An Award From The Daughters Of The Republic Of Texas

Gloria Carr Cope/Carra Copelin

 

This past Saturday, I received a  certificate from the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, Frances Cooke Van Zandt Chapter, for being a member for twenty-five years. This is such an honor. I wish my mother, Matelyn Roddy Carr Smolak, could have been here to receive hers as well. She would have been so proud.

Thirty years ago, Mother and I began the search for the documentation of proof to our ancestor, Amon McCommas. In order for one to become a daughter or a son of the DRT or SRT, you must prove your ancestor of lineal descent who rendered loyal service to the Republic Texas before the Texas annexation in February 1846.

We began our search in 1982 and found Amon's name listed on a 1845 Poll Tax List in the basement of the Old Red Courthouse. The rest of the documentation came from marriage records, family bible pages, and birth or death records. We then submitted the copies along with the application and became members in 1987.

The following is a little history for my GGGGGrandfather, Amon McCommas, Sr.

Amon McCommas, Sr

Amon came to Texas in December 1844 with the Peter's Colony and is credited with preaching the first sermon in Dallas County on the banks of the Trinity River. His family was one of the first 5 or 6 families to settle in Dallas. He was a Campbellite preacher (Disciples of Christ minister) and he founded the Christian Church of Dallas in 1845 with 12 members. In 1873 this church was divided into two groups: the Pearl and Main Street Church of Christ and another group that developed into the Central Christian Church.

In 1846, Amon chaired the meeting that formed Dallas County and was later elected as the first Chief Justice of the Dallas County Commissioner's Court. Amon was a farmer who owned the first "tread-mill" (grist mill powered by mules) in Dallas. He served as president of the first county fair in Dallas; this fair went on to become the State Fair of Texas. He is a charter member of the Dallas County Pioneers Association, organized in 1875, for which he served as the first Chaplain.

Amon and his wife Mary Braumfield McCommas raised their children and several of their grandchildren (due to the premature deaths of some of their own children: James B. McCommas, Rosanna Cox and Armilda Fleeman). McCommas Boulevard in Dallas was named for Amon McCommas and his family. He also donated the land for the Old Red Courthouse located near Dealy Plaza and the Triple Underpass. The building still stands today.



The Old Red Courthouse, Dallas, Texas

Thanks for visiting. I hope you want to come back often.

Carra