Barnes, Sterling Rex - Heath
Marker Text: Virginia native Sterling Rex Barnes (1799-1866) migrated to this area from Mississippi with his wife Martha Ann (Mitchell) (b. 1809) and family in 1846. A pioneer settler in the community of Black Hill, now Heath, he was a charter member of East Trinity Masonic Lodge No. 157 in Rockwalll, organized in 1854. Barnes was the local justice of the peace in 1852 and operated a toll bridge at a site on the east fork of the Trinity River, now under the waters of Lake Ray Hubbard. Five sons and one son-in-law served with the Confederacy during the Civil War. (1981)

Central National Road of the Republic of Texas - Rockwall
Marker Text: In an effort to improve overland transportation, the Republic of Texas Congress authorized the Central National Road in Feb. 1844. The roadway was to be 30 feet wide and cleared of stumps over 12 inches high. A survey team led by Major George W. Stell platted the route from near the mouth of Elm Fork on the Trinity River in present downtown Dallas, northeast to Kiomatia on the Red River. The highway linked a road leading south to Austin and San Antonio with a U.S. military highway extending north to St. Louis from Fort Towson in present Oklahoma. Running east from Dallas, the Central National Road turned northeast to cross the area that is now Rockwall County. Portions of FM 740, known locally as Ridge Road, follow the historic route. The earliest Rockwall County pioneers settled near the road about 1846. Sterling R. Barnes located his homestead about two miles south of the present site of Rockwall, and John O. Heath settled near the crossing of the East Fork of the Trinity River. The towns of Heath, originally named "Black Hill" and later "Willow Springs," and Rockwall, the county seat, were founded along the highway. (1977)

Chisholm Cemetery - Rockwall
Marker Text: Enoch P. Chisholm, a circuit-riding Methodist minister, brought his family to this area in the 1860s. The community which grew up here was named in his honor. Chisholm donated land for this graveyard in 1871, and in 1875 he became the first person interred in it. A chapel, also named for Chisholm, was built that same year on the cemetery grounds. At its peak, the town of Chisholm boasted a school, post office, Masonic Lodge, cotton gin, and stores. Many early pioneers were interred in the Chisholm Cemetery, and some of their descendants still reside in the area. (1990)

East Trinity Lodge No. 157, A.F. & A.M. - Rockwall
Marker Text: A dispensation for the formation of the lodge was granted July 26, 1854, when Rockwall was part of Kaufman County. The Grand Lodge of Texas designated James Wilson as the first master. John O. Heath served as senior warden and S. R. Barnes as junior warden. Barnes and Heath were among the earliest residents of the area to receive land grants in 1848. The lodge charter was issued January 18, 1855. The E. C. Heath Masonic Lodge, located six miles south, merged with East Trinity in 1968.

Fate Lodge No. 802, A.F. & A.M. - Fate
Marker Text: Fate Lodge No. 802 traces its history to December 3, 1896, when a charter was issued by the Grand Lodge of Texas, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. J. B. Young served as the first worshipful master. The 23 charter members were mostly merchants and farmers. Lodge members met in a local grocery store, blacksmith shop, and schoolhouse until 1953, when a new lodge hall/community building was built. The lodge participates in many outreach activities and continues to serve the community as it has for more than a century. (1997)

Fate Presbyterian Church - Fate
Marker Text: When Presbyterians organized this congregation in the middle 1880s, the community of Fate was developing as a new settlement on the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad. Among the eighteen individuals who chartered the church were members of the Leonard, Kale, McLendon, Cooper, Wilson, Bonsel, Morgan, Holiday, and Sawyer families. In the early years, a circuit rider served as minister of this and other area churches. One early circuit rider was the Rev. J. A. Hornbeak (d. 1939), who was serving as minister of the Fate Presbyterian Church in 1894 when the members constructed the first sanctuary. Located on Brown Street, it was built under the supervision of head carpenter H. A. Kale (1834-1921), a charter member of the congregation. The church continued to worship in the structure until the early 1920s. In 1926, a new church building was completed at this site. With historic ties to the earliest days of the Fate community, the Fate Presbyterian Church remains an important institution in Rockwall County. Church members have included many community leaders and pioneer area settlers. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986

First Baptist Church of Rockwall - Rockwall
Marker Text: Organized in 1852 by Elder John R. Briscoe and Elder M. Glover in the home of J. C. Williams, this was originally called New Hope Baptist Church, as Rockwall was not founded until 1854. Charter members: Hester, Isaac, James, Mildred, and Persila Briscoe; Felitha, Martha and Rosana Jones; Hannah Thompson; J. C. and Nancy Williams. First regular pastor was the Rev. H. E. Calahan. After years in homes, schoolhouses, and a Masonic hall, the congregation occupied a building of its own in 1876; present sanctuary, 1970. This is the oldest congregation in the Dallas Baptist Association. (1976)

First Presbyterian Church of Rockwall - Rockwall
Marker Text: On November 7, 1854, a small group of Presbyterians led by the Rev. John U. Vance gathered together to organize the Rockwall Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Beginning with twenty-three charter members, the congregation met in schools and other church facilities for the first thirty-three years. In 1887 a building committee was formed under the leadership of the Rev. S. M. Templeton, and property at the present corner of Munson and Fannin streets was purchased. A small frame sanctuary was built in 1888, only to be destroyed by a windstorm three months after its completion. It was soon rebuilt, however, and served the congregation until another church building was constructed on the town square in 1928. That structure was replayed by a new sanctuary at this site in 1980. Throughout its history, this church has served the community by offering its facilities for outreach programs such as well baby clinics, elementary school tutoring, summer library reading programs, and a food and clothing pantry for the needy. Following the reunion of the Presbyterian denomination in 1983, the name of this congregation was changed to First Presbyterian Church of Rockwall. (1989)

First United Methodist Church Building, Royse City's - Royse City
Marker Text: This building was erected in 1904, during the pastorate of the Rev. D. H. Aston, to provide larger facilities for this congregation. J. E. Flanders, a well-known Dallas architect, designed the frame structure with three prominent entry towers and decorative shingling. The contractor was Oscar W. McGraw (1879-1963), founder of the McGraw Construction Co. of Dallas. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1978

First United Methodist Church of Rockwall - Rockwall
Marker Text: This congregation developed from early worship services conducted by area pioneers in the home of Mrs. Hugh Shaw. The church was formally organized in 1856, several years prior to the formation of Rockwall County. Constituted with less than twenty members under the direction of the Rev. J. A. Scruggs, the small fellowship met in the local Masonic lodge building until the first sanctuary was constructed at 102 North Fannin Street in 1874. The one-room frame structure featured a belfry and a tall steeple. During its first three decades, the First Methodist Church of Rockwall shared its ministers with other pioneer area Methodist churches. By 1887, however, membership in the First Methodist Church had grown such that the Rev. James McDugald was appointed to serve as the congregation's first full-time pastor. To accommodate the membership's continued growth, additional facilities were later built, and the church relocated to this site in 1981. For more than 100 years, the First United Methodist Church of Rockwall has sponsored many active organizations in its congregation which have provided great service and leadership to the community of Rockwall. Many descendants of the original fellowship continue to worship here. (1983)

First United Methodist Church of Royse City - Royse City
Marker Text: This fellowship, first known as the "Methodist Episcopal Church, South", was organized in 1887. The Rev. James McDugald (1847-1929) became the circuit rider for Royse City, Blackland, Fate, and Mt. Zion. Services were held in a schoolhouse until 1890 when land on Church Street was acquired from R. A. McCasland for the first church building in Royse City. This structure, erected in 1904, is on property which also belonged to the McCasland Family. (1978)

Heath Methodist Church - Heath
Marker Text: Founded in 1890 at a site just south of town, this church originally was named Bethel Methodist Episcopal Church, South. The congregation and the church building moved to Heath between November 1909 and March 1910, and the original building was replaced by 1916. Circuit-riding ministers served the members for many years. The congregation became an integral part of the community. They moved into a new building in 1974, and called their first full-time pastor in 1981. The church continues to serve its community with a variety of ministries. (1991)

Mount Zion Cemetery - Fate
Marker Text: John Dewees (1819-1893) and his wife Martha Jane Stevens Dewees (1824-1905) migrated to Texas from Indiana in 1856 with their family of seven children. They purchased 300 acres of land on the banks of Camp Creek nearby. In 1857 a community church was organized and named Mount Zion. A log structure, built on land donated by John and Martha Dewees, served as a church and schoolhouse. The community cemetery was established in 1859 with the death of Julia McCrearby. A community also known as Mount Zion grew up around the church/school and cemetery. Of the more than 628 graves, about 590 are marked. Buried here are veterans from the Civil War, World War I, World War II, and the Korean conflict. Nearly one-fifth of the graves are those of infants under one year of age. John and Martha Dewees and six of their seven children are buried here, as is county official A. R. Hartman (1839-1917). The Mount Zion Cemetery Association was formally organized in 1988 to establish a permanent fund for maintaining the grounds. The site continues to serve the community as it has for more than a century. (1997)

Rockwall County - Rockwall
Marker Text: Formed from Kaufman County. Created March 1, 1873 - organized April 23, 1873. Named for a curious geological formation, and underground rock wall, that comes to the surface in several localities. County seat, Rockwall.

Rockwall County - Rockwall
Marker Text: First settled in the 1840s, this region was a part of Kaufman County until 1873, when Rockwall County was created. With an area of 147 square miles, this is the smallest of Texas' 254 counties. The county and city of Rockwall were named for an underground formation of rock discovered in the early 1850s. Crossed by the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad, Rockwall county is an area of fertile farmland. The location here of the aluminum industry and the creation of Lake Ray Hubbard from the East Fork of the Trinity River diversified the local economy in recent years. (1976)

Royse City Lodge No. 663 A.F. & A.M. - Royse City
Marker Text: Royse City Masonic Lodge No. 663 held its first meeting in 1888. The lodge purchased a town lot here in 1922 and erected this structure in 1925. It was designed by A. M. Kimzey and built by J. E. Harris. The 2-part commercial/institutional building exhibits classical revival and mission style elements with its truncated towers, brick pilasters, and arched windows. The city acquired the lower floor in 1941 and the Masonic lodge continued to occupy the upper floor. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1994

Rockwall Church of Christ

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