Bassett Family Association Database

Robert Lewis Bassett

Male 1844 -

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  • Name Robert Lewis Bassett 
    Birth 28 Sep 1844  Clover Lea, Hanover County, Virginia Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Male 
    _UID BC12901838588040A317194832FEB1B4761D 
    Notes 
    • Robert Lewis Bassett moved to Brenham, Texas, where he married Sallie Jeffries of Brenham, Texas.

      On the Bassett Building, 222 East Main Street in Brenham, Texas, can be found the following historical plaque.
      Texas Historical Commission
      Official Historical Medallion
      Bassett & Bassett Banking House
      Benjamin H. and Thomas J. Bassett opened their newly created bank and located their law offices in this building soon after its completion in 1873. Built with brick manufactured by the local Wild & Co. Brickyard, the Italianate structure housed the bank until it closed in 1884. An important Brenham landmark, the building features round arches and stucco hood moldings at door and window openings. The third story was added in the early 1900's.
      Recorded Texas Historic Landmark 1985
      Entered in the National Register of Historic Places 1983.

      Diary of Lucy Breckinridge (Epilogue)
      Lucy, in spite of her apprehensions, married her Tommy on 28 January 1865, in a quiet ceremony at Grove Hill. The young couple's life together was poignantly brief. On 16 June 1865, five months after their marriage and just three weeks after the cruel war had departed the "God-scourged South" with the surrender of the last Confederate troops, Lucy died on typhoid fever. Tragically denied the peace and happiness she had longed for, Lucy was buried at the age of twenty-two at Grove Hill beside her beloved brother, Joh.
      After the war, Thomas Jefferson Bassett returned to his home in Brenham, Washington County, Texas, where he later remarried and reared a family. He maintained close ties with his Virginia family for many years.
      In a letter to Eliza, date 22 January 1868, Tommy mentioned that he was having a portrait made of Lucy from a small photograph. Efforts to locate Lucy's portrait, thus far, have been fruitless. In the course of the search, however, some interesting facts have come to light regarding Jefferson Bassett's life after Lucy's death.
      Upon his return to Brenham, Tommy and his older brother, Ben, established the Bank of Bassett and Bassett in 1866. The bank operated successfully for almost twenty years, and was finally dissolved in 1881, shortly before Tommy's death.
      Tommy and his second wife, Jodie Roberson, had four daughters, one of who he named after Lucy's mother. His esteem for the Breckinridges was such that he later sent his daughters to Grove Hill for their education in literature, art, and music.
      (NOTE: Lt. Thomas Jefferson Bassett was born in Louisiana in 1833, the son of William Henry and brother to Benjamin H. Bassett. He died 25 May 1885 in Brenham, Texas.)

      1850 Federal Census of Hanover County, Virginia (22 Nov 1850)
      George W. Bassett - 49 - M - Virginia - Farmer 120,000
      Betty B. - 41 - F - Virginia
      George W. Jr. - 19 - M - Virginia
      Anna Virginia - 17 - F - Virginia
      Ellen More - 15 - F - Virginia
      J.F.C. - 13 - F - Virginia
      Mary B. - 10 - F - Virginia
      Annetta L. - 9 - F - Virginia
      Robert L. - 6 - M - Virginia
      Louisa A. Dwight - 22 - F - Massachusetts - Governess
      R.L. Shelton - 30 - M - Virginia - Bricklayer

      1860 Federal Census of St. Paul's Parish, Hanover County, Virginia (29 Sep 1860)
      G.W. Bassett - 60 - M - Virginia - Farmer 139,830 88,729
      B.B. - 52 - F - Virginia
      G.W. - 29 - M - Virginia - Teacher (languages?)
      S.M. - 25 - F - Virginia
      J.F. - 22 - F - Virginia
      M.B. - 21 - F - Virginia
      A.L. - 18 - F - Virginia
      R.S. - 16 - M - Virginia (or maybe 10)
      W.A. - 6 - M - Virginia
      Jas. Slaughter - 30 - M - Virginia - Overseer

      1870 Federal Census of Washington County, Texas
      Robert Bassett - 25 - M - Virginia - Bank Clerk
      Sarah - 16 - F - Texas

      1880 Federal Census of Brenham, Washington County, Texas (29 Jun 1880)
      Robert L. Bassett - 35 - M - VA-VA-?? - Head - Banker
      Sarah - 26 - F - TX-EG-NY - Wife - Keeping House
      Maggie B. - 5 - F - TX-VA-TX - Daughter
      (EG - England)
    Person ID I290  5B William Bassett of Viriginia
    Last Modified 22 Apr 2012 

    Father George Washington Bassett,   b. 23 Aug 1800, Farmington, Hanover County, Virginia Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 28 Aug 1878 (Age 78 years) 
    Mother Betty Burnet Lewis   d. 10 Nov 1881 
    Family ID F91  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family Sarah (Sallie) Jeffries 
    Children 
    +1. Margaret Burnett Bassett,   b. 3 Aug 1875, Texas Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 1 Feb 1962, Dallas, Dallas County, Texas Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 86 years)
     2. Robert Lewis Bassett,   b. 5 Sep 1881, Brenham, Texas Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 20 May 1936, Houston, Harris County, Texas Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 54 years)
    Family ID F111  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart