Polley Mansion |
| The Polley Mansion is an important part of
Wilson County history. The Polley Mansion is located in Sutherland Springs, Texas. Joseph
Henry Polley was the first owner of the Polley Mansion, which was originally called
Whitehall. He was born February 28, 1795 in Whitehall, New York, and died March 28, 1869, in Wilson County. Joseph was buried at his family plot, near the Polley Mansion. His father was Jonathan Polley, and his mother was Rachel Hubbard. Joseph Polley joined Captain S. Brown's company of New York militia as a freight mover, or teamster. He moved to Missouri, then moved with Moses Austin to Texas in 1820. He settled in the Brazoria District in 1821. He married Mary Bailey in 1823. They then moved to San Felipe, only to return to the Brazoria District in 1832. Whitehall, (the Polley's home), was one of the earliest public houses. Polley was then named the first sheriff of the Austin colony. Some early revolutionary councils met at Whitehall, and soon Polley was appointed to escort fugitives during the runaway scape. Polley became a herder, and the number of his cattle grew quickly. In 1847 he bought a homesite in what is now Wilson County from his son-in-law, John James. There was disease quickly spreading near the coast, and his first son died in 1834. The Polleys moved east of Cibolo Creek in 1847. By 1860, Joseph Polley had land on streams from Corpus Christi north to Llano County and west to Medina County. His herds were known to be among the largest in Texas. Polley's slaves, which there were twenty of by 1861, built a new Whitehall. Joseph Polley sponsored the Sutherland Springs and Seguin schools, and his children, then numbering nine, went to these schools. His home became a social center for the community. Joseph supported Lincoln's idea to free slaves. Two of his sons fought for the Confederacy. All through the civil war, Polley gained land, but closed stores and burdensome taxes left him without ready funds. He also grew cotton. Polley's effort slowly left him when emancipation arrived, and he divided management of his stores with his son-in-law, Walker K. Baylor, and Walker's brother John Baylor. Joseph received a pardon from President Andrew Johnson and with a little help from some of his family's former slaves, which lived close on land given by him and his neighbors, kept most of his land. The Polley Mansion has had some repairs done recently, and might get some more. "Descendants of Joseph Polley no longer live in the mansion," a local resident of Sutherland Springs informed me.
I found
most of my information from The Wilson County Centennial 1860-1960
Official Centennial Program and History of Wilson County; A Souvenir,
(a phamplet).. I also got information from the web page The
Handbook of Texas Online |