Nathaniel L. Corbet

Nathaniel L. Corbet. Born in Champlain, New York, on June 13, 1812, to Daniel and Sarah (Gordon) Corbet, Nathaniel Corbet was raised near the Canadian border. At age 21, he enlisted in the U.S. Army, joining the elite and newly organized United States Regiment of Dragoons. Trooper Corbet's most notable service was the disastrous dragoon expedition of 1834 across Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma) that ended with many casualties from disease and the blistering summer heat. At the end of his military service on July 18, 1836, Corbet moved to the newly-admitted state of Arkansas, where he began farming. While living in Crawford County, Arkansas, Corbet married Mary A. Price (1815-1884) in Van Buren., After a brief stay in Indian Territory, Corbet and his family moved to Texas in 1845 and opened a mercantile store in Ben Franklin, Lamar County (now Delta County). Corbet's general store was typical of the time, stocking a wide range of products for the average pioneer. His business expanded to blacksmithing and then farming and ranching. In 1863, he sold the ranch near Ben Franklin and moved five miles into Hopkins County (now Delta County). There, in 1870, he played an important role in founding the town of Cooper, later the county seat of the newly-formed Delta County, with a 10-acre land donation for the new town site. In the new town, Corbet erected a rough plank house with a few rooms and operated the Corbet Hotel. Corbet continued to serve his community through law enforcement as deputy sheriff and city marshal of Cooper. In 1892, Corbet moved to Indian Territory (now Oklahoma) to live with his son. He died in 1901, and his burial site is unknown.