John Henry Moore was born in Tennessee in 1800 to Armistead and Tabitha Bowen Moore. He attended school in Lebanon, Tennessee and then attended Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky.
By 1821 Moore was here to stay and was one of Stephen F. Austin's "Old Three Hundred" settlers. Almost immediately he started gaining the experience that would make him one of the most famed Indian fighters in all of Texas. In 1822, Karankawa Indians ambushed a settler precipitating the first retaliatory action against the Indians by the Anglo colonists. John Henry Moore and two others served as scouts, eventually locating the Indian camp in a canebrake near a creek. The settlers killed almost all of the Indians and Moore related 'we all felt it was an act of justice and self preservation. We were too weak to furnish food for (them), and we had to be let alone to get bread for ourselves".
On May 17, 1831, Moore received title to a half-league of land on the east bank of the Colorado River near the La Bahia Road. The road was originally an east-west Indian trail and later was used extensively by explorers, soldiers, traders, and settlers in their movements across Texas.
Moore built a two story log blockhouse to defend and house his family. It featured an elevated interior platform that a man could walk around on so he could see and shoot out of gun slits made in the walls of the second story.
By the summer of 1834 Indian depredations were so frequent that the settlers of the upper Colorado River issued a call to arms. John Henry Moore led several extended expeditions against the Indians trailing them as far as North Texas.
Colonel James J. Ross, Moore's brother-in-law, kept company with a group of Tonkawa Indians who stole horses from other Indian tribes and the Anglo settlers. Ross refused to disassociate with the Indians so his neighbors decided to drive them out by force. In an armed confrontation, Ross was killed when Moore and two other settlers shot him.
By early 1835, Texans had realized war with Mexico would be necessary to secure their freedom. Mexico had given the settlers at Gonzales a small cannon a few years before to defend themselves against Indian attack. Mexican troops arrived demanding the return of the cannon and the townspeople refused. A call for volunteer soldiers went out and was quickly answered. The "Come and Take It" flag flew above the cannon and Colonel John Henry Moore was in command of the troops at Gonzales on October 2, 1835 when the first shot of the Texas Revolution rang out. Moore tried to negotiate with the Mexican commander but when he refused Moore "wheeled his horse and rode rapidly toward his lines, shouting, 'Charge 'em, boys, and give 'em hell'". After a short volley, the Mexican troops withdrew and the rag tag Texas army sent them back to San Antonio without the cannon and war was declared. The fighting didn't stop until the Texans were victorious at the Battle of San Jacinto six months later.
In 1837 J. H. Moore, J. S. Lester, W. M. Eastland and two other men formed a partnership in order to create a town on Moore's land grant at the La Bahia crossing. Moore ran advertisements in newspapers describing the ad - vantages of the new town of La Grange and began selling lots a few months later.
On December 14, 1837, the Republic of Texas Congress passed an act to establish the county of Fayette and designated the new town of La Grange as the county seat.
Two years later, La Grange had a population of nearly 100 people
living in 20 houses, mostly log cabins. There were 5 small businesses including a hotel, bar and cake shop and a grocery store. John Henry's town may have become too crowded for him because he purchased a quarter league of land (1107 acres) about nine miles northeast of La Grange. He built a new home for his family and started raising cotton.
Indian depredations continued to plague the Republic and Moore was called upon many times to lead various campaigns against the marauders. On January 25, 1839, three companies of volun - teers organized under Moore's command with instructions "to proceed against the Comanche and other hostile Indians on our northern frontier". W. M. Eastland and Nicholas M. Dawson were elected Captain and Lieutenant of the La Grange company. A week into the trip the men rode into a heavy sleet and snow storm, forcing them to stop and seek shelter. They were not prepared for bad weather and some of their horses froze to death. In mid February a large Comanche village was found on the San Saba River. Moore's troops were vastly outnumbered and though hesitant, Moore and his men were determined to mount an attack. They tied their horses about a mile from the village and marched through the night to within 300 yards of camp and waited for sunrise. A fierce battle ensued but the Indians clear - ly had the advantage and Moore called for a retreat. The men went back for their horses only to find that all of them had been stolen. Colonel Moore reached La Grange on February 25, after traveling about 150 miles with many of his men on foot. Moore admitted years later that: 'It was the tightest place I ever got into, we expected nothing else but to be sacrificed, so there was nothing to do but to put the best face upon it. So we told the Comanche to come on...'
By 1840 almost every settlement along the Colorado had been raided by the Comanche. The President of the Republic of Texas appointed Colonel John Henry Moore as "commandant of the Colorado volunteers, destined for the invasion of the haunts of our Indian enemies". By September about 90 men had volunteered and two companies were organized in La Grange serving under Captains Dawson and Thomas J. Rabb. A third company of Lipan Apaches served as scouts. The men traveled northwest up the Colorado River valley and through the mountains for nearly 300 miles. They rode into another fierce winter storm, this time losing one man to exposure. The scouts found a Comanche camp along the Red Fork of the Colorado River with about 125 Indians in the village. At daylight on October 24, the Comanche were taken completely by surprise when Moore "sounded the yell that was caught up and vibrated throughout the command like demons." One or two braves escaped but otherwise the Texans killed or captured the entire village. Only two Texans were wounded and none were killed.
Colonel Moore's successful Red Fork Campaign deep into Comanche territory served to deter the Indians from further depredations on the Colorado settlements.
Despite the decisive victory at San Jacinto, Texas continued to be harassed by Mexican invasions. In March 1842, San Antonio was raided and briefly captured before Texas forces, including two companies commanded by Colonel John Henry Moore and captained by Dawson and Rabb, pursued them to the Mexican border. In September, San Antonio was captured again and a company of Fayette County men led by Captain Dawson answered Colonel Matthew Caldwell's call for help. On September 18th, 1842, Dawson and 36 of his men were massacred in a battle with the Mexican army.
John Henry Moore joined Caldwell's forces in pursuing the Mexican Army to the Rio Grande River. Colonel Moore and Colonel Caldwell disagreed on who should command the army and their argument delayed the Texans long enough to allow the Mexicans to escape.
By 1843 peace treaties with most of the Indian tribes in Texas had been successful. With the lessening of the Indian menace, the old Indian fighter slipped away from the public eye and settled down to a life of cotton farming and ranching.
Moore was too old to serve during the During the Civil War, but in January 1862 he made an arduous trip to Kentucky to de - liver winter clothing and supplies to the troops. Three of his sons and a son-in-law served the Confederacy.
After nearly fifty years of marriage and eight children, Eliza Cummins Moore passed away in February of 1877. J. H. Moore was strong, capable, opinionated, stubborn and strict but always devoted to Eliza. It was said that only Eliza "was ever able to in - fluence his actions and opinions".
Toward the end of his life, Moore had some disagreements with his oldest daughter Tabitha and her husband Ira G. Killough. On October 2nd, 1878, Ira Killough was gunned down at point blank range in the presence of his wife and son. The unproven theory is that John Henry Moore convinced two of his sons and a son-in-law to ambush and kill Killough. The men were arrested, tried and acquitted of the murder. Tabitha was left to raise eight children on her own and her father clearly stated in his will that neither she nor any of her children should receive any in heritance from him.
John Henry Moore died at the age of 80 on December 2nd, 1880 and was buried next to Eliza in the family cemetery eight miles north of La Grange. The local newspaper carried a lengthy obituary extolling his many accomplishments and virtues. One week later a rebuttal was printed refuting those claims.
