History of Texas, Together with a Biographical History of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson Counties. Page: 744

741, .HISTORY OF TEXAS.

county, Texas. Mrs. Mosher died in 1868,
aged sixty-eight years. She was a devout
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church
from girlhood. Mrs. Fleager's father, stepfather
and both grandfathers, James McKendree
and Nathaniel Moore, were ministers
in the Methodist Episcopal Church.
She is now sixty-eight years of age, and her
life has been an inspiration to gentleness,
faith, patience and courage. Socially, Mr.
Fleager was a member of the I. 0. 0. F. Our
subject and wife would have celebrated their
golden wedding June 26, 1893, but the former
died of pneumonia on the 28th of December,
1892.
vT.x H OMAS A D KINS, deceased, was born
at Stratford-on-Avon, made famous
as the home of Shakespeare, May 25,
1847, a son of Thomas and Elizabeth
(Allibone) Adkins. also of England. The
father was a machinist by occupation, and
Thomnas was early inured to that calling. At
the age of eighteen years lie emigrated alone
to America, and for a number of years remained
in the Northern States, but finally,
in 1871, came to Burleson county, Texas.
For the following year he was engaged in the
stock business, and then came to what is
known as the Dime Box neighborhood, Lee
county, following agricultural pursuits there
five years. In 1877 Mr. Adkins embarked in
:;;ercantile pursuits in Giddings, county seat
of Lee county, where he continued that occupation
until death, March 22, 1891. He was
also engaged in stock raising and farming,
and owned a steam brick yard, a livery stable,
e'c. In his political views, he was identified
with the Democratic party, and religiously,
wa a member of thp Baptist Church. /

December 19, 1872, in the String Prairie
neighborhood, Lee county, Mr. Adkins was
united in marriage with Martha E. McClanahan.
Since her husband's death. Mrs. Adkins
has resided with her brother, Harvey
McClanahan.
JOHN T. RICKS, one of the representative
citizens of Williamson county, was
born in Nelson county, Kentucky, July
7, 1818, a son of William and Susan (Chalfant)
Ricks, natives also of that State. The
paternal grandfather of our subject was a
Revolutionary soldier, and his wife was a relative
of General Cox, who served with W.
H. Harrison. William Ricks died in 1882.
He was the father of six children: Eleanor,
John T., Nancy, Louisa, Margaret J. and
William. The last named now resides in
Pettis county, Missouri. Only four of the
children are now living.
John T. Ricks, the subject of this sketch,
and the only one in his father's family to
come to Texas, received a limited education,
and was reared to farm-life. In 1836, at the
age of eighteen, he removed with his widowed
mother and her family to Missouri, where he
lived in several different counties. At the
time of the Mormon uprising, he assisted in
raising a company, of which he was made
Lieutenant, and they went to Independence,
Missouri, the Mormon stronghold. The
Mormons, however, surrendered, and no blood
was shed. In 1840 Mr. Ricks returned to
Kentucky, went thence to Missouri, in 1850
to California, where lie followed mining fifteen
months, and then went again to Missouri.
In 1856 he located in Texas, where
he followed carpentering in Webberville two
years, and then engaged in buying horses in

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