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2020

Andrews and Groos Families Papers, 1839-1877

DRT Collection at Texas A&M University-San Antonio

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A Guide to the Andrews and Groos Families Papers, 1839-1877

Descriptive Summary Creator: Andrews and Groos Families Title: Andrews and Groos Families Papers Dates: 1839-1877 Creator Edmund Andrews (circa 1814-1843) was a resident of Brazoria County, Abstract: Texas, where he practiced law. His stepson, Henry B. Andrews (1828- 1895) lived in Galveston and San Antonio, working as a lawyer, public servant, and businessman. Members of the Groos family came to Texas

from Germany in 1848. Three brothers formed the mercantile and banking business F. Groos and Co. of San Antonio. A granddaughter of Henry B. Andrews, Bettina James, married Carl F. Groos, a son of one of the pioneer banking brothers. Content Legal documents, letters, and printed material are part of the Andrews Abstract: and Groos families papers, representing two San Antonio, Texas, families joined by marriage. Identification: Doc 9476 Extent: 10 items (6 folders, 1 oversize item) Language: Materials are in English. Repository: DRT Collection at Texas A&M University-San Antonio

Biographical Note

Edmund Andrews (circa 1814–1843) was a settler in Stephen F. Austin's colony, arriving in Brazoria County, Texas, in 1830 December from Carolina. He remained there and served as a judge and postmaster of San Luis. In 1830, Andrews married Isabella Maria Barclay, a widow. He adopted her three children, two of whom were Henry and Edwin Marston Barclay.

Edmund's adopted stepson Henry Barclay Andrews was born on 1828 September 21 on the island of St. Thomas in the West Indies. Henry moved to Galveston in 1844 and became a merchant. Over the next decades, he held various positions in Galveston, including a district court attorney, postmaster, and Civil War soldier. In 1863 he was made chief of the Texas Labor Bureau and in 1864 was elected to the Texas legislature. Andrews' railroad career began in 1868, and he eventually became a vice-president and general manager of the Galveston, Harrisburg, and San Antonio Railroad. Andrews moved to San Antonio in 1877, and he died there on 1895 April 14. On 1846 July 10, Andrews married Martha E. Wynn, with whom he had nine children. He later married Mary (Mollie) Huston Smith (1837-1917), widow of Frank Smith, with whom he had one son.

Members of the Groos family came to Texas from Strass-Ebersbach, Dukedom of Hesse- Nassau, Germany, in 1848. In 1854, brothers Friedrich Wilhelm Carl (1827-1912), Carl Wilhelm August (1830-1893), and Gustav (1832-1895) Groos formed the mercantile and banking business F. Groos and Co. from what began as a contract to haul supplies to Fort Duncan. Initially, the business's headquarters were in Eagle Pass with branches in San Antonio, New Braunfels, and Matamoros; the headquarters were moved to San Antonio in 1866. In 1874, the company's mercantile operations were displaced by its banking functions and the company began functioning as a private bank. In 1912, it was chartered as the Groos National Bank.

Bettina James (1890-1981), a granddaughter of Henry B. Andrews and John James, married Carl F. Groos, a son of one of the pioneer banking brothers.

References

Hazlewood, Claudia. "Henry Barclay Andrews." Handbook of Texas Online. http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fan18.

Gideon, Margaret Guenther. "Gustav Groos." Handbook of Texas Online. http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fgr89.

York, Miriam. "Carl Wilhelm August Groos." Handbook of Texas Online. http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fgr88.

York, Miriam. "Friedrich Wilhelm Carl Groos." Handbook of Texas Online. http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fgr76.

Scope and Content Note

Legal documents, letters, and printed material are part of the Andrews and Groos families papers, representing two San Antonio, Texas, families joined by marriage. Included are certificates for lots in the town of San Luis, Texas, issued to Edmund Andrews in connection with stock for the Brazos and Galveston Railroad Company. Letters from two members of Texas' congressional delegation, Senator Sam and Representative David S. Kaufman, respond to their honorary membership in the Galveston Lyceum, extended in 1847 by Henry B. Andrews. Also included are two physicians' certificates which exempt Charles Groos from service in the Confederate Army, and a business letter from F. Groos and Co.

Restrictions Access Restrictions

No restrictions. The collection is open for research.

Usage Restrictions

Please be advised that the library does not hold the copyright to most of the material in its archival collections. It is the responsibility of the researcher to secure those rights when needed. Permission to reproduce does not constitute permission to publish. The researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming to the laws of copyright, literary property rights, and libel.

Index Terms

Personal Names Andrews family. Groos family. Andrews, Edmund. Andrews, Henry Barclay, 1828-1895. Groos, Charles. Houston, Sam, 1793-1863. Kaufman, David S. (David Spangler), 1813-1851. Organizations Brazos and Galveston Railroad Company. Galveston Lyceum (Galveston, Tex.) Subjects Lyceums. Railroads--Texas--Brazoria County. Locations San Luis (Tex.)--History--Sources. Galveston (Tex.)--History--Sources. Texas--History--Civil War, 1861-1865. --History--Civil War, 1861-1865. Genres/Formats Family papers. Correspondence. Legal documents. Printed ephemera.

Related Material Andrews Family Papers, circa 1820-1874, Doc 6010, DRT Collection at Texas A&M University-San Antonio.

Gail Papers, 1818-1897, 25-0001 thru 25-0521, Galveston and Texas History Center, , Galveston, Texas.

Eliza Anderson Cramer Papers, 1860-1866, 70-1150 through 70-1178, Galveston and Texas History Center, Rosenberg Library, Galveston, Texas.

George W. Grover Papers, 1824-1896, 51-0004 through 51-0125, Galveston and Texas History Center, Rosenberg Library, Galveston, Texas.

J. F. Perry Papers, 67-0059, Galveston and Texas History Center, Rosenberg Library, Galveston, Texas.

Samuel May Williams Papers, 1819-1864, 23-0002 through 23-4503, Galveston and Texas History Center, Rosenberg Library, Galveston, Texas.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Andrews and Groos Families Papers, 1839-1877, Doc 9476, DRT Collection at Texas A&M University-San Antonio.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Gilbert M. Denman, Jr., on behalf of the Bettina James Groos estate, 1997 March.

Processing Information

Processed by Warren Stricker, 1997.

Finding aid edited by Kay Garsnett, 2010 January.

Finding aid edited and encoded by Caitlin Donnelly, 2010 October.

Finding aid updated by Rebeka Delgado, 2020 March.

Detailed Description of the Collection

Andrews and Groos Families Papers, 1839-1877

The items are arranged chronologically.

Folder 1 Certificate of property: San Luis Company to Edmund Andrews, no. 25,

1839 December 20. Certificate of property: San Luis Company to Edmund Andrews, no. 5,

1840 December 20. Certificate of property: San Luis Company to Edmund Andrews, no. 27,

1840 December 20. Certificate of property: San Luis Company to Edmund Andrews, no. 31,

1840 December 20. Folder Oversize Deed certificate [blank]: Galveston Island, Texas, 1843 May 1.

1 Folder 2 Letter: , Washington City, to H. B. Andrews, 1847 January

20. Folder 3 Letter: David S. Kaufman, Washington City, to Henry B. Andrews, 1847

January 20. Folder 4 Certificate: F. Herff to C. Groos, San Antonio, 1862 August 20. Folder 5 Certificate of disability: W. H. Luckie, surgeon, and William Stone,

Enrolling Officer, to Charles Groos, 1862 September 26. Folder 6 Letter: F. Groos and Co., San Antonio, Texas, to Holmes and Todd,

Mason, Texas, 1877 May 4.