Weldon (Vachel)

Vachel Weldon (1832-?) was born to Abram and Mary J. Weldon in Hickman (now Ballard) County, Kentucky. He moved to Texas in 1854, working in trade and studying law. On July 23, 1858, he married Sophia Dodge in LaGrange Texas. They eventually had one son and two daughters.

At the outbreak of the Civil War, Weldon volunteered in the Confederate Army as First Lieutenant of Company G, Twenty-fifth Texas Cavalry, and commanded at the battle of Arkansas Post. He was captured at this battle and sent to Camp Chase, Ohio, and then to Fort Delaware, Delaware. He was exchanged after the battle of Chancellorsville and assigned to post duty in Austin, Texas and Corsicana, Texas. Weldon was promoted to the rank of Captain and given command of a detached company of cavalry.

After the war, Weldon moved to Indianola and continued his work in trade. In 1872, he began to travel on various trading expeditions, during which time his considerable property holdings in Indianola were swept away by the storm of 1875. By 1879, he had permanently settled in Cuero, which he represented in the Texas House of Representatives.

Source:

Daniel, L. E. Personnel of the Texas State Government with Sketches of Distinguished Texans, Embracing the Executive and Staff, Heads of the Departments, United States Senators and Representatives, Members of the Twenty-First Legislature. Austin: Smith, Hicks & Jones, State Printers, 1889.

From the guide to the Weldon (Vachel) Collection 70-20; 72-81., 1821-1924, 1963, (Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin)