The Children of William Rabb

Footprints Of Fayette

Fayette County is one of the most historic counties in Texas. In this weekly feature from the County Historical Commission, a rotating group of writers looks back at local history.

Rachel and her husband Joseph Newman were granted a league of land on the Colorado River near Egypt (in present day Wharton County). They settled there to raise their ten children. Joseph died in 1831 and Rachel married three more times before dying at the age of 82. She is buried in Karnes County.

ANDREW RABB

Andrew Rabb was granted 1½ leagues of land on the Colorado River near Egypt but for most if his life he, his wife Margaret and their five children lived in present day Fayette County. He represented the Mina District at the Convention of 1833 held in San Felipe. In 1836, Andrew was chosen as the Chief Justice of the Mina District, and soon after the districts were re-designated as “counties,” he along with John Henry Moore and James Lester petitioned the Congress of the Republic of Texas to form a new county and name it Fayette – either in honor of Marquis de La Fayette or after the birthplace of William Rabb and all of his children. In January 1838, Andrew was appointed as the first Fayette County Judge and represented the county in the Third and Eighth Congresses of the Republic of Texas. In 1840, Andrew and John Rabb served as a founding trustee of the first college chartered in Texas and established in Rutersville. Andrew and Margaret lived their last years with their daughter Sarah and her husband Edward Manton. Judge Andrew Rabb died in 1869 at the age of 76 and is buried in the Manton Family cemetery.

JOHN RABB

John Rabb was granted a league of land on the lower Brazos River, but for most of his life he, his wife Mary and their nine children lived in present day Fayette County. John helped his father build his mill on the Colorado River and when William died in 1831, John operated the mill. John served in the Volunteer Army during the Texas Revolution, and Mary and her children were forced to flee to the East during the Runaway Scrape. She wrote: “We were all driven from our homes with our little ones to suffer from cold and hunger. Little Lorenzo, not three months old when we started, died on the road.” John went on several campaigns against the Indians with his brother, Thomas and Colonel John Henry Moore. He was a farmer and rancher and built several mills in the area, the last one in 1848. It was the first steam powered grist and saw mill in the county. In 1860, John quit the milling business and sold all of his Rabb’s Prairie property. John and Mary moved to Austin and purchased 29 acres near Barton Springs (near present day Zilker Park). John died in 1861 at the age of 63. Mary lived another twenty years and before her death she wrote a narrative about life in early Texas. John and Mary Crownover Rabb are buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Austin.

THOMAS RABB

Thomas Rabb was granted a league of land on the Colorado River a few miles above Egypt. In 1824, he was appointed First Lieutenant in a militia battalion organized to provide public safety and security in Austin’s colony. Thomas married twice and had five children. In 1835, he joined a small group of rangers led by Colonel John Henry Moore in pursuit of a band of Indians who had killed two settlers. Thomas later served in several expeditions under the leadership of Colonel Moore. Thomas served in the army during the Texas Revolution and participated in the battle of Concepción in October 1835. After the fall of the Alamo, he served with the army during its eastward retreat until they reached the Colorado River. He left the army to rescue his family from the advancing Mexican forces. He rejoined the army but missed the Battle of San Jacinto. In 1840, Thomas Rabb served as a company captain under Colonel John Henry Moore in the Red Fork Campaign against the Comanche. His last recorded military service was in March 1842 during the Vasquez Raid. Thomas Rabb died at his residence in Fayette County in 1846 and is believed to be buried near Round Top.