Person:Henry Stout (7)

He migrated to Illinois c.1816 (reportedly to get away from his father, who was something of a tyrant), where he remained only briefly before moving on to Arkansas. In 1819, he moved with his family from Hempstead County, Arkansas, to Pecan Point on the north side of the Red River. Shortly thereafter, he crossed the river and settled at the site of Jonesboro.^[2]

He apparently traveled by himself to Nacogdoches, where he got caught up in the collapse of the Long Expedition and was briefly detained by Spanish authorities. After his release, he returned to his family on the Red River.^[2]

In March 1838, he testified before the commissioners of the land office as to his date of arrival in Texas, and that he was therefore entitled to a league and a labor of land, which he received. He conveyed his land certificate (for the site of Clarksville, almost 3,700 acres) to Mrs. Isabella H. Clark. She then began donating town lots to settlers, merchants, and churches to promote development. She soon became a leading political, financial, and social leader in the community.^[5]

From 1836 to 1843, he served as a captain in the Texas Rangers (as did his brother, William) and took part in several expeditions against the Indians.^[2]

He appears to have moved from Red River County to Wood County early in 1850. (He is mentioned as a judge in January 1850 but has not been found in the 1850 census there. And he is recorded as having served a term as Sheriff of Wood County, 1850-52.) In 1855, he was elected to the 6th Texas legislature from Dist. 18 (Wood & Van Zandt Counties). He enlisted at the outbreak of the Civil War and was elected 2d Lieut. for Co. B, 10th Texas Cavalry, but quickly received a medical discharge on grounds of age and disability.^[2]

Van Zandt County, Texas, 1850 census:^[10]

Stout, Henry 50 yrs Farmer b. Tenn Washington Co.

      S.J. 48 yrs b. KY Pulasky Co. [Pulaski]

      Henry H. 5 yrs b. Texas Upshier Co. [Upshur]

      Wm Smith 13 yrs b. LA Natc P [Natchitoches Parish]

      S.C. Smith Female 9 yrs b. Texas Harrison Co.

      John Bayed 22 yrs Dayly laborer b. Texas

Precinct 4, Wood County, Texas, 1860 census:^[7] Post Office: Holley Springs

Stout, Henry 61 yrs [no occupation] b. Virginia

      Martha 27 yrs b. Alabama

      Sam H. 14 yrs b. Texas

      Thos. J. R. 6 yrs b. Texas

      Martha S. 2 yrs b. Texas

Massy, Jackson 8 yrs b. Texas

Precinct 4, Wood County, Texas, 1870 census:^[8] Post Office: Quitman

Stout, Henry 71 yrs Farmer (real estate = $1,600; personal estate = $900) b. Virginia

      Martha 38 yrs Keeping House b. Alabama

      Thomas R. 15 yrs At school b. Texas

      Martha S. 11 yrs At school b. Texas

Wood County, Texas, 1880 census:^[9]

Stout, Henry 81 yrs (Div.) Farmer b. Virginia (parents, b. Virginia)

      Martha S. 21 yrs Dau Works on farm b. Texas (parents, b. Virginia/Alabama)

      Amanda M. 10 yrs Dau At school b. Texas (parents, b. Virginia/Alabama)

Dallas Morning News, 31 Dec 1890:^[3]

Landmarks Gone.

Capt. Henry Stout.

Quitman, Wood Co., Tex., Dec. 31---Capt. Henry Stout, the oldest of the Texas veterans and a prominent figure in their reunions, died at home in this county on Saturday, Dec. 2 of heart failure, at the age of 92 years and 6 months. Capt. Stout came to Texas seventy-three years ago at the age of 19 and at once took an active part in the defense of the settlers against the Indians, and later in all the struggles with Mexico, which finally resulted in the independence of Texas and its annexation to the United States. He was brave and adventurous, and his life was replete with thrilling adventures, desperate encounters, and narrow escapes. Capt. Stout was the first sheriff of Wood county and remained an honored and respected citizen of the county until his death.

Texas Historical Marker: Captain Henry Stout

1. ↑ Clark, Pat B. The History of Clarksville and Old Red River County. (Dallas: Mathis, Van Nort & Co., 1937), pp. xiii-xiv, 3.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8} Handbook of Texas Online, "Stout, Henry B.".
3. ↑ ^3.0 3.1 Dallas Morning News. (Dallas, Texas), 3 Jan 1891 (obituary).
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2} Grave marker, Stout Cemetery, Wood, Texas, United States.
5. ↑ Clark, Pat B. The History of Clarksville and Old Red River County. (Dallas: Mathis, Van Nort & Co., 1937), p. 71.
6.   Clark, Pat B. The History of Clarksville and Old Red River County. (Dallas: Mathis, Van Nort & Co., 1937), pp. 72-73.
7. ↑ ^7.0 7.1 Wood, Texas, United States. Wood, Texas, United States. 1860 U.S. Census Population Schedule, p. 368, house/family 337/329.
8. ↑ ^8.0 8.1 Wood, Texas, United States. Wood, Texas, United States. 1870 U.S. Census Population Schedule, p. 582, house/family 421/421.
9. ↑ ^9.0 9.1 Wood, Texas, United States. 1880 U.S. Census Population Schedule, ED 127, p. 354, house/family 455/497.
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1 10.2} United States. 1850 U.S. Census Population Schedule, p. 223A, house/family 124/124.
11. ↑ Many publications name Weakley county, Tennessee as the birthplace of Henry Stout. However, the first families settled there in 1819, and there is no mention of Stout's there at that early date. Weakley county was formed in 1823, nearly 25 years after Henry's birth. The 1850 US Census states Washington county, Tennessee as Henry's birthplace.
12. ↑ Henry Stout military footstone