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John Duncan Harvey, commonly called Duncan, was born and reared in the vicinity of Asheville, North Carolina, as was the lady he married, Miss Elizabeth Suggs.

After their marriage, they started on their honeymoon in a far different vehicle with much slower locomotion than was in use fifty years later.

Their fortune consisted of a two wheeled cart, drawn by two oxen and driven by an aged, tho' robust slave named Dick, who with Dolly, his wife, had been given to Betsey by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Suggs as a wedding present.

They started for the distant land of Alabama with their cart piled with their few household goods; her spinning wheel and loom had the place of honor, you may be sure, for it was about the year of 1814 or 15 and every married woman knew if she was lucky enough to have the cotton picked for her, there was yet sufficient work to keep her busy spinning the thread, then weaving it into cloth for clothing for herself and family. Even sheets, towels, in fact all household linenes, were of home manufacture.

On their journey, one of their oxen died and old Dick (who was a shoemaker by trade), skinned and cured the hide, then tanned the lether and made young Marse Duncan a pair of boots.

While they waited for the slow process of manufacture, mistriss Betsey and Dolly, finding lots of Palmetto trees near by - - they proceeded to weave lovely straw hats. Some they sold or exchanged for groceries at stores they came to. Also, they found them quite comfortable sunshades, walking day after day as they did.

They finally reached their destination about 150 miles north of Mobile, Alabama, afterwards named Suggsville in honor of Miss Betsey's maiden name.

They established their home, built a gin, acquired several hundred slaves by the time volunteers were called to fight for Texas Independence. Duncan left Harbert, Hezokiah, Jilpah Anne, Mary Shaunburger, George, William, and little Martha with their mother, saddled his best horse, led another and went to join the Texans in their fight for liberty. he returned after the battle of San Jacinto with corporal added to his name and a great longing to make Texas his home. He returned to find a new addition to his family, little John Duncan Harvey, was born April 11, 1837, in Suggsville, Alabama.

The family sold their plantation, many of their slaves, and reached Texas with about 150 negroes, Duncan, Betsey, Jilpah Anne and her husband William H. Cleveland, and all the children, little Johnny riding horsback in sister Mary's lap almost all of each day. At every stop, she would milk every cow they were driving, if necessary, to fill his tin cup, to quench his thirst and allay his hunger. He was never a very healthy baby or youngster.

They reached the Brazos River near Hackley, Texas during the winter of 1839 or 40, where they were attacked with malaria. Poor Duncan Harvey was buried on the banks of the Brazos shortly after he arrived and of the 150 slaves he had brought, only a few survived the winter. The dreadful chills and fevers laid them low.

The family moved to Chappell Hill near Brenham, Texas, where they, in the course of time, married and had homes in Austin and Washington Counties for many years.

Harbert, the eldest son, married Louisiana Lindsay of San Marcos. They had two children, Alice, and Andrew. The latter died in his youth and Alice never married.

George W. married Marcia Caueerore. They had three children, Peter, Lottie, and Phoebe. Peter married Frances Dabuey. Lottie married Janes Dabrey (brother of Frances) and Phoebe married Dr. Luther Bunyan Creath.

Martha married Amois Boynton. Their children were Annie, Mary Frances, George, Nettie, Fred, Hober and Amois Jr.

Hezekiah married Columbus (someone we called "Aunt Tummie") and he was always "Uncle Hez", to everyone. Aunt Mary was a fine, good, woman but she had no luck selecting a husband. She had her first marriage annulled, reared her two children (Auson Jones and Antie) with the help of a faithful slave, "Black John" who worked her farm. She could make a suit of clothes for a man like a tailor before a machine was invented and when she was seventy she taught classes of girls in rural communities to draft patterns with a garment cutter and make the garment correctly, using the proceeds mostly to educate a young grandson as a lawyer. John Duncan Harvey was called Johnny instead of Duncan. He together with his three brothers fought for the South during the Civil War and after the war he homesteaded 6 hundred or more acres in Austin County, where he married Kate Hicks, late of McNiniville and Spencer Tenessee. (She was born and educated in McNiniville) and was teacher of piano at Burritt College Spencer for two years before coming to Texas after the war.

They had eleven children, four of whom died either in infancy or at an early age. The two eldest, George and Nellie died before Marcia was born, then Annie died on her second birthday. Bessie was only ten days old at that time, she died when only seven. After Bessie came Tom Hicks Harvey, born December 15, 1877. Willie Mae born December 30, 1879, Herbert Suggs, September 10, 1881, Earnest Franklin, September 7, 1883, Lena Boyd, September 22, 1885. Lillian Irine, January 21, 1888.

Kate Hicks Harvey was born in McMiniville Tennessee, Warren County on August 8. Her mother was Angelina Boyd, fathers name was Thomas Hicks who was a tailor, his wife being a fine seamstress herself helped him with finishing work in her home. Mother was a small child when he died. He had been wealthy but lost all his money through signing a note for a friend.

Grandma, being a good seamstress, supported her children by sewing for friends and neighbors, one of whom lived next door. Mother, as a little girl would go with her and the family learned to love her and begged Grandma to let her take piano lessons with their boy and girl her age and she showed so much talent for music. Later she received her diploma in piano. When she was about 15 she lost her mother and began to teach piano, was a governess, later taught school and managed to make enough money to go through college and get her diploma. (The lady from Jim Hogg foundation, who interviewed me, said I was the only person she had interviewed who had a mother who was a college graduate, which made me very proud of my mother.) She was a teacher of piano at Burritt College, Spencer, Tennessee for 2 years before coming to Texas. Her sisters and only brother moved to Texas and of course she came. Her brother worked for the railroad and later became an engineer on the pay train. He lived in Houston, left a wife, no children.

After coming to Texas, my mother taught school and through friends she met my father. she had other suitors, one was a wealthy attorney. One night they happened to both call on her the same time and each tried to out-stay the other. Finally, the lawyer said "Miss Kate, would you like for me to leave or John?". She said,"I want you both to stay". John finally won out and they were married.

Told by Daughter Willie Mae Denson, written by sister Lillian Billingsley