Joseph were roofing a barn, Joseph fell breaking his hip. At age 80 the healing process was slow; and, although Joseph eventually was able to walk, he never completely recovered. However, he continued to work his farm and ranch. Finally in 1908 Joseph M. Cox, age 90, died. His death certificate simply states that
he died from old age and exhaustion. Another pioneer and builder gone. Sara Ann Cox died
at the home of her son, Richard, in 1930 at 90. Richard's wife, Hattie, died in 1951; and Richard passed away in 1959. With his passing an era ended. He was the last of the Pioneers that carried the Cox name. From this sturdy stock however there are descendants scattered all over the United States. -- Eva Spence Owen
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