William Henry "Billy" Gaston, Sr. (Forney, TX)

Captain W.H. Gaston, president, Gaston National Bank of Dallas, Texas.

William Henry "Billy" Gaston, Sr. (Oct 25, 1840 – Jan 24, 1927)

Biography

An 1873 advertisement for Gaston, Camp and Thomas, bankers.

• Name: William Henry "Billy" Gaston, Sr.
• Birth: October 25, 1840 near Prairie Bluff, Wilcox County, Alabama
• Death: January 24, 1927 Dallas, Texas

Early life and family

Capt. Gaston was born near Prairie Bluff in Wilcox County, Alabama, on October 25, 1840, the second of five sons of Col. Robert Kilpatrick Gaston and the former Letitia Elizabeth "Lettie" Suddath. Around 1841 Col. Gaston moved the family to Winston County, Mississippi. In 1849 they moved to Anderson County, Texas where he resided until 1860 at which time he settled near Mt. Sylvan. Col. Gaston was twice elected to the Legislature from Anderson County, first in 1853 and again in 1857; and twice from Smith County, first in 1866 and again in 1873.

W.H. Gaston's Great Grandfather, Hugh Gaston, was born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The family moved to Craven County, South Carolina. When the American Revolution broke out, Hugh's family were loyal patriots; he served in the South Carolina Militia under his brother Capt. Wm. Gaston. Dr. Joseph Lucius Gaston, a Montgomery, AL physician and banker, was a nephew of Hugh Gaston.

William, along with his brothers Robert and George, attended the nearby Mound Prairie Institute. In 1860, the family moved to Tyler, Texas, leaving William to manage the old homestead. At the outbreak of the Civil War, the three brothers joined the Confederate cause and served in the CSA army. William Gaston joined a volunteer company being recruited in Anderson County for Confederate service. By October 1861 he had been elected captain, and his company became part of the First Texas Infantry Regiment of Hood's Texas Brigade, Army of Northern Virginia. Captain Gaston, known as the "Boy Captain" commanded his company with distinction through the terrible battles in Virginia in 1862. At the battle of Sharpsburg (Antietam), almost the whole of his company was wiped out and 83% of his brigade were wounded. His brother Lieutenant Robert H. Gaston was among the missing; he was killed at the age of 18 at Sharpsburg. After recovering from typhoid fever, Capt. Gaston was detailed to Texas on recruiting duty for the regiment. He was subsequently reassigned to serve as Confederate purchasing agent in the Trans-Mississippi Department, where he spent the remainder of the war.

During this time, William Gaston married Miss Jane Laura Furlow, daughter of George Washington Furlow and the former Jane Pope. William & Jane had three children: Willie Gaston (1864 – 1864) Edwin Gaston (1865 – 1929) Florence Laura (Gaston) Finley (1866 – 1938)

After Captain Gaston was discharged in June 1865, he returned to Anderson County and farmed. His first wife died in 1867, and a year later he married Laura's sister Ione and they had four children: Robert Kirkpatrick Gaston (1869 – 1951) Frank Coleman Gaston (1872 – 1884) William Henry Gaston Jr. (1875 – 1960) Annie Ione (Gaston) Reeves (1877 – 1965)

After a few years, William & Iona moved their growing family to Dallas where William entered into partnership with Aaron C. Camp and opened the Gaston & Camp Bank of Dallas, the first permanent bank in Dallas. Within a short time Gaston had expanded into real estate, merchandising, and general speculation; the bank became the Exchange Bank and later the First National Bank of Dallas. Only five years after his arrival the Dallas Herald declared that William Gaston was most responsible for the transformation of Dallas into a city. He was reported to be one of the city's first millionaires, and another of his banks, Gaston & Gaston Bank, was the predecessor of the Republic National Bank.

Two early settlers, W. H. Gaston and Jefferson Peak, owned many acres of farmland within East Dallas that became available for subdivisions after the Civil War. Other developments were started by Henry Boll and Jacob Nussbaumer, Swiss natives and survivors of the troubled LaReunion Colony. Both Boll and Nussbaumer had served in Nat Burford’s 19th Texas Cavalry. Several families of French, Belgian and Swiss immigrants settled in the area rather than return to Europe after LaReunion failed. By 1870, a second wave of European immigrants had bought most of the lots.

Banking career

The origin of the American Exchange National Bank dates back to 1871 when W.H. Gaston and A.C. Camp began a banking business in Dallas on the Northeast corner of Public Square.. They were joined by W.H. Thomas and operated as Gaston, Camp & Thomas in 1872.  Mr. Camp soon retired due to his health.  The firm continued as Gaston & Thomas until 1881 when the Exchange Bank, organized in 1875 with a capital of $40,000, was bought.  In 1883, Mr. Gaston sold his interest to W.E. Hughes and John N. Simpson and in 1887, the bank was nationalized as the National Exchange Bank.  Between the years 1897 and 1900, the assets and business of the Mercantile National Bank and the National Bank of Dallas were absorbed. In 1905 two mergers occurred with the Texas National Bank followed by the American National Bank. In June 1905, the National Exchange Bank absorbed the American National Bank and the name was changed to American Exchange National Bank. 

In January 1904, it was officially announced that the banking house of Gaston & Ayers, the oldest financial institution in Dallas, would soon be nationalized. The bank would be known as the Gaston National Bank in honor of the present president. The Gaston National Bank opened for business on February 1, 1904. During its first year of existence its deposits were $1,409,453.94 and its earnings were $20,358.09. The bank had capital stock of $250,000. Dallas in 1905 had six other banks, five of which were national banks. The combined deposits of all of them was a little less than $15,000,000. The bank's remarkable progress was due chiefly to the personnel who were bankers of wide experience, known and respected all over the state. Capt. W.H. Gaston, president, was a pioneer banker of Dallas, opening the first bank in Dallas in 1870. He was identified with the banking interests of Dallas since the city was just a village and managed to accumulate a fortune by his business sagacity and foresight in realizing years ago that Dallas would some day be the metropolis of Texas.

Other career highlights

In 1869, with G.B. Campbell, Gaston & Campbell operated as commission merchants and exchange brokers.

In 1870, with Major James E. Barkley, the W.H. Gaston & Co. operated a livery and sale stable on the corner of Commerce and Houston Streets, Dallas. In 1871 this became Gaston & Work, proprietors of a Livery, Sale and Feed Stable in Dallas. Captain J.A. Work succeeded Major Jas. E. Barkley in the management of the stables.

In 1871, Gaston & Camp's building was on the Northeast corner of Public Square, about where the Records Building stands at 500 Elm Street. This pioneer private bank continued in that location for the next thirty years.

William Gaston helped to bring the railroad to Dallas and developed a streetcar system throughout the city. Gaston gave the railroad companies $5,000 and free right-of-way through his land to persuade them to build through East Dallas. The Houston and Texas Central Railroad arrived on July 16, 1872 and the Texas and Pacific Railway arrived on February 22, 1873.

By 1882 there were enough people living in the area pioneered by Captain Gaston to incorporate the city of East Dallas. As its most prominent citizen, he was offered the post of mayor—an honor which he declined. He never accepted any elected office, although as one of Dallas's leading bankers he served for a time by appointment as city treasurer of East Dallas. That was before it was merged with the parent city in 1890. The city of East Dallas existed for seven short years (1882-1889), just east of the city of Dallas. East Dallas grew from 300 people when incorporated in 1882 to 6,000 when annexed to the city of Dallas in 1890. Dallas was the largest city in the state of Texas in the 1890 census due to this merger.

In 1886, William Gaston was an incorporator of the Dallas State Fair and Exposition Association. He donated eighty acres for the State Fair of Texas grounds. In 1903 he was President of the Texas State Fair Association 1903.

Later life and death

William Gaston died on January 24, 1927, and was buried in Greenwood Cemetery. The City of Dallas honored his civic work by naming the W. H. Gaston Junior High School in his memory.

Captain Gaston was survived by three sons, Edwin, Robert and W.H. Gaston, Jr. all of Dallas; two daughters, Mrs. Laura Gaston Finley of Detroit, Michigan and Mrs. Annie Gaston Reaves of Princeton, New Jersey, and six grandchildren.

In 1960, Robert W. Glover published a book entitled "Tyler to Sharpsburg" using a collection of the war letters of Robert H. and William H. Baston during 1861-62. The book was a compilation of the more interesting Gaston letter of around 50 pieces found in an old home near Tyler. The Gaston boys enlisted in Palestine as privates in a volunteer unit called the Texas Guards, organized by Capt. A.T. Rainey of Palestine. In July 1861, the Guards made their way to Richmond where they became Company H, First Texas Infantry regiment, later a part of Gen. John B. Hood's brigade. William was elected captain of his company in the winter of 1861. Until the spring of 1863, he took part in all the regiment's battles while it was with the Army of Northern Virginia. This included West Point, Virginia, Gaines' Mill where the Texans achieved fame by their charge up the heights held by the enemy, Second Manassas, Sharpsburg, and Fredericksburg.

Bank Officer Summary

During his banking career, W. H. Gaston was involved with the following banks:

• Gaston & Camp Bank of Dallas: Founder 1871, later Gaston, Camp & Thomas; and Gaston & Ayers
• The Exchange Bank of Dallas: Vice President 1883
• National Bank, Forney, TX (Charter 4014): President 1889-1893
• Gaston National Bank, Dallas, TX (Charter 7113): President 1904-1908
• Commonwealth National Bank, Dallas, TX (Charter 8664): Vice President 1911...1913
• Security National Bank, Dallas, TX (Charter 10564): Vice President 1915...1921

$10 Series of 1902 Red Seal bank note with pen signatures of R.C. Ayres, Cashier and W.H. Gaston, President. Courtesy of the NBNCensus.com

Sources

• William Henry Gaston, on Findagrave.com
• Banks & Bankers Historical Database (1782-1935), https://spmc.org/bank-note-history-project
• Glover, R.W., Ed. (1960). "Tyler to Sharpsburg: Robert H. and William H. Gaston (their war letters, 1861-62)". Waco, Tex.: W.M. Morrison.