William Anthony Clopton of Texas

William Anthony Clopton was born August 24, 1813 in Davidson County, Tennessee. He was the son of Anthony Clopton, born in Goochland County, Virginia, June 28, 1770, direct descendant of the first William Clopton of Virginia, born in 1655, County Essex, England, buried in New Kent County, Virginia.

With several compatriot Tennesseans including his older brother, Benjamin Michaux Clopton, William A. Clopton came to Texas and to Bastrop in 1837, arriving in the crucial era of the building and preservation of the new Republic of Texas. Their timely arrival led to their participation in early real estate purchases and development, as well as engagement in battles for protection of colonists against Indian marauders and to repel an invasion of Mexican forces in the post-War for Independence of Texas against Mexico. During his early residence at Bastrop, Clopton was active in several campaigns including the Battle of Plum Creek, the Cordova and the John H. Moore.

In 1842, Clopton enlisted from Bastrop County for the Somervell Expedition and continued on with the Mier Expedition as a lieutenant under Captain William M. Eastland of Company B. With the other men of the expedition, they were captured by the Mexicans and marched to Perote Castle, Mexico, where they were imprisoned, subjected to hardship, cruelty and neglect, until released in 1844. In the history-repeated episode of the Mier Expedition, the "bean lottery," where every tenth Texan prisoner would be shot, those drawing black beans from a jar containing both the black and white were to be put to death. This was the fate of Captain Eastland. Lieutenant Thomas W. Cox became company leader, but made his escape after the Hacienda Salada break, February 11, 1843. Command of Company B fell upon Lt. Clopton, and he transacted the company's affairs until return of the remaining expeditionary force to Texas, by way of New Orleans, Louisiana, and the Schooner "Creole," in 1844.

After his return from Mexico, he married Mary Kay Moore (6/15/1832-10/23/1898) in 1848. They had seven children: William Anthony, Jr., Mary Elizabeth, Amanda Augusta, Benjamin Mitchell, James Wilford, Jane Hill, and Charles.

He was a member of the Texas Veteran's Association. After residing at Bastrop some fifteen years, he moved to Georgetown, Texas, and later died at McDade in Bastrop County on July 18, 1887. He is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery near McDade.

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Contributed by :

James B. Clopton. JimClopton@aol.com
and Ben M. Clopton, clopton@seanet.com

References:

Smithwick, Noah. The Evolution of a State or Recollections of Old Texas Days. Austin: Univ. of Texas Press, 1983.

Jenkins, John Holland. Recollections of Early Texas. Austin: Univ. of Texas Press, 1958.