Texas Almanac, 1859 Page: 167
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DESCRIPTION OF COUNTIES. 167
DESCRIPTION OF COUNTS.
BELL.
[ Furnished by M. W. DARnox, Assessor and Collector, B. O. ]
There are a great many springs in this county, the water being limestone
generally. Some of those springs are of sufficient size to afford good mills
within a few paces of the head. There is one sulphur spring which is resorted
to sometimes for health. About one-half of this county is prairie, the soil va-
rying from black, waxey land, to a grey; sandy, in the bottoms. The timber
consists of Burr Oak, Post Oak, Live Oak, Elm, Cotton Wood and Cedar, the
latter being very plenty in portions of the county, and which is used chiefly for
fencing. There are four grist and two saw mills driven by water; one grist and
two saw mills driven by steam, and one grist mill run by horse-power, making
ten mills in this county. The average yield of cotton is about one thousand
pounds per acre in the seed; that of corn is about thirty bushels; wheat, twelve
bushels; Chinese Sugar Cane 150 gallons of syrup. per acre. The value
of improved land varies from five to ten dollars per acre; unimproved from one
to five dollars per acre. There is but very little vacant or public land in this
county, and what there is is not worth anything. There has been some land in
this.county cultivated about fourteen years; it produces as well as it did at first.
The depth of the soil ranges from three to ten feet. There are 20,506 head of
cattle assessed at $115,715. There are 3,828 head of horses assessed at $164,006.
There are 778 negroes, valued at $434,125; money at interest, $9,095; miscel.
laneous property, $38,282; land, 225,550 acres, assessed at $585,268; 114 town
lots, assessed at $47,124. Total, $1.393.615. There are 532 poll tax payers. The
State tax, $2,014 85; County tax, $1,882 76; value of property lying out of the
county, but assessed in the county, $281,121. The whole increase of this county,
since 1850, may be safely set down at ten fold. There are about 1700 sheep in
this county, the average value of which is three dollars and a half per head.
The amount of profits, per annum, on sheep, is estimated at one hundred per
cent. The wool is worth twenty-five cents per pound; it is considered that
sheep raising is more profitable than any other business, though cattle and
horses do well, and pay large annual profits. Beef is worth two and a half cents,
and pork is generally worth five cents per pound. Peach trees do very well
here, and scarcely ever fail to bear; apples do well when grafted in the red haw.
TowNs, CHURCHES, &c.-Belton is the only town in this county, and is
the county seat. It was commenced 1851 ; its population is about three hundred;
there is no courthouse at present, but one is in progress, which is to be finished
by the first of November, 1859; it is a stone house, fifty by sixty feet, divided
into four rooms below, and a stairway to go up in the centre to the Court-room
above
We have the following religious denominations in this county : Presbyterians,
Methodists, Missionary Baptists, Calvanists, Baptists, and the Christians.
Schools are conducted under the provisions of the Public School Law. There
are no private common schools, but the people seem to be much devoted to the
cause of education. I should have mentioned that there is one Oil Spring in
this county, which has valuable properties for healing old sores, &c. The oil
seems to be impregnated with bitumen, and resembles tar in appearance. About
one-third of this county, in the west part, is very hilly and undulating, the hills
occasionally rising some five hundred feet, perfectly round, coming to a sharp
point at top like regular cones, which produces quite a remarkable feature in the
landscape. This county was organized in 1850, being taken from Milam county.
The first settlers in this territory, now forming Bell county, were Michael Reed
and his two sons, William and Jefferson Reed, John Fulcher, John Dunlap, John
Earley, Geo. Chapman, John Anderson, Goldsbey Childers, and his son, Robert,
Moses Griffin, and Mr. Taylor. These hardy pioneers settled in this country, on
Little River, about the year 1834; but, owing to the Mexican War and the hos-
tility of the Indians, were compelled to abandon their homes until about the
year 1844, when they returned to their locations, and are, the most of them,
still residing in this county. They are all yet living I believe, except Goldsbey
Childers and Moses Griffin. Messrs. Childers, Grifin and Taylor, were among
the earliest settlers, and they tell of the Indians murdering a great many of the
first settlers. Houston is the nearest market, distant one hundred and ninety
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Texas Almanac, 1859, book, 1859~; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth123765/m1/168/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.