Edward Brady Carruth was born on September 16, 1831 in Pike County, Mississippi to John Carruth, Jr. and his first wife, Martha Turner Carruth. He was baptized on September 9, 1832 in Amite County, Mississippi.

During the Civil War he served in the 7th Mississippi Regiment, Company C. The 7th Regiment, also known as the "Amite Rifles", was part of the "High Pressure Brigade". His brother James was killed at the Battle of Shiloh and E.B. was taken prisoner while attending to him. He rose to the rank of Major in the Commissary Division as evidenced by this entry in the Journal of the Congress of the Confederate States of America, 1861-1865 [Volume 3] SATURDAY, January 30, 1864.

Major Carruth had three submissions published in the Confederate Veteran magazine. Particularly interesting is an article entitled "Disagreeable Experiences In War Times" an account of his experience the night before the battle at Shiloh. [Confederate Veteran, Vol.16, No.8, P.408, August 1908] There is also a letter regarding the State Cemetary in Austin where many Confederate veterans are buried, [Confederate Veteran, Vol.19, P.69]

After the Civil War, E.B. married Martha Burt Noble, a cousin of John Calhoun, on December 6, 1865 in Jasper County, Mississippi. They later came to Texas where E.B. founded a school in Clinton (DeWitt County, near present day Cuero). Martha died during childbirth in 1869 and is buried in the Clinton Cemetery , which is located southwest of Cuero off Highway 77A-183 (Goliad Highway).

In 1873, E.B. married his second wife, Bettie McAlister, and in 1874, E.B. established a school in Osage, Texas (Colorado County, near present day Weimar), which was given high marks as mentioned in the Handbook of Texas Online:

Osage was the site of a school established by E. B. Carruth in 1874. A student later praised the school's curriculum as "the best selected of any I have ever known. It included Webster's Blue Back Spelling Book, all of the McGuffey Readers, history, geography, grammer, rhetoric, elementary and higher mathematics and Latin." Students came from a 100-mile radius and boarded with families in the area.

E.B. later moved to Flatonia to run yet another school. From Consider the Lily: The Ungilded History of Colorado County, Texas by Bill Stein we find:

In July 1879, the highly respected Edward B. Carruth, who had taught at Osage for six years, announced that he intended to move to a school in Flatonia. He turned the Osage school over to James A. McNeill, who renamed the facility Osage High School.

E.B. left Flatonia and moved to Austin, perhaps around the time of the death of his second wife Bettie in 1883 and the marriage to his third wife, Susan Burbon Russell, in 1884. An 1895 Austin directory lists his occupation as statistical clerk with the state superintendant of public instruction and his residence as being at the northwest corner of 32nd and King St. E.B. was also a volunteer fireman and Fire Chief at North Austin Fire Company, No. 6.

In 1896 North Austin Fire Company #6 was established. Originally located at 30th and Rio Grande streets, a permanent hall was built at 3002 Guadalupe St. The fire hall filled both the occupational and social functions of the community. The ground level was the maintenance shop and the second story consisted of one large main room with a stage. The volunteer firefighters' band would play as community members danced and socialized. The volunteers ran the house until 1916 when they turned it over to the city government, which hired professional firefighters. The structure was used for many years as a maintenance shop for the Austin Fire Department. It has since been restored and preserved for future generations.

When he died on November 13, 1911, the flag at the capitol was flown at half mast in honor and respect for him. He is buried at Oakwood Cemetery in Austin.

1. Martha Burt Noble (06/10/1840 - 12/16/1869) 12/06/1865
   1. Edward Brady Carruth Jr. (10/30/1867 - 10/??/1941)
   2. Sarah "Sallie" Calhoun Carruth (11/16/1869 - 09/06/1939)
2. Bettie McAlister (10/27/1851 - 12/23/1883) 09/16/1873
   1. John McAlister Carruth (05/29/1874 - 10/17/1937)
   2. Van Archie Carruth (09/21/1876 - 03/19/1894)
   3. James Ansell Carruth (02/18/1880 - 10/12/1914)
   4. Walter Lee Carruth (09/10/1882 - 04/??/1928)
3. Susan Burbon Russell (02/14/1850 - 02/26/1919) 09/18/1884
   1. Alva May Carruth (12/25/1886 - 02/22/1959)
   2. Henry Russell Carruth (02/29/1888 - 07/16/1914)
   3. B F Carruth (08/14/1890 - 10/13/1940)

1. Alva May Carruth (1887 - 1959)
2. Henry Russell Carruth (1888 - 1914)
3. B F Carruth (1891 - 1940)

The above photo clearly shows Major Edward Brady Carruth and his third wife Susan, along with seven others, which I'm assuming all to be E.B.'s children. I'm reasonably certain that the three in front of and to either side of Susan are their three children. To Susan's right is Alva May Carruth, to her left is B F Carruth and in front of her is Henry Russell Carruth. B F appears to be around five years old which would date the photo around 1895, after the death of Van Archie Carruth who died in 1894.

So, again assuming that the others pictured are the Major's children, we have seven out of the eight living children included. Both daughters are present, so one son is missing. My guess is that the eldest, Edward Brady Jr, is missing. If this is correct, then on the back row we have John McAlister Carruth, James Ansell Carruth and Sallie Calhoun Carruth. The one on the lower right would then be Walter Lee Carruth.

Austin has long been a city of concerned cat lovers, as illustrated by this turn-of-the-century Austin newspaper story:

[Al's note: perhaps from the Democratic Statesman , Austin Tribune or the Austin Daily News . see Handbook of Texas Online ]

AUSTIN CATS ARE KILLED BY FELINES FROM COUNTRY

SEVERAL PITCHED BATTLES HAVE OCCURRED NEAR THE STATE INSANE ASYLUM AND PET HOUSE CATS ARE LAID OUT

The inhabitants of Austin who reside this side of the insane asylum are greatly worried over an influx of big cats of all sexes that seem to have infested the neighborhood. The cats are of a vicious temperament and several pitched battles have ensued lately between them and the cats of the neighborhood. Friday night there was a battle royal and the meows of the cats caused cold shivers to run up and down the spinal columns of many a citizen. Thursday night there was another and Friday morning several dead cats were scattered here and there.

Major Carruth of the comptroller's department lives in that neighborhood and his pet house cat was among the victims of Thursday's fight. Major Carruth advances a peculiar theory for the influx of cats in his neighborhood and his theory is held to by all citizens of the neighborhood. The blame is laid at the door of the mountaineers, who, it is claimed, that whenever they have a surplus of cats at home, do not kill them, but bundle them into a sack and pile them onto a load of wood. Then when they get right into the suburbs they turn the cats loose and let them shift for themselves.

These cats are immense specimens of the feline origin and the natives of the mountain region northwest of town have a superstition against killing them, believing that the spirit of the cat would return and work them great hardship. This is the cause for their being brought to town, as that is an easy way to get rid of them without running afoul of their superstition.

Major Carruth and his neighbors hope that the natives will get over this superstition, as their unloaded cats nip the house cats to death in all the pitched battles that occur.