John Edward and Lucy Stepp Nite. John Edward Nite (1805-1849), born in North Carolina, married Lucy Stepp (1807-1865), a native of Georgia, in 1826. Although robbed of $1800 in gold en route to Texas from Tennessee in 1835, they were able to secure 1,506 acres of land along the Trinity River in Houston County by 1838. John served as a Captain of a home guard ranger unit and later as the area's official mail carrier. Together they helped establish a school for their eight children and those of their neighbors. #11017