Wade family members
63.5 linear feet
A1984-043; A2003-032
1890-1945 (unknown)
Wallis Dunn Wade was born in Old Nueces Town, Nueces County, Texas on March 27th, 1866 to John and Sarah (Beynon) Wade. Wallis D. Wade lived his entire life in the area and made a name in ranching, farming, oil and real estate. He was married on June 29th, 1894 to Lou Ella Buchanan Wade who came to Texas as a little girl with her family from Tennessee. Her branch of the Buchanans is descendants of the brother of President James Buchanan. Lou Ella Wade continued to oversee all of the enterprises of the Wade Ranch for many years after the death of Wallis D. Wade.
Wallis' father John Wade, one of the early settlers along the Nueces River came to Texas from England. John Wade began establishing the Wade Ranch in 1876. Through his and then Wallis' efforts the ranch would eventually grow to encompass 21,000 acres.
The ranch would include the purchase of the land and buildings know as Casa Blanca, in 1896. Casa Blanca was one of the first settlements in western Nueces County. It was established around 1754 and was later included as part of the Spanish land grant to Juan Jose de la Garza Montemayor in 1807. At various times Casa Blanca was a mission, a ranch house, an outlaw hideout, an Indian village, a home and a post office.
The records of the Wade Ranch Papers span from a Bible printed in 1830 to financial records as late as 1984 totaling 63.5 cubic feet of material. The Wade Ranch Papers are comprised of almost every type of record that could be created or used by a family over a span of 150 years. The bulk of the records are from the 1890's through the 1940's except for financial records that remain numerous through the 1960's.
The most pervasive type of record is correspondence between family members. The majority of the correspondence prior to 1900 is between Lou Ella Wade and her mother Margaret Pinkie Buchanan or other Buchanan family members. After 1900 the personal correspondence includes many more friends and acquaintances as well as family members.
The financial and legal records show all aspects of keeping a ranch operating. There are titles, deeds, mortgages and leases showing the purchase, sale and use of the land. The bills, bank statements, bills of lading, royalty receipts, well logs and cattle pedigrees show the various operations of the ranch. There are legal documents showing the lawsuits that result when disagreements occur in the course of doing business. And the complete picture of the Wade Ranch is filled out with photographs, maps, catalogs, greeting cards, newspaper clippings and other printed materials.
The Wade Ranch Papers are arranged in seven series and subdivided when appropriate Series I: Correspondence
Sub-Series A: Wade Family Sub-Series B: Buchanan Family Series II: Legal Papers
Sub-Series A: Oil, Gas & Minerals Sub-Series B: Law Suits Sub-Series C: Property Sub-Series D: Insurance Series III: Financial Papers Sub-Series A: Correspondence
Sub-Series B: Bank Statements, Bills & Receipts Sub-Series C: Income Tax
Series IV: Photographs Series V: Maps Series VI: Printed Materials Series VII: Miscellaneous
South Texas Archives, James C. Jernigan Library, Texas A&M University-Kingsville
Open for Research
Permission to publish, reproduce, distribute, or use by any and all other current or future developed methods or procedures must be obtained in writing from South Texas Archives, James C. Jernigan Library, Texas A&M University-Kingsville. All rights are reserved and retained regardless of current or future development or laws that may apply to fair use standards.
Wade Ranch Records, A1984-043.XXXX; A2003-032 XXXX, South Texas Archives, James C. Jernigan Library, Texas A&M University-Kingsville
Need assistance with citing our materials? Contact us or visit our research help page!
A1984-043 – Gift of Thomas Priestly, grandson of Ezella Buchanan Priestly, who was the sister of Lou Ella Buchanan Wade, the wife of Wallis D. Wade. A2003-032 – Gift of Wanda Silva for Richard W. Miller (Oral history tape of Richard W. Miller about “The Wade Ranch Family, John Wade & Lou Ella, Wallis Wade.)
A1984-043 was processed and the Finding Aid written by Patricia Scott in 1985. The Finding Aid was updated by Lori Atkins and encoded into an EAD document by Matt Tallent in 2016.