Remnants of a freedmen’s colony in Cologne, Texas–The Washington Family Papers, 1885-1972

Lora Washington and unidentified boy, undated

Several months ago we discovered a treasure tucked away in a box with a few small collections. The Washington Family Papers, though diminutive in scope, contains some important historical remnants that reveal an important chapter in African American history in Texas.

The Washington family were members of a freedmen’s colony in Cologne, Texas founded by ex-slaves George Washington and Joseph Smith. After emancipation, Washington and Smith started a freight hauling business moving goods from the Gulf Coast to Victoria, Texas and the surrounding area. With their earnings they purchased lots and houses in Victoria. During Reconstruction, violence against blacks increased. Washington and Smith, using their savings, moved to a more remote location, purchasing over 700 acres of land between Goliad and Victoria.

Land purchase lien receipt, 1893

Washington and Smith invited other African American families to purchase land from them and thus, a new colony began along Perdido Creek. Perdido, as the new village was called, was only open to black settlers; no whites were allowed. As the population increased, slaugterhouses run by residents in Perdido fueled the prosperity of the town. The town’s name went through several changes over the years but the village finally settled on Cologne as the official name, an ironic homage to the smell of the slaughterhouses.

Ollie Washington, undated

Linford Washington, undated

In 1888, successful land transfers from Cologne residents and others in neighboring counties brought the railroad through the town. As the town prospered, parents sent their children to the school which not only served as a place of education but also as a social and recreational center. During the late twentieth century, the population of Cologne dwindled. The headstones in the Cologne cemetery are all that remain of the town. No grave marker is evident for George Washington but the gravestone of his son Nathan and his wife Lora remain within a family plot where nine of their children are also buried.

The collection includes land purchases and related receipts from 1894 through 1957. Also included are tax receipts including those for poll taxes. Photographs are of family members, a house, and gravestone. Many photographs have hand written notes on the back identifying the person or place in the image. Correspondence is minimal with only one letter in the collection. A remnant of fabric exists in the collection as well.

Unidentified women, 1925

 

Walter Washington, undated

Poll tax receipt for Nathan Washington, 1905

Poll tax receipt for Lora Collins, 1922

The Washington Family Papers are in the queue for digitization and will be available online in 2018. The collection can be accessed at the  Special Collections reading room in the John Peace Library on UTSA’s main campus. Please submit a visit request form.