History Lost & Found

Riddle: As Nathaniel Hart Davis' family grew, There is one thing he certainly knew. He entertained many folks, so he decided to build the ____.

Answer: The Oaks

 

Magnolia House was built in 1854 by Texas entrepreneur Peter J. Willis and named for his first-born child who was born in the house. The structure that has survived through some of the nation’s most turbulent times didn’t stay on the market long.

 

Peter and Richard Willis were savvy business professionals who came to the area in 1836, before the town of Montgomery officially existed. They became wealthy via their mercantile store, land speculation and other business interests.

The brothers were leading citizens during the formation of the township, the county, the republic and eventually statehood. Montgomery County originally included Grimes, Walker and Madison counties.

 

In the 1850s, Montgomery County had one of the largest slave-holding populations in the state, with more than 1,500 slaves, valued at more than $750,000, who worked on plantations growing the major cash crop of the day – cotton, according to Larry Foerster, chairman of the Montgomery County Historical Society.

 

“Cotton was the dominant crop in western Montgomery County,” said Foerster. “The average land value was $2.30 per acre, with premium land going for $4-10 per acre.”

With his success, Peter Willis employed John Shelton, a prominent builder, to construct his showplace home in Montgomery.

 

“Sam Houston was a regular visitor and lodger in the home,” said Thomas. “Montgomery was the original county

After the civil war, the Davis family purchased the Magnolia House, said Thomas. It stayed in the family since they acquired it around the time of the Civil War.

 

“It’s been in the family since 1866,” said Thomas. “Much of the building is original and many of the artifacts and furnishing date back a long time. It’s a charming, historical building.”

Many of the original furnishing remain in the home, having come up from Galveston on a wagon.

 

She was also a noted historian for the Montgomery area and loved to share stories about the town’s early history.

“If you wanted to know something about Montgomery, you went to Miss Anna or Bessie Owen or Cissy Boulware,” Clover said. “I sat around her (Weisinger’s) kitchen table many times as she told her stories.”

 

The last relative of the Davis family to live in Magnolia was Betty McKenzie, Anna Davis Weisinger’s niece. McKenzie passed away in February 2012 and following her death, the home was put up for sale.

 

“There is so much history in Montgomery County,” said Foerster. “It’s nice to see something from the past continue to be source of pride and perspective in the community.”