He left Kentucky on December 12, 1837, aboard the steamship Independence traveling downstream on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers to New Orleans, then continued to the Republic of Texas on January 15, 1838.
[1][2] He maintained a journal for part of his stay in Houston, recording regular entries for three months, including his excursions to Galveston.
During his stay, he wrote sales contracts, and eventually, accepted an appointment as Engrossing Clerk for the Republic of Texas House of Representatives.
He served as President of the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos, and Colorado Railway during the Civil War, a railroad with eighty miles of track from Harrisburg to Alleyton.
He was among the soldiers who obeyed the orders of President Sam Houston and retreated from the Rio Grande River, thus avoiding the Mier Expedition and the Black Bean Episode.