Agur Pixley Texas correspondence, 1849 Mar-Jul.

1 v. (19 leaves) ; 25 cm.

English

Purchased from William Reese Co. on the William Robertson Coe Fund No. 3, 2002.

Agur Pixley (1801-1879), native of Connecticut, sailed from New York in the spring of 1849 to seek his fortune in the gold mines of California.

Six manuscript ALS, bound with hand-stitching, which Agur Pixley wrote to his three children, Charles, William and Eliza, during his journey to California; the letters begin on board a ship off the Florida coast and conclude in El Paso on July 4, 1849. Pixley's route took him through Galveston, Houston, Bastrop, Austin, Fredericksburg, the Mormon settlement at "Zodiac", and into western Texas via steam boat, wagon, and mule. Pixley makes extensive remarks on the landscape of his travels, the flora he encounters, family affairs, and his own faith. He provides a detailed account of the storms which plague his landing in Galveston, describes acquaintances he makes while in Texas, including Colonel John Coffee Hays of the Texas Rangers, and mentions witnessing the sale of a slave as well as a violent altercation between members of the P. F. Smith Joint Stock Association in Galveston. He also relates the difficulty of securing transportion, supplies, and food, providing numerous details about expenses. In his last letter, he indicates that he will accompany a wagon train led by Colonel Hays along the Gila Trail to San Diego, and proceed north after his arrival.

September 29, 2003

Agur Pixley Texas Correspondence. Yale Collection of Western Americana, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.

Agur Pixley Texas Correspondence. Yale Collection of Western Americana, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.