Much of his younger years were involved in the military, according to John Thomas Cox, a grand nephew who reported that he served in the Missouri militia, the Mexican War, the Mountain Brigade, the Jayhawk Rebellion and the Confederacy.
He enlisted June 26, 1846 at Batesville, Arkansas in Company E, Arkansas Mounted Riflemen Regiment commanded by Captain C. H. Pelham. He later stated in a pension application that at the time of his enlistment, "I was 22 years old, 5' 11.5" high, of fair complexion." The regiment marched to Ft. Smith, Arkansas where they were mustered in July 21, 1846 for one year's service in Lt. Col. Gray's Battalion. He was stationed at Ft. Wayne, Cherokee Nation, an outpost built in 1838 at the confluence of the Neosho, Verdigris and Arkansas Rivers. The fort consisted of one long barracks and two rows of stone pillboxes. Captain Nathan Boone, First Regiment of U.S. Dragoons, was its first commanding officer. The Surgeon General of the U.S. Army in November 1840 reported "Of all the military posts occupied by troops for the past several years Ft. Wayne and Ft. Gibson are decidedly the most sickly."
Following service on the western frontier during the Mexican War the company was mustered out and returned to Batesville where the cavalrymen were given a tremendous welcoming ceremony, which, according to the "Independence County Chronicle," "has never been duplicated on a similar occasion in the county's history."
Following his discharge James Christopher Cox apparently returned to Putnam County, Indiana. He was married there August 16, 1848 to Lucinda Wright in Greencastle, Indiana, the marriage being performed by Rev. Willis G. Wright, Methodist minister [and perhaps a relative of the bride], according to Putnam County Marriage Book A, page 410.
In 1848 while a resident of Putnam County James Christopher Cox applied for a land grant which he received, according to Mary Alnora "Nora" Cox Drennan.
Later in that year James Christopher Cox and Lucinda Wright Cox moved to Arkansas to join other members of his family there and were enumerated in the 1850 census of Izard County, Arkansas, North Fork Township, Household 312-312:
"Cox, James 26, born in Indiana
Lucinda born in Indiana
Mary 3/12, born in Arkansas
Cox, Isabell 14, born in Arkansas"
[Isabell Cox in the enumeration is assumed to be a niece or cousin of James Christopher Cox.]
James Christopher Cox and Lucinda Wright Cox joined a wagontrain, which included many relatives and friends, bound for Texas in 1851.
The Cox family had always been interested in Texas, John Thomas Cox wrote in 1960:
"Uncles of Pleas Cox and Jim Cox had been influenced to go to Texas in the 1830s before it won its independence from Mexico by Wayne 'Kiowa' Owens, a fast-talking, itchy-footed in-law who had "been everywhere." He was an uncle, by marriage, to my grandfather.
Owens, who was generally held in low esteem by the Coxes had an Indian wife in addition to his white [Cox] wife. He lived with his Indian family in a Kiowa tribe at times, and at times returned to his white family. He was reported to be a very persuasive talker, but a shiftless type who would not work at anything. He was reported in Texas as early as 1819, and when he returned to Missouri he described the paradise in Tejas y Coahuila most eloquently. He offered to guide the Coxes into the vast opportunities that lay in Texas, and they, spellbound, accepted.
"I believe three of the uncles accompanied Owens to the area that later became Bell and Williamson Counties about 1830. The country was wild and lawless then, and the Indians devastated the frontier. They returned to Missouri after a short time, but they declared they would someday return to Texas.
'Kiowa' Owens visited at the old Cox homestead on Lucy Creek in the spring of 1868 or '69 and promised to return that fall. So far as I know, the family never saw him again.
Some of his descendants by his white wife were living around Pine Bluff, Arkansas some 20 years ago. I believe some Indian descendants of his used to live in Edwards County, Texas."
The Cox wagontrain crossed the Red River into Texas December 1, 1851 and probably arrived in Bell County, Texas in early 1852.
The Cox families were among the first settlers in the Bell County area. The county, when it was created from Milam County in 1850 had a population of 552 whites. At that time it included all of Lampasas, Coryell, Mills, Brown, Hamilton, Comanche, Eastland, Erath and Burnet Counties. Many of the area's landmarks still bear Mexican names that were given them prior to 1836 when Texas was a part of the Mexican state Coahuila.
Tally Houston Greer of Sweetwater, Texas reported that James Christopher Cox remarked that when he first arrived on horseback in the Florence, Texas area with his brother, Pleasant C. Cox they could have bought all the land they wanted there for ten cents an acre.
It was reported by descendants that "cousin Foster Pickett came from Indiana" to visit the Cox family, suggesting a relationship with that Indiana family.
It is believed that Lucinda Wright Cox died in 1857 in Lampasas County. She was buried in the Cox Cemetery at the site of Terreros Presidio on the farm of Pleasant C. Cox, according to John Thomas Cox.
James Christopher Cox left his children, apparently with his mother, and went to Kansas later in the year to fight in the Jayhawk War, according to "Our Cox Connections." In a pension application filed in later years he stated that he had served in 1858 and 1859 "under U.S. Marshall Kolbye [Colby] and in Captain Weaver's Company in the John Brown Insurrection." In the application he mentioned that he had "lived as a neighbor to John Bybee in Ozark County, Missouri."
According to "Kansas Historical Collections," Capt. A. J. Weaver commanded the Linn Company Volunteers who were ordered June 26, 1858 to "suppress disturbances in Bourbon and Linn Counties" by J. W. Denver, governor of Kansas Territory from his executive office at Lecompton, Kansas Territory. At that time the company, which drew the same pay as regular army, was composed of "47 men, rank and file" which could be expanded to 60. Gov. Denver enclosed commissions for "A. J. Weaver, captain; J. H. Tucker, first lieutenant; L. Gower, second lieutenant and J. C. S. Colby, brevet second lieutenant to serve at the pleasure of the Governor."
The governor attached a postscript, "I greatly regret that it is not in my power to furnish you with arms as you request, but sincerely hope that you will find no use for any."
"Bleeding Kansas" suffered for two years following the Pottawatomie Massacre which occurred May 25, 1856 at Blackjack, Kansas. The tide began to turn against lawlessness following the Battle of Osawatomie August 30, 1856.
James Christopher Cox served in the Kansas forces for about 18 months and returned to Lampasas County in early 1860.
A gold hunting expedition originated in the Lampasas area in early 1860. A party of about 100 men made up chiefly in Bell, Brown and Lampasas counties was organized in March 1860 to cross the plains and search for some rich gold troves alleged to be on the Pecos River, of whose location they had what were deemed to be accurate maps, field notes and other data.
James Christopher Cox spent $50 for a "mineral rod" and joined the expedition. The party left Belton in March 1860 and proceeded to San Saba where it was organized as a military company on April 6. Thence it proceed via Richland Creek, Pecan Springs, Antelope Creek, the South Concho, the Main Concho, up Kiowa Creek to the North Concho and out across the plains to Horsehead Crossing of the Pecos River which they reached April 27.
Then the party moved up the Pecos and spent the month of May searching for the fabled treasure. Although they searched diligently, they failed to find the gold, and most of the party returned home early in June 1860.
A second party, including James Christopher Cox lured by reports of gold on Devils River, turned southward toward Del Rio, Texas and searched for a short time in that area.
A third party proceeded to El Paso del Norte, Texas, and Col. Silas Haire, second in command in the original party, and a few others, including a Van Winkle [probably Thomas Benton Van Winkle or his son, Thomas H. B. Van Winkle proceeded northward into New Mexico.
Col. Haire settled at Rio Bonito, New Mexico, near Ft. Stanton, among the Indians where he became a government contractor and speculator. Within less than four years he acquired a fortune, but had to abandon it when the Civil War forced him to flee for his life.
Some of the original members of the party returned, sold out their property, gathered their families into wagons and headed westward to make New Mexico their home. [In 1983 some branches of the Cox and Van Winkle families had lived there for six generations.] Glowing accounts of the beautiful land of mountains, forests and rivers circulated widely after the expeditions returned. Optimistic descriptions of the opportunities influenced James Christopher Cox to visit Rio Bonito, but he declined to make the move.
James Christopher Cox was enumerated as the head of Household 94-94 in the 1860 census of Lampasas County, page 14. He was a farmer and owned $750 in personal property, but owned no real estate at that time. He was recorded living on the farmstead of his brother Pleasant C. Cox. The household was recorded as:
"Cox, James 35, born in Indiana,
farmer
Mary 7, born in
Missouri,
daughter
Franklin 5, born in Texas,
son
Martha F. 3, born in
Texas, daughter
Cox, Elizabeth 50, born in Kentucky
Colley, William 22, born in Illinois, laborer"
[Elizabeth Cox, above, is believed to be Elizabeth Johnston Cox, his mother. Apparently her age was recorded in error.
At about this time the neighboring Cox brothers had a falling-out which escalated into an estrangement that lasted for over 15 years. The hogs of Pleasant C. Cox trespassed into the cornpatch of James Christopher Cox, and the dogs were "sicced" on the hogs.
"That's my ham you're destroying," complained one. "That's my cornbread you're destroying," complained the other. No accommodation was made by either brother and no allowance was provided. Finally a neutral zone the width of a lane was declared, and neither was allowed to set foot on the property of the other.
James Christopher Cox was remarried about 1861 to Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle, daughter of Thomas Benton Van Winkle and Elizabeth White Smart Van Winkle. Lampasas County courthouse records were damaged [and some destroyed] by a fire and subsequent floods. Earliest marriage records of the county date from 1873, so it is possible that a record of their marriage license there was destroyed. She was born in Missouri in 1840 and was the younger sister of Brice Van Winkle and James Van Winkle, both of whom were born in Indiana. In the 1860 census the older children were living in their own households in the same community of Lampasas County with James Christopher Cox. These facts suggest that Elizabeth White Smart Van Winkle was related to Brice Miller Smart. A sister of Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle had married a Brice, and another had married a Smart.
Thomas Benton Van Winkle appeared as the head of a household in the 1850 census of Ozark County, Missouri. The family was rendered as:
"Van Winkle, Thomas 44, born in SC, $950
real estate
Elizabeth 42, born in
TN, wife
James 22, born
IN, laborer,
son
Brice 18, born
in IN, son
Isabella 14, born in
MO,
daughter
Thomas H. B. 12, born in MO, son
Elizabeth 10, born in
MO,
daughter
Deida Mines Smart 8, born in MO,
daughter
Andrew Jackson 6, born
in Missouri,
son
John H. 1,
born in Missouri,
son"
Brice Miller Van Winkle was enumerated at Florence, Texas as the head of Household 850-850 in the 1870 census of Williamson County:
"Van Winkle, B. M. 38, born in IN, farm laborer,
$500
real estate, illiterate
M. A. 30, born in MO, illiterate
David 11, born in TX
William 9, born in TX
Brice 6, born in TX
Mary 4, born in TX
Deida 1, born in TX"
Daniel Van Winkle, Jersey City, New Jersey who wrote "The Van Winkle Story" traced the history of the Van Winkle family back to Holland in the seventeenth century. The book, which was published by Datz Press, Jersey City, New Jersey in 1913 listed Thomas Benton Van Winkle and Elizabeth White Smart Van Winkle and their descendants with the notation, "Located in Texas."
Thomas Benton Van Winkle made an affidavit February 10, 1869 regarding his residency in Lampasas County and received a patent July 11, 1872 to 160 acres "on the north prong of Lucy's Creek, 7 miles northeast of Lampasas," according to Lampasas County Deed Book S, page 202. He sold the property July 11, 1874 to S. W. Mellow for $200, according to Lampasas County deed records.
He was involved in a property dispute March 27, 1875 with John Horst. The dispute would wind up in district court where it was determined that one half of the property, 144 acres in one tract and 320 acres in another tract, was to go to each litigant, according to Lampasas County Deed Book B, page 511 and District Court Minute Book B, page 141.
Thomas Benton Van Winkle once observed a falling star which seemed to come to earth nearby. By the meteor he predicted the death of a family member--and it was he who died shortly afterward.
A "Mr. Van Winkle," unidentified was killed July 25, 1863 in the Bandera County massacre, according to "One Hundred Years in Bandera."
Hulda Margarette Cox Howell, daughter of James Christopher Cox, related an incident with the Comanches that occurred in their early married life.
The Comanches, who frequently plundered the early settlers of Lampasas County, preferred to make their forays at night, but they were deterred by a religious belief. Their medicinemen warned them that if they were killed at night their spirits could not find their way to the "happy hunting ground." The medicinemen further counseled that if they must make their raids at night to pick only nights with bright moonlight so their spirits could find their way about if they met with disaster. Consequently the settlers soon learned to take extra precautions with their livestock on nights with a full moon.
Hulda Margarette Cox Howell related that Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox, when the moon was full, always brought her prized black stallion into the "dog run," an alleyway between the two sections of the house at night.
Once during a full moon the family was awakened by the black stallion making a great commotion, and they could hear other noises in the horselot. The Comanches were stealing the horses!
Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox insisted that her husband take his rifle and go out into the dark and drive off the Indians, but James Christopher Cox declined, stating that he would rather lose the horses than his scalp. The spirited wife took down the rifle and walked out on the porch just in time to see the Comanches making off in the moonlight with every horse the family owned--except the black stallion.
Morning revealed that other settlers in the area had also been raided and similarly lost their horses, and a posse was soon organized. Because of the raid the Coxes and the Van Winkles could muster only one horse--Elizabeth's black stallion, which her brother, Brice Van Winkle chose to ride. Other horses were borrowed from neighboring settlers, and the posse was quickly on the Indians' trail. Later in the day after hard riding the settlers came upon the Indians who were not able to travel fast with their large remuda.
The posse pulled up to reconnoiter and make a plan for attack--all except one member. Van Winkle, without any hesitation, charged. Or rather the stallion did. When the stallion recognized all his mares in the Indian herd he whinnied a greeting and broke into a dead run for the herd without any regard for the rider's reigning or frenzied "whoas."
The Indians, seeing the lone paleface charging into their midst at full tilt, immediately concentrated their rifle-fire and arrows on him--and still on came the lone charger, completely oblivious to the danger. Dozens of bullets and arrows whistled around the black stallion and his rider, both of whom came through the hail unscathed.
The Comanches, assuming that this brave rider must have some powerful "medicine," began to waver just as the black stallion entered their ranks. At this moment the entire posse surged forward to support their foolhardy comrade, and the Indians scattered like a covey of quail, abandoning their stolen horses.
The momentum of the stallion's charge carried him through the horses and into the rear ranks of the fleeing Indians before Van Winkle could turn him and bring him back to the mares he sought to join. A pale, shaken Van Winkle dismounted and, without explanation, accepted the congratulations of the posse as they arrived. Few ever learned that the intrepid charge was the result of the inclination of an uncontrolably romantic steed.
On his thirty-eighth birthday James Christopher Cox enlisted as a private in Company I, Twenty-Second Arkansas Infantry Regiment under the command of Col. George W. King March 1, 1862 at Washington, Arkansas, Hempstead County. The state of Arkansas offered a $39 bounty for volunteers, plus 10 cents per mile travel expense which may have induced him to make the 300-mile trip from Lampasas County to sign up. In addition he received a $25 clothing allowance.
The regiment lost no time in getting into action. It moved to Ft. Pillow, Tennessee situated on the east bank of the Mississippi River, 40 miles north of Memphis. From there it retreated southward as the Union gunboats began to devastate the Confederate shore defenses. On the military record of James Christopher Cox it was noted that he was absent from his regiment from March 1 to May 1, 1862--"left at Ft. Pillow." He was sick when the regiment was moved across the river back to Arkansas and was left behind.
On March 7, 1862 it was stationed at Camp Stevens, Arkansas to guard Confederate supply lines. Under constant attack from Union forces, the soldiers even slept with their weapons primed. A few days later orders came to move the regiment to Elm Springs, Arkansas, 10 miles south of Bentonville.
Later in the month the regiment joined forces with Sixth Texas Cavalry Regiment under the command of Col. B. Warren Stone and participated in the Battle of Elkhorn Tavern April 13, 1862. Col. Stone, in a report of the engagement to his superior, Gen. Van Dorn, commanding general of the Trans-Mississippi District, complimented the "Arkansas militia regiment that assisted him in protecting a supply train of the army in retreat."
James Christopher Cox was one of the last defenders to leave Ft. Pillow June 4, 1862 before it was occupied by the Federals on the following day.
The 53,0000 Confederates commanded by Gen. Beauregard were under constant pressure from Gen. Halleck's 110,000 troops after their victory at the Battle of Shiloh and found it necessary to evacuate Corinth, Mississippi May 28, 1862 and retreat southward to Tupelo, Mississippi.
James Christopher Cox and his comrades had to make a circuitous march from Ft. Pillow back to their command in Mississippi. They had to pass between the Federal forces at Memphis, those at Corinth and those scattered along the railroad connecting the two towns.
In the meantime his regiment, which had been decimated by the running battle with the Union forces, was consolidated into the Twentieth Arkansas Infantry Regiment, and he found himself in Company E of the new regiment.
The July-August muster roll records "James Cox, Pvt, returned to camp between 3 June and August 1, last paid by Capt. A. D. Fowlkes 30 April 1862. Remarks, present."
He was reported "absent, sick, fell out on the march to Corinth [Mississippi] October 20, 1862" in the September-October 1862 muster roll. Apparently he was recovered enough to rejoin his regiment in the Battle of Corinth. The Twentieth Arkansas was the only regiment of the Confederate force that was able to fight its way into Corinth during the battle.
Gen. Cabell, the Confederate commander, wrote a report of the battle which was published in "War Department Series:"
"I was ordered by Gen. Maury to move rapidly to the support of Col. Gates' First Missouri Brigade who had stormed and entered the enemy's breastworks and could not hold it for want of ammunition. The whole brigade gave the rebel yell, and we crossed the MO Railroad at double time facing terrible fire of artillery.
We got to the breastworks expecting to find the embattled Missourians, but they had withdrawn in the face of superior Yankee fire. We charged the enemy ranks. As soon as the command was given the whole line moved at double-quick, almost as a man, shouting, 'Butler' and drove the enemy before them until they reached the crest of the enemy's breastworks where an even greater force spring up, delivering a tremendous volley in the very faces of greater part of my whole line, which at that time was subject to fire from the left front of the College, as well as to the artillery fire from the battery on the south side of the railroad.
A part of the 20th Arkansas under Col. Johnson went over the works inside of Corinth, the numbers of the enemy being so great in front, at the same time being exposed to such a dreadful cross-fire of musketry and artillery on my flank and rear that the men were compelled to fall back with a very heavy loss of killed and wounded.
The courage and daring of my men who shot the enemy down in their trenches is beyond all praise. A great many, both officers and men, were wounded and taken prisoner. I have lost here many brave and valuable field officers killed, Col. H. P. Johnson and Maj. Daniel W. Jones, 20th Arkansas included.
James Christopher Cox was reported captured there by the Federals in his regiment's muster roll for November-December 1862, "absent, taken prisoner on retreat from Corinth, last paid by A. D. Fowlkes September 1, 1862."
He either escaped or was exchanged because he had rejoined his company before it participated in the Battle of Champions Hill, just east of Vicksburg, Mississippi in the middle of May 1863.
On May 16, 1863 he was wounded in the battle and was captured again. The only other report in the military record of James Christopher Cox was a final undated report from a Federal Prisoner of War Camp:
"Headquarters, Army of Tennessee, Black River, Mississippi [no date]
"Roll of Prisoners Captured by United States Forces:
James Cox, Private, Company E, 20th Arkansas Infantry Regiment
Where captured: Champions Hill, Mississippi
When captured : 16 May, 1863
Remarks : Wounded
George F. McGinnis
Brig-Gen, Commdg. Reserve"
Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant had posted an order regarding wounded prisoners that were taken in the Battle of Champions Hill and the Battle of Vicksburg which followed immediately:
"All prisoners except such as the Medical Director may require as attendants for the rebel wounded will be brought along with you. Parole all prisoners left behind and let the parole state that they were wounded, or nurses to the wounded prisoners."
U.S. Grant
Major General"
It is assumed that because of his wound he was paroled and released by Federal authorities to make the long trip back to his home the best way he could. Members of the family reported that he was wounded in the knee and that his hearing was impaired by the continuous fire in the Battle of Champions Hill.
James Christopher Cox received a deed from John W. Harrell and his wife, Sarah A. Harrell to land on Lucy's Creek "six miles northeast of Lampasas" for $250 March 18, 1865, according to Lampasas County Deed Book L, page 6. He sold the property January 5, 1867 to his son-in-law, W. Jasper Owens for $300, according to Lampasas County Deed Book L, page 7.
In the fall of 1869 Thomas Cox, his brother, a lawyer came to Lampasas County to organize a Grange. He was a protege of Gen. Sterling Price who had undertaken the Grange project to help pacify the residents of the former Confederate states which were undergoing tumultuous times. James Christopher Cox was one of the first members of the organization, and Pleasant C. Cox was its first master. Minutes of the organization, still extant today, record that the brothers continued their feuding--even into the Grange meetings.
The household of James Christopher Cox appeared in the 1870 census of Lampasas County, page 6, as:
"Cox, James 50, born in Indiana, $6,000 real
estate, $2,800 personal
property
Elizabeth 30, born in Missouri, wife
Absalom F. 18, born in Texas, son
Marthy 15, born in Texas, daughter
Julia 13, born in Texas, daughter
John 8, born in Texas, son
Jehu 6, born in Texas, son
Deida 4, born in Texas, daughter
Lucinda 2, born in Texas, daughter
Laurietta 1, born in Texas, daughter
James M. 1/12, born in
Texas, son"
James Christopher Cox recorded his cattlebrand in Lampasas County September 11, 1873, and Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox recorded her brand there February 17, 1874. These two separate recordings portended domestic trouble.
A feather bed was the downfall of the domestic tranquility of James Christopher Cox. He had promised Mary E. Cox, his eldest daughter that when she married she would receive a bed that her mother had treasured while she was living. And when Mary E. Cox married, sometime before her 17th birthday in 1870, he proceeded to take down the bed and deliver it to her new home. "That's when the plot thickened," related Amy Frances Stewart Owen, a descendant.
Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox stepped into the picture and forbade any such generosities with her household furnishings, regardless of what had been promised before or after her coming into the family. He ignored her protests and delivered the bed to his daughter. At that point Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox stated defiantly that as soon as she had discharged her obligation to raise her family under his roof, she was leaving--and she did, too, about 20 years later. For the rest of their lives they lived separately.
On January 1, 1876 James Christopher Cox transferred his farm to Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox, according to Lampasas County Deed Book D, page 280, apparently in an effort to reconcile the matter:
"This indenture made the 1st day of January in the year of our Lord 1876 from James Cox of the County of Lampasas, State of Texas, to my wife Elizabeth Cox and her heirs by me for divers good causes and in consideration thereunto, I, James Cox, grant and deliver to my wife, Elizabeth Cox and heirs forever a certain piece of land to wit: 160 acres of land situated in Lampasas County on Lucy's Creek, a branch of the Lampasas, known as Survey No. 3 and about 6 1/2 miles N39E of Sulphur Springs beginning at a stone mound on the south line of Pleasant Cox's survey . . .
I hereby relinquish to her the said Elizabeth Cox and her heirs or assigns forever all the right and title in and to said land heretofore held and possessed by the said James Cox."
Filed for record April 9, 1877 James Cox"
Cordelia Lucinda Cox, a daughter, in later years reported that the separation of her parents resulted when the children of the first marriage demanded their share of the land their father homesteaded in 1862. They did not ask for the land until after the second marriage. Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox stated that she helped to raise the four older children along with her own and contended that they should not get the land.
The partition deed was recorded in Lampasas County Deed Book I, page 389:
"State of Texas, County of Lampasas
Know All Men By These Presents that we, James Cox and Elizabeth Cox, wife of said James Cox of the County of Lampasas in consideration of the sum of One Dollar to us in hand paid by Mary E. Owen, wife of W. J. Owen and A. F. Cox and M. J. Elliott and J. A. Owen, wife of Newton Owen and for the purpose and further considerations of finally settling the interest of the vendees herein in the land belonging to the community estate of said James Cox and Elizabeth Cox have granted, sold and conveyed unto the said Mary E. Owen, A. F. Cox, M. J. Elliott and J. A. Owen of the County of Lampasas all that certain parcel and body of land situated in the County of Lampasas, being the north one-half of the James Cox 160 acres, Survey No. 3, about 6 1/4 miles N39E from the town of Lampasas on Lucy's Creek, being the same land granted by letters patent No. 116, Volume 17 to James Cox on the 10th day of July, 1863. Said 160 acres survey is more particularly described as beginning at a stone mound on the S. line of Pleasant Cox's survey . . ."
He was recorded as the head of Household No. 142-151 in the 1880 census of Lampasas County, Texas, Enumeration District 90, page 17, Precinct 6. The family was recorded as:
"Cox, James 56, born in IN, father born in OH,
mother born in KY, farmer
Elizabeth 40, born in MO, father born unknown,
mother born in IN, wife
Andrew 18, born in TX, father born in IN,
mother born in MO, son
Thomas 16, born in TX, father born in IN,
mother born in MO, son
Deida 14, born in TX, father born in IN,
mother born in MO, daughter
Cordela 13, born in TX, father born in IN,
mother born in MO, daughter
Laura 12, born in TX, father born in IN,
mother born in MO, daughter
James Jr. 10, born in TX, father born in IN,
mother born in MO, son
Hulda 8, born in TX, father born
in IN,
mother born in MO, daughter"
James Christopher Cox applied for a Mexican War pension in 1882. The application read:
"Declaration for an Original Invalid Pension
State of Texas, County of Lampasas
On this 24th day of June, 1882 personally appeared before me James Cox, aged 58 years, who, being duly sworn, according to law, declares he is the identical James Cox who was enrolled about the first day of July 1846 in a company of Cavalry, Arkansas Volunteers commanded by Capt. Charles Pelham and was honorably discharged at Ft. Wayne in March 1847.
That his personal description is as follows: Age, 58 years; height, 5 feet, 11 1/2 inches; complexion, fair; hair, dark; eyes, blue.
That while a member of the organization aforesaid, in the service and in the line of his duty at Ft. Wayne in the State of Arkansas on or about the 15th day of October 1846 he was taken ill with scarlet fever caused by exposure incidental to the service which resulted in the loss of the use of the left leg with which he has continuously suffered since date of incurrence and by reason thereof he is and has been disabled for manual labor from 1/2 to 2/3 of his time. That he was treated in hospital by Regimental Surgeon James Spring.
That he had not been employed in the military or naval service otherwise than as stated above. Service of U.S. against Mexico during that time began 1846. That since leaving the service this applicant has resided in the State of Indiana and in the State of Texas and his occupation has been that of a farmer.
That prior to his entry into the service he was a man of good, sound, physical health, being when enrolled a farmer. That he is now seriously disabled from obtaining his subsistence by manual labor by reason of his injuries above described, received in the service of the United States. That he has not heretofore received or applied for a pension. That his residence is in Lampasas County and that his postoffice address is Lampasas, Texas.
Ambrose Bradley James Cox
John Cox
Claimant Witnesses
Accompanying the application was an affidavit submitted by William J. Bybee :
"Neighbor's Affidavit
State of Texas, County of Llano
In the Pension Claim of James Cox, Company E, Gray's Battalion volunteers personally came before me, a Justice of the Peace in and for the aforesaid County and State, W. J. Bybee, who I certify is a respectable and credible person, and who being duly sworn, declares in relation to the aforesaid claim that his age is 52 years, and that he has known the above-named soldier since 1847 in Ozark County, Missouri, and his physical condition was then as follows: He, the said James Cox, seemed to be suffering from a partially paralyzed condition of the left hip and leg. I further state that between the years 1847 and 1867 that I saw the aforesaid James Cox on an average of about five times per month except in the year 1858 in which year I had no personal knowledge of him as he was living some distance from me that year. I have saw the aforesaid James Cox frequently confined to the house with suffering with his hip and leg, though it would be impossible for me to state how often I have saw him thus confined or how long he has thus been confined. Strongly I can safely state that it has frequently been for a number of weeks. I further state that I believe the aforesaid James Cox has a disability of at least one third, or in other words, that he has lost fully one third of his time since I have knew him on account of his disability, and that such disability has existed continuously since the year 1847.
I further declare that the aforesaid James Cox is no wise related to me either by consanguinity or affinity. I further stait that said Cox is a farmer by occupation.
He further declares that his post office address is Baby Head, County of LLano, State of Texas, and that he is not interested in said claim or concerned in its prosecution.
W. J. Bybee
Affiant"
On October 21, 1882 his sister, Amy Cox Smart wrote an affidavit to affirm her brother's pension application:
State of Texas, County of Burnet
In the matter of James Cox applicant for pension for service rendered in Mexican War in which he was disabled, personally comes the affiant, who being first sworn, on oath says: James Cox was born in the State of Indiana. He is 5 feet, 11 1/2 inch high, dark hair, blue eyes, fair skin. He was born in 1824, March 1, and by occupation a farmer. He enlisted about the month of June, 1846 and was discharged in March 1847 at Ft. Wain. I know that James Cox is the identical person claimed to be. That I have been acquainted with him from childhood, received letters from him frequently during the time he was in the army. That he was a stout, able bodied man when he entered and that he was permanently disabled by reason of said service.
Amy
Smart
Affiant Subscribed and sworn to before me this 21 day of October
1882.
C. C. Stewart
Notary Public
Burnet County, Texas
Additional corroboration was provided by Ambrose Bradley to support the pension claim:
"Ambrose Bradley, P.O. Lampasas, Tex. Filed March 12, 1883 Ser. in B/L 15645-160-47: Testifies that he served in same company with claimant, and at time of enlistment said claimant was in good health. That about October 30, 1846 at Ft. Wayne near the line between Arkansas and Indian Territory claimant incurred a violent and protracted attack of scarlet fever. During his illness affiant waited on him and frequently watched him during the night."
At the same time an affidavit was submitted by Dr. W. T. Johnson of Lampasas who attended the claimant:
"W. T. Johnson, M.D, P.O. Lampasas, Texas, Filed March 12, 1883 Testifies that he began treating claimant 16 years ago for a lame leg and hip, called paralysis, evidently produced by a severe and protracted attack of fever. Has treated him frequently during the past 16 years for same affliction and that for months at a time he has been wholly unable to perform manual labor. He is able now to get about and do a little work. Habits good."
The pension application was rejected in Washington April 26, 1883 with the notation:
"Claimant alleges in declaration filed August 4, 1882 that at Ft. Wayne, Arkansas about October 15, 1846 he incurred scarlet fever caused by exposure incidental to the service which resulted in loss of use of his left leg from which he has continuously suffered ever since. A.G. reports service as above. No record of any disability. Rejected: No record and inability of claimant to furnish satisfactory evidence connecting alleged disability with the line of duty."
Descendants report that he was hard-of-hearing in his older years as a result of the cannonading in the Battle of Champions Hill. In 1887 the names of 33,000 Mexican War veterans appeared on the pension roll, but James Christopher Cox did not appear among them.
James Christopher Cox was an excellent marksman, even before his military training, and used his ability as a commercial hunter at times. For 15 years straight, every fall James Christopher Cox made a buffalo hunt out in West Texas. At the end of the hunt his wagon returned ladened with buffalo hides and venison hams. The venison he sold for 75c per ham at Lampasas to the new settlers camped at Sulphur Spring.
On hunting trips that ranged far westward to the South Plains of Texas he killed hundreds of buffalo. He provided for the needs of his family during the difficult reconstruction days and during the financial depression of 1873-79 with his hunting. Venison and buffalo steaks were standard diet in the Cox household.
About 1870 the demand for buffalo hides increased sharply, and hunters found it profitable to kill the animals for their hides, making only occasional use of the meat. Hide buyers from the East gathered at points near the buffalo range. The hunters were superb marksman who penetrated the Plains with long-range rifles and wrought havoc with the Indians' beef supply. With Ft. Griffin as a supply base, Mooar Brothers, a big hide concern, established camps at Buffalo Gap and Hide Town [later Snyder]. The magnitude of the business is revealed in part by the demands of the hunters. On one day in January of 1877 E. F. Conrad's general store in Ft. Griffin sold $2,500 worth of guns and ammunition. Another supply base was at Rath City in Stonewall County. In two months, December 1877 and January 1878, at least 100,000 hides were taken. Hunting the following year was poor, and by 1880 the buffalo were gone.
Not only did the buffalo furnish food, but clothing as well. Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox utilized the buffalo "mops" for wool and spun the material into socks, shawls and other articles of clothing.
On hunting trips James Christopher Cox sought to bring in 50 head of buffalo to make the trip profitable. He hired skinners to collect the buffalo hides which were sold in Lampasas, and his sons assisted in the butchering and became skilled meat cutters. One operated a butcher shop in later years. He had a four-horse team to pull his huge, big-wheeled buffalo-wagon with their loads of venison, bear meat, buffalo quarters and hides into Lampasas for sale.
On one such trip in the fall of 1882 he took his whole family with him in the huge wagon. On this trip his youngest son, James Madison Cox, then 12 years old, killed his first deer with a cap-and-ball rifle near the present location of Snyder, Texas.
The tactic in their winter hunts was to camp at the base of the Caprock and wait for the buffalo fleeing the Plains "northers" to the comparatively warmer climate "off the cap" to pass nearby.
When the weather turned cold and wet on the 1882 trip the Cox family took refuge in a half dug-out they found near the base of the Caprock. All of the older members of the family went out to hunt leaving the younger children to entertain themselves in the camp. Later in the day a sudden downpour forced the hunting party to retreat to the dug-out. When they arrived they found James Madison Cox seated on a box playing "The Eighth of January" on the fiddle while the rest of the children danced on the floor--in three inches of water!
Some time was used by the family in making the dug-out waterproof and in arranging their bedding to clear the water before they could retire for the night. However another disturbance was to arouse the family before morning. Rats had laid claim to the deserted dug-out during its period of disuse and came out in great numbers after the family had gone to bed. James Christopher Cox was awakened by their scampering about and heaved a boot at a large cluster of rats noisily chewing on something near the head of Deida Jane Cox who was sound asleep. The rats were driven away for the moment, and he herded his family out into the wagon for the remainder of the night.
The next morning the family found that the rats had not only deprived them of a good night's sleep, but part of the little girl's pigtails as well!
Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox was the family's "medical expert," according to "Our Cox Connections" in which it was reported, "She went about visiting the sick, waiting on them and serving as midwife. She gathered roots and herbs and concocted medicines from them."
After their separation James Christopher Cox lived in the homes of his various children, moving frequently, with the grandchildren in each household vying for his visits. He regaled them for hours with stories of gold hunting, of Indians and buffalo, of damnyankees and the war, and a thousand subjects to enthrall little ears. His grandchildren held him to be a remarkable man and ascribed amazing abilities to him, "like reading the stars and predicting the future." Some declare that he had predicted the San Francisco earthquake and the Galveston flood days before the disasters occurred.
In 1887 James Christopher Cox submitted another claim for a Mexican War pension after more liberal pension legislation had been passed in Washington January 29, 1887. According to his pension files in Washington the application read:
"State of Texas, County of Lampasas
Mr. James Cox, being duly sworn says: I am 63 years of age, having been born at Monroe County, Indiana on the 1st of March, 1824. I am the identical person of the above name who enlisted at Ft. Smith, Arkansas on or about the 17th day of July 1846 in Company E commanded by Capt. C. H. Pelham in the cavalry regiment commanded by Lt. Col. Gray. At that time I was 22 years old, 5 feet, 11 1/2 inches high, of fair complexion, dark hair and blue eyes. I served in said war, in said company and regiment, until the 28th day of February 1847 when I was honorably discharged at Ft. Wain, Cherokee Nation.
Since then my places of residence have been as follows, viz: Putnam Co, Indiana from 1844 to 1846; Arkansas from 1848 to 1850; Texas from 1851 to the present time. Have lived in Lampasas County all the time since 1856.
My discharge I sent to Washington City in 1848 as proof for land warrant and received a duplicate for same which has been lost. About the year 1848 I procured a Land Warrant on account of my said military service. I hereby apply for pension and appoint R. A. Burton of Washington, D.C, my attorney, to prosecute this claim.
James Cox
Also personally appeared Ambrose Bradley, age 60 years, resident of Lampasas County, who being by me duly sworn, says that he has known the said James Cox for 41 years and that he has every reason to believe that he is the same person who rendered the service alleged in the above application in the company of Captain C. H. Pelham in the regiment of Lt. Col. Gray in the war with Mexico. The said Ambrose Bradley was a Mexican soldier and in same company with Cox during said time and has no interest in the prosecution of this claim.
J.M. Adkins Ambrose Bradley
H. E. Pulliam
Affiant Witnesses
About 1890 James Christopher Cox lived in Burnet County and Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox lived in Lampasas County. She was reported to be a strong, physical woman. At a picnic July 4, 1893 at the home of Pleasant C. Cox she stood in a bushel basket, picked from the ground a 100-lb. sack of oats and placed it on her shoulder. None of the men present could perform the accomplishment.
He was enumerated in the 1900 census of Taylor County, Texas at age 76 living in the household of his son Absolom Franklin Cox. In 1901 he operated a ranch in Llano County, living near Baby Head, Texas, however Llano County deed records did not show him as a landowner.
Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox was enumerated as the head of a household in the 1900 census of Nolan County, Texas, Enumeration District 118, page 8, precinct 3:
Cox, Elizabeth 58, born February 1842 in Missouri
Laura 30, born May 1870 in Texas"
In 1902 on a wagon trip from Nolan County to Williamson County, Texas James Christopher Cox, was accompanied by his son James Madison Cox and his family. The party was delayed by a lightening strike.
The party had stopped near a telephone pole for a meal and had tied the lines to the wagonwheels with the mules still in the harness. A sudden shower began to fall, and the party scampered to the wagon for cover. Just as they were all safely inside a lightning bolt struck the telephone post and splintered it into toothpicks with a roar "like 40 locomotives."
Then the bolt jumped to one of the mules before grounding into the wagon. The loud explosion, followed by sharp crackling, stunned everyone in the wagon. Ora Ethel Cox, who was sitting in the driver's springseat, was toppled over backward into the wagonbed. Several members of the party were rendered momentarily unconscious. When they began, one by one, to "come to" each set about to revive the other shock victims.
When all of the party was revived, attention was turned to the strickened mule which was lying in its harness against its mate.
The Cox men worked with the mule for several hours bathing its head with cold water and assisting it to resume normal breathing. Finally they resorted to "bleeding" the mule by cutting a blood vessel "in the third ridge in the roof of the animal's mouth." In those days bleeding was considered not only sound veterinary practice, but was administered to humans as well.
Late in the afternoon the mule recovered [despite all the Coxes had done for him] and the party moved on.
Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox began farming when she went out on her own. Although she remained vindictive toward her husband, she lived in the same house with him at one period after their separation. Both arrived at the home of their son-in-law Bowlin Christopher Stewart for an extended visit simultaneously.
James Christopher Cox took the extreme eastern room with the boys, and his wife took the extreme western room with the girls. Neither attempted to get the family to "take sides" with them in their difference nor were they critical of each other, but on one occasion James Christopher Cox remarked that she was "obstinate, high tempered and as hard to get along with as a Missouri mule."
Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox removed to Concho County, Texas in 1906 and was joined by her daughter Laura Etta Cox Trulove on her farm located 10 miles north of Eden, Texas. Typical of their tenacity and determination is the story the children tell about a hand-dug well. The mother and daughter lived frugally, operating the farm by themselves and hauling their drinking water. It was evident that if they were ever to have a well on the farm they must dig it themselves.
So the two women began to dig with pick and shovel, sinking the shaft a foot or two at a time and removing the dirt with a hand hoist. When the well was almost completed and the precious water almost at hand--a horse fell into the well!
There being no other way to remove the trapped animal, it was necessary for the two women to fill up the well with the same dirt they had so laboriously removed from the shaft. So, in went the dirt, a shovelful at a time until the horse found himself at the surface again and gratefully scampered to freedom. Then the women set about to remove the dirt from the well shaft a second time--after first constructing a protective fence around the well.
James Christopher Cox died April 12, 1914 at Bertram, Texas at age 90, while on a visit to his daughter Cordelia Lucinda Cox Whitley Swinney and was buried in Mohamet Cemetery. A stone engraved "James Cox, Co. E, 20 Ark. Inf, C.S.A" was placed at his grave.
His third attempt in 1893 to receive a Mexican War pension had been successful. U.S. Department of Interior, Bureau of Pensions file begun April 21, 1893 was closed on James Christopher Cox, Pensioner No. 10557 upon receipt of a questionnaire completed by C. S. Swinney, his son-in-law, April 15, 1915. The questionnaire revealed that at his death "He was a resident of Route 2, Gatesville, Texas living with his daughter, Mrs. C. S. Swinney. He was born March 1, 1824 in Monroe County, Indiana. His wife's maiden name was Betsy Van Winkle, she had not been married before, and his former wife was Lucinda Wright. He had four children by Lucinda Wright and seven by Betsy Van Winkle and Betsy Van Winkle Cox's present address is c/o W. T. Bush, Paint Rock, Texas."
On May 12, 1915 Check No. 7596091 for $90 dated May 4, 1915 made payable to "James Cox of Mahomet, Texas on Mexican War Service Certificate No. 10557" was returned by the postmaster advising that the pensioner had died on April 12, 1914, and that the check had been cancelled.
[Lennie Alpha Cox Phillips Smith reported in an interview in 1960 that her grandfather was a captain in the Texas Rangers before the Civil War, but documentation has not been located to date.]
Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle was a large woman with a great capacity for physical work. She smoked a corncob pipe which was ultimately handed to a great-grandson, Dorman Elmer Cox. She had an "air of independence," and although she was entitled to a widow's pension upon the death of her husband, she refused it.
She died in 1928 at age 88 and was buried in Concho County Cemetery at the intersection of U.S. Highways 87 and 83. Her farm passed to her heirs upon her death and the estate was administered by Paint Rock Abstract & Title Company of Paint Rock.
At her death she had a brother Jonathan Van Winkle who lived at Hot Springs [now Truth or Consequences], New Mexico. While there he operated a mineral springs bath. He is also reported to have lived Alamagordo and Weed, New Mexico. He had three sons, Arch Van Winkle, Earl Van Winkle and Jonathan Van Winkle, Jr, all of whom lived at Weed about 1915. Arch Van Winkle had a son named John Van Winkle. Arch Van Winkle, while living at Bluewater, New Mexico, was a neighbor to the Coxes when they lived in New Mexico. He bought their household goods when they sold out and returned to Texas.
The three aforementioned Van Winkle sons, a Parker and a Potter, all of whom were cousins to the Coxes, lived in the Weed area when James Madison Cox was killed there in 1916.
Children born to James Christopher Cox and Lucinda Wright Cox include:
Mary Emma Cox born about 1849
Julia Ann Cox born about 1851
Absalom Franklin Cox born in May 1852
Martha J. Cox born January 11, 1855
Children born to James Christopher Cox and Elizabeth T. "Betsy" Van Winkle Cox include:
Samuel Andrew Cox born May 3, 1862
Jehu Thomas Cox born April 23, 1863
Deida Jane Cox born January 30, 1865
Cordelia Lucinda Cox born November 8, 1866
Laura Etta Cox born May 23, 1868
James Madison Cox born March 15, 1870
Hulda Margaretta Cox born May 28, 1872
James Christopher Cox reared two other boys, John Sneed and Perry
Sneed, according to "Our Cox Connections." Their father had been
murdered by "a gang of five or six men." The boys were witnesses
to the murder and vowed to revenge their father when they grew up.
They succeeded, according to Mary Alnora "Nora" Cox Drennan, killing every
member of the gang in later years.