Tyler County Historical Markers... Tyler County Historical Markers... 
| Marker Number: | 11355 |
| Marker Title: | Alabama-Coushattas of Texas |
| Index Entry: | Alabama-Coushattas of Texas |
| Address: | |
| City: | |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | Native Americans |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | Two tribes, welded into one in their wanderings. Visited Texas briefly in 1816, at Peach Tree Village, Tyler County, before swinging back into Louisiana. Seeking land to call their own, however, returned and made first home in Texas on this site, from 1836 to 1844, under leadership of First Chief Colabe Sylestine and Second Chief Antone Sylestine. Tribe built log cabins for chiefs and lean-tos of bark and wood for rest of the people. Settlement locations had to be carefully selected. As place for important tribal gatherings, an open field of deep sand had to be situated at center of every village. Here were held tribal pow-wows and ceremonial dancing, but the field's really popular function was as the ball park. Ball playing among the Alabama-Coushattas was a form of lacrosse, in which a long-handled racquet was used to catch, carry or throw a hard ball past the goalee. Women of the tribe, when they played, used no racquet-- only their hands. Known as migrants, rather than agricultural Indians, the Alabama-Coushattas nevertheless were Texas settlers who contributed to the culture of the state. |
| Marker Number: | 11356 |
| Marker Title: | James Barclay Place, 1842 |
| Index Entry: | Barclay, James |
| Address: | |
| City: | |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | houses, residential buildings |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | Recorded Texas Historic Landmark |
| Marker Location: | |
| Marker Size: | Medallion & Plate |
| Marker Text: | Hand-hewn pine. Oldest home in county. Built by area's first Indian agent, an appointee of President Sam Houston. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1965 |
| Marker Number: | 11357 |
| Marker Title: | Beech Creek Baptist Church |
| Index Entry: | Beech Creek Baptist Church |
| Address: | |
| City: | Beech Creek |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 382641 |
| UTM Northing: | 3396251 |
| Subject Codes: | Baptist denomination; churches |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1994 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | FM 1013 on CR 4540, Beech Creek |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | Georgia native James G. Collier moved his extended family to this area in 1852. Collier settled in the Beech Creek community and established the area's first sawmill. this church was organized in Collier's home by 8 charter members on September 24, 1855. The congregation accepted both Anglos and African Americans into its membership. African American Henry Gainer was ordained as minister by the church in 1867. Early worship services were held in a local school building and baptism services were conducted in nearby Mill and Beech creeks. The church grew with the area and in 1892 the congregation erected its first sanctuary here on three acres donated by James Collier for church and cemetery purposes. Church membership continued to expand, and in 1905 a Sunday School was organized. An additional two acres of land were purchased in 1955, and in 1969 a new building was erected to house growing educational and recreational programs. The church called its first full-time pastor in 1995. Beech Creek Baptist Church has historically supported local and regional ministries and continues to serve the community with various programs and activities. Sesquicentennial of Texas Statehood 1845-1995 |
| Marker Number: | 11358 |
| Marker Title: | Original Site of Bethel Baptist Church |
| Index Entry: | Bethel Baptist Church |
| Address: | 205 W Wheat St. |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 364158 |
| UTM Northing: | 3405910 |
| Subject Codes: | churches |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Attached to entry way of 1st Bapist Church Auditorium, |
| Marker Size: | 14" x 24" |
| Marker Text: | First church in county. Organized by Thomas Rock, Milton McQueen, Mrs. Mary Parsons. First pastor was the Rev. J.B. Masterson. Courthouse was used for worship until church was built 1852. Last of old structure was dismantled in 1957. The original bell is now mounted here. |
| Marker Number: | 11359 |
| Marker Title: | Burch-Cauble House |
| Index Entry: | Burch-Cauble House |
| Address: | |
| City: | Chester |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 346369 |
| UTM Northing: | 3424938 |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | Recorded Texas Historic Landmark |
| Marker Location: | N of Chester via US 287 E to FM 2097 N 5 mi to Peach Tree Village |
| Marker Size: | Medallion & Plate |
| Marker Text: | Burch-Cauble House, built 1835 by Peter Cauble, early settler. Enlarged by son-in-law Valentine Burch, veteran of battle of San Jacinto. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1964 |
| Marker Number: | 15459 |
| Marker Title: | Colmesneil, W.T., House |
| Index Entry: | Colmesneil, W.T., House |
| Address: | 106 S. Pitzer |
| City: | Colmesneil |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 364380 |
| UTM Northing: | 3420085 |
| Subject Codes: | vernacular (Architectural term) |
| Year Marker Erected: | 2008 |
| Designations: | Recorded Texas Historic Landmark |
| Marker Location: | 106 S. Pitzer |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | W.T. Colmesneil House Willaim Taylor Colmesneil, the man for whom the town was named, built this house in 1883. He was one of the first conductors on the Texas and New Orleans Railroad, a passenger train that ran from Beaumont to Rockland. According to legend, Colmesneil had the house built facing the railroad tracks so that he could sit on the front porch and warch the trains go by. Colmesneil sold the house to Frank Patterson in 1885 and moved on with the railroad. He married Fannie Taylor in 1886, and one child, Charles, was born to the marriange. Colmesneil worked as a railroad conductor throughout his life and died in Evansville, Indiana in 1907. Cowners of the home after Patterson included J.E. Votaw, Dr. William Martin Van Buren Stewart, Robert L. Mann and Katherine Magouyrk. The original section of the shiplap siding house is a center-passage floor plan with a large room on either side of a hallway and tapered brick chimneys on the ends. Paired double-hung windows are aligned on either side of the chimneys and the entry door. An early addition of rooms and a new porch entry created a modified L-plan layout.
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark-2008 |
| Marker Number: | 11361 |
| Marker Title: | Colmesneil-Mount Zion Cemetery |
| Index Entry: | Colmesneil-Mount Zion Cemetery |
| Address: | |
| City: | Colmesneil |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 363986 |
| UTM Northing: | 3419859 |
| Subject Codes: | graveyards |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1991 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Off US 69 on Zion Cemetery Rd |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | According to local oral tradition, African American residents of Colmesneil began using this land for burial purposes as early as the 1850s. The property remained in the hands of absentee landlords until the 1930s, when the new owner allowed burials to continue at the site. The oldest legible tombstone in the graveyard is that of Henry Mitchell, who died September 11, 1859. There are a number of unmarked graves, however, and some possibly predate Mitchell's burial. Among the more than two hundred interments here are those of prominent members of Colmesneil's black community, including ministers, doctors, teachers, railroad employees, and veterans of World War I and World War II. Known as the Colmesneil Cemetery until 1972, the graveyard was renamed Mount Zion Cemetery to avoid confusion with another Colmesneil Cemetery in the city. The new name was taken from a combination of the names of two local churches with which the cemetery historically has been associated -Mount Hope Baptist Church and Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church. The cemetery serves as a visible reminder of the area's African American Heritage. |
| Marker Number: | 11362 |
| Marker Title: | Cooper-Reid Home |
| Index Entry: | Cooper-Reid Home |
| Address: | |
| City: | |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | Recorded Texas Historic Landmark |
| Marker Location: | |
| Marker Size: | Medallion & Plate |
| Marker Text: | Built 1850. Home of Congressman Samuel B. Cooper (1850-1918). Bought 1903 by S. H. Reid; lived in continuously by Reids. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1968 Restored by Mr. and Mrs. S. D. O'Brien |
| Marker Number: | 11363 |
| Marker Title: | Squire Cruse |
| Index Entry: | Cruse, Squire |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | Texas Revolution, Republic of Texas; military topics |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | On Cruse Cemetery Rd., 8 mi E of Woodville on US 190 |
| Marker Size: | Surface Mount |
| Marker Text: | Soldier in the Texas War for Independence. Served in Bexar Campaign, 1835. |
| Marker Number: | 16033 |
| Marker Title: | Doucette Union Church |
| Index Entry: | Doucette Union Church |
| Address: | 3 miles north of Woodville off of Hwy 69 on county road 3050. Turn right, 1 block to church on right front corner |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | 2009 |
| Designations: | Recorded Texas Historic Landmark |
| Marker Location: | |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: |
| Marker Number: | 11366 |
| Marker Title: | Enloe Mill |
| Index Entry: | Enloe Mill |
| Address: | |
| City: | Colmesneil |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 358797 |
| UTM Northing: | 3423437 |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | FM 1745 4 mi W of Colmesneil |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | A major contributor to county and state history. Built about 1840 on Billums Creek, where the swift current made by inflow of Belts Creek would turn a water-wheel, to generate power. Mill took name from owner Benjamin Enloe, an 1837 settler who bought this property in 1849. Enloe, his son David and grandson George were known to several generations as mill operators. From this mill came lumber for the first frame courthouse in Woodville, built in 1852 while David Enloe was county sheriff. As people came from wide region to this mill, there grew up one of area's main roads (later known as Boone's Ferry Road), connecting Fort Teran with the Old Spanish Trail from Liberty to Nacogdoches and crossing present road at this point. Enloe's mill, one of 27 in Tyler County by 1857, produced essentials of life for settlers: Cornmeal for their bread, and lumber for erecting homes and other buildings. This mill also ginned cotton, their "money" product. Although long known for its raw materials rather than manufactured goods, Texas gained self-reliance from early landmarks such as Enloe's mill. |
| Marker Number: | 11365 |
| Marker Title: | Enloe, David Curlee |
| Index Entry: | Enloe, David Curlee |
| Address: | |
| City: | Colmesneil |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 358203 |
| UTM Northing: | 342294 |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | Recorded Texas Historic Landmark |
| Marker Location: | FM 1745 4.5 mi W of Colmesneil |
| Marker Size: | Medallion & Plate |
| Marker Text: | David Curlee Enloe built this house, 1852; brought his bride here April 4, 1853. Enloe was a teacher and trustee of Woodville College. Elected sheriff 1853, he served several years. Owned sawmill which cut lumber for the first Tyler County Courthouse. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1967 |
| Marker Number: | 11368 |
| Marker Title: | Fort Teran, Site of |
| Index Entry: | Fort Teran |
| Address: | |
| City: | Chester |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | forts |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1936 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | This marker is only accessible w/4 wheel drive but has been reported as in good shape and is located on TDOT map. 11 mi NE of Chester FM 1745 |
| Marker Size: | 1936 centennial marker |
| Marker Text: | Site of Fort Teran, first white settlement in Tyler County. Established by the Mexican government in 1830 to prevent further Anglo-American colonization in Texas. Commanded in 1831 by Peter Ellis Bean. Named in honor of General Manuel Mier Y Teran, commander of the Mexican force in Texas. Abandoned by Mexican troops in 1835. |
| Marker Number: | 11367 |
| Marker Title: | Fort Teran Park |
| Index Entry: | Fort Teran Park |
| Address: | |
| City: | Colmesneil |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | parks; forts |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Not able to access without 4 X 4 |
| Marker Size: | 20" x 20" |
| Marker Text: | Named a historical site by the Texas Centennial Committee, 1936--101 years after closing of fort. Park was donated in 1966 to Tyler County Historical Survey Committee by Mrs. Winnie Wilson in memory of her husband, S. Earl Wilson, who preserved fort site. |
| Marker Number: | 13734 |
| Marker Title: | Site of Henry T. Scott School |
| Index Entry: | Henry T. Scott School, Site of |
| Address: | 705 Live Oak St |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 363848 |
| UTM Northing: | 3405223 |
| Subject Codes: | educational topics; African American topics |
| Year Marker Erected: | 2006 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | 704 Live Oak Street |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | Early African American citizens of Woodville educated their children in local churches and Masonic halls well into the twentieth century. Efforts to develop a better public school system for the students began with the dynamic leadership of educator Henry T. Scott. A native of Tyler County, Scott trained at Prairie View State Normal and Industrial College and taught in Beaumont before moving to Woodville as a teacher in 1910. Here, he worked to raise funds for a new school. Thanks to his vision and perseverance, a six-room school named for him opened on Elm Street (now Martin Luther King Drive) in 1934, only two years before his death. Scott School experienced its greatest early growth under John K. Canada, who became principal in 1947. He set high standards for the students and the development of school curriculum, and under his leadership the student body increased from fewer than 100 students to more than 500. As a result of the growth and the introduction of new programs, Canada worked with Superintendent B.H. McGuire and district officials to plan for a larger campus at this site, purchased in 1959. The new Scott School opened with the beginning of the academic school year in 1961. Henry T. Scott School developed as an important institution in Woodville, and its graduates included many accomplished in their chosen professions and prominent in community activities. The school closed in the late 1960s as a result of integration, and the main building burned in 1980. Today, an active alumni association helps preserve the memories of Scott School and its namesake, Henry T. Scott, both revered in the history of Tyler County. (2006) |
| Marker Number: | 11369 |
| Marker Title: | John Henry Kirby and Education in Woodville |
| Index Entry: | Kirby, John Henry-and Education in Woodville |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 364481 |
| UTM Northing: | 3405922 |
| Subject Codes: | lumber topics; educational topics; Business topics, general |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1994 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | N Charlton St in school parking lot-Woodville |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | John Henry Kirby, son of John T. and Sarah Payne Kirby, was born in the village of Peachtree in North Tyler County, Texas, in 1860. A promising young student, he was encouraged to move to Woodville where he could attend schools with a more challenging curriculum. Kirby married Lelia Stewart in 1883 and afterward joined the staff of Texas State Senator and Attorney Samuel Cooper. He gained admittance to the Texas Bar in 1885 and became Cooper's law partner. After helping Boston investors form the Texas and Louisiana Land and Timber Company he formed his own Kirby Lumber Company in 1901. The company evolved into a regional economic powerhouse responsible for the creation of numerous lumbermill towns in southeast Texas with more than 16,000 employees and covering more than a million acres of timberland. Kirby amassed a lumber empire and became known as the "Prince of the Pines." Though immensely wealthy and a figure of national and state prominence, Kirby never forgot his Tyler County roots. Kirby's many philanthropic acts and gifts to churches, schools, parks, and organizations in East Texas included his donation of land and the funds to build "Kirby High School" at this site in 1928. The last Kirby High School class graduated in 1979. Sesquicentennial of Texas Statehood 1845-1995 |
| Marker Number: | 11364 |
| Marker Title: | Early Law Office |
| Index Entry: | Law Office |
| Address: | Beaver Street |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1968 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Structure has been torn down |
| Marker Size: | Medallion & Plate |
| Marker Text: | Built 1884 at Wheat and Magnolia, in heart of city. Office of Hon. Stephen West (1850-1902), District Judge, host to East Texas leaders - - U. S. Congressman Bronson Cooper, Gov. Wm. P. Hobby, railroad and lumber magnate J. H. Kirby. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1968 |
| Marker Number: | 11370 |
| Marker Title: | Lindsey Cemetery |
| Index Entry: | Lindsey Cemetery |
| Address: | |
| City: | Warren |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 355809 |
| UTM Northing: | 3388969 |
| Subject Codes: | graveyards |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1997 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | 4 mi W of Warren on FM 1943 on Lindsey Cemetery Rd |
| Marker Size: | 18" x 28" |
| Marker Text: | When W. C. Lindsey knew he was dying of tuberculosis, he asked to be buried on his family's land. After his death in 1898, this family cemetery was established by his parents, David S. and Caroline E. Lindsey. Among the nearly 50 graves here are brothers David S. Lindsey and James Oliver Lindsey, who came to Texas from Mississippi with their family in the 1840s. Both enlisted as Confederate soldiers in the Civil War, and David served in the Texas Legislature. This site is maintained by the Lindsey Cemetery Association. |
| Marker Number: | 11371 |
| Marker Title: | Moss Hill Community Cemetery |
| Index Entry: | Moss Hill Community Cemetery |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 369641 |
| UTM Northing: | 3408894 |
| Subject Codes: | graveyards; African American topics |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1994 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | 3 mi E of Woodville via US 190 then N 4/10 mi on Moss Hill Cemetery Rd |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | To help recognize its African American heritage, Tyler County resident John Cruse donated two acres here in 1906 to the Moss Hill community for church and cemetery purposes. According to local tradition the cemetery was established in the early 1900s because of the rising number of deaths within the membership of Moss Hill's Baptist Church. Although evidence of several unmarked grave sites suggests prior burials, the first documented interment was that of Lane Siggers in 1907. Other early burials include those of Harriet Barlow in 1913, Ellis Gilder in 1916, Lottie Blackmon in 1917, Willie Blackmon in 1918, David Rigsby in 1922, J. C. McCartney in 1926, and Lizziebeth Cluff in 1926. The cemetery contains the grave sites of many of this area's most prominent civic and religious leaders. In the early 1980s a group of local citizens formed the Moss Hill Cemetery Committee to help maintain the cemetery grounds. The committee sponsored garage and bake sales and other projects which raised sufficient funds to purchase and install a fence. Members of the community established a tradition of meeting during the fall of each year for a cemetery homecoming and grounds maintenance. |
| Marker Number: | 11450 |
| Marker Title: | Mount Hope Lodge No. 121, A. F. & A. M. |
| Index Entry: | Mount Hope Lodge No. 121, A. F. & A. M. |
| Address: | |
| City: | Chester |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 347269 |
| UTM Northing: | 3422390 |
| Subject Codes: | fraternal organizations |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | US 287 |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | Oldest Masonic Lodge in Tyler County in continuous existence under original charter; founded at a site (2 mi. N) on oldest land grant in county, issued on March 17, 1834, to Gavino Araujo by state of Coahuila and Texas. On Oct. 13, 1852, James and Samuel Barnes, John I. Davis, William Sterling, and G. B. Wallace, trustees of Mount Hope Chapel, acquired building site there for a free Protestant church, schoolhouse, and lodge hall. Lodge was organized by H. W. Carter, Benjamin Enloe, William Harrison, Jefferson Laird, William L. Mann, William Priest, William P. Sansom, Israel Sneed, Henry West, and H. A. Willson. Samuel H. Barnes, G. W. Payne, and J. W. Rotan were initiated under dispensation. The charter was granted on Jan. 23, 1853. After town of Chester was founded on the same old land grant, the lodge moved here, dedicating its new hall on March 4, 1892. Samuel Bronson Cooper (soon to be a U. S. Congressman) and lumber magnate John Henry Kirby -- both from this county -- were program speakers. The centennial anniversary of Mount Hope Lodge was celebrated May 23, 1953, with Texas Governor Allan Shivers -- also a Tyler countian -- making an address. Judge J. E. Wheat of Woodville gave the lodge history. Later generations continue works of the founders. |
| Marker Number: | 11451 |
| Marker Title: | Site of Old Peach Tree Village |
| Index Entry: | Peach Tree Village |
| Address: | |
| City: | Chester |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 345842 |
| UTM Northing: | 3424705 |
| Subject Codes: | cities and towns; Native Americans |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | FM 2097 2.5 mi N of US 287 |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | In the early 19th century, the Alabama Indians -- then a large tribe -- made their headquarters on this site, and called their village "Ta-Ku-La," which meant "Peach Tree." Two trails blazed by early pioneers crossed here. A north-south trail came from Anahuac on the Gulf of Mexico, over the Neches River, leading onward to Nacogdoches; The other ran east-west from Opelousas, Louisiana, through what is now Moscow, to present Huntsville, then west to San Antonio. Other trails diverged from this: to the Galveston Bay area, San Felipe de Austin, and Goliad. The crossing of the trails made this a trading center of importance. With the coming of white settlers, the Alabama Indians withdrew, and the remnant of that tribe is now located about 15 miles south -- occupying the only Indian reservation in Texas. In Old Peach Tree village, some historic homes are marked. It is also site of the Kirby museum, founded by John Henry Kirby (1860-1940), who was born here, and whose career included service as a legislator, as well as leadership in lumbering, banking, oil development and railroad building. |
| Marker Number: | 11452 |
| Marker Title: | Pedigo Family Cemetery |
| Index Entry: | Pedigo Family Cemetery |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 382993 |
| UTM Northing: | 3410224 |
| Subject Codes: | graveyards |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1990 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | on Pedigo Cemetery Rd off FM 92, N of Town Bluff |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | Abram (Abel) B. and Julia Pedigo came to Texas in 1857. With their eleven children, they established a plantation near this site in the 1880s. In addition to farming, the family operated a grist mill, cotton gin, and sugar mill. The Pedigos' daughter Cordelia and her husband, Sid McCarthy, lived in nearby Hardin County. Soon after Cordelia gave birth to twin daughters in 1883, one child and Cordelia died on May 24. They were brought back to the family farm for burial, thus beginning the Pedigo family cemetery. The surviving twin was left to be reared by her grandparents. When Sid McCarthy died three years later he was interred here next to his wife and child. All but one of A. B. and Julia Pedigo's children are buried in the family graveyard. After A. B. died in 1906 his son, Jack Hamilton, inherited the plantation and later formally set aside the cemetery in county deed records. He donated additional land to increase the size of the burial ground in 1939. A native rock chapel, built in the cemetery by A. B. and Julia's children, was dedicated to these area pioneers in 1938. |
| Marker Number: | 14726 |
| Marker Title: | Sand Hill Cemetery |
| Index Entry: | Sand Hill Cemetery |
| Address: | |
| City: | |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | |
| Marker Size: | |
| Marker Text: |
| Marker Number: | 11453 |
| Marker Title: | Texas Statesman Allan Shivers |
| Index Entry: | Shivers, Allan - Texas Statesman |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 364475 |
| UTM Northing: | 3405825 |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Corner of Dogwood & Charlton St. |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | One of Texas' strongest governors, a progressive, colorful, dynamic leader. Administration (1949-1957) -- longest in state's history -- was marked by winning fight for restoration of the tidelands to Texas. In state Senate, 1935, where he was youngest man ever seated up to that time, he was author of Texas old-age pension and unemployment compensation laws. In 1947-1949 he served as lieutenant governor. As governor he made reforms in state hospitals, prisons, schools for deaf and exceptional children; created agencies for higher education, historical preservation, water resources, studies of alcoholism. In his administration highway mileage doubled. He had a moderate tax policy and a balanced budget. He was chairman, national and southern governors conferences, and Interstate Oil Compact Commission; president of the Council of State Governments. Born Oct. 5, 1907, in Lufkin, of pioneer east Texas family. Son of Robert A. and Easter Creasy Shivers. Attended Woodville schools; graduate of Port Arthur High School; University of Texas, B. A., 1931, LL.B., 1933. Married Marialice Shary, 1937. Has four children. Served in Europe in Work War II. Is a Baptist and a Mason; lawyer, rancher, farmer, investor, civic leader. |
| Marker Number: | 11454 |
| Marker Title: | Sturrock Cemetery |
| Index Entry: | Sturrock Cemetery |
| Address: | |
| City: | Rockland |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | graveyards |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1994 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Marker Missing - or Never Placed |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | This family cemetery, characteristic of southern folk burial customs, is the final resting place for members of the extended Sturrock family and their neighbors. Brothers John and William Sturrock, along with their brother, sisters, and brother-in-law, left their native Scotland for the United States in 1830 and eventually settled in East Texas. William purchased a tract of land here along the Neches River at the mouth of Billums Creek, where he built a mill operation that included a gristmill, sawmill, and cotton gin. The earliest documented burial in this cemetery, established on land set aside by William Sturrock, is that of his first wife, Cynthia Frisby Sturrock (1819-1853). Distinctive gravestones and structures, including traditional Scottish house tombs or false crypts, mark the graves of generations of Sturrock family members and some of their neighbors, including many children, veterans of the Civil War and World War I, and one African American slave who died in 1864 during the Civil War. The graves are aligned in a traditional east-west configuration. Maintained by descendants, the cemetery serves as a reminder of the pioneer spirit of its founders. |
| Marker Number: | 11455 |
| Marker Title: | Sunny Dell Missionary Baptist Church |
| Index Entry: | Sunny Dell Missionary Baptist Church |
| Address: | |
| City: | Colmesneil |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 360007 |
| UTM Northing: | 3424201 |
| Subject Codes: | churches |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | On CR 2854 off FM 1745 4 mi. W of Colmesneil |
| Marker Size: | 18" x 28" |
| Marker Text: | This church was organized on April 22, 1882, by pioneer settlers of the Sunny Dell community, a prosperous farming settlement of early Tyler County. Led by the Rev. Arnold Rhodes, the congregation had 14 charter members. James Sturrock donated land for the sanctuary. A leading church in the region for many years, the congregation declined as the area's population decreased. Services were discontinued in 1955, but homecomings are held here annually. Descendants of early members continue to live in the area and many have served as leaders of Tyler County. |
| Marker Number: | 11456 |
| Marker Title: | Tolar Kitchen |
| Index Entry: | Tolar Kitchen |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 361797 |
| UTM Northing: | 3405202 |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Located 1.5 mi. W of Woodville at Heritage Museum |
| Marker Size: | Medallion & Plate |
| Marker Text: | Built as home south of town 1866 by Robert Tolar. Logs cut, squared and notched on site. Has "mud cat" chimney, roof of hand-rived shakes. Converted to "cook house" where 3 meals every day were cooked over open fireplace until 1960. Pots were cooked "full" for travelers who "dropped in." |
| Marker Number: | 11457 |
| Marker Title: | Town Bluff |
| Index Entry: | Town Bluff |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | FM 92 |
| Marker Size: | Historical Marker |
| Marker Text: | County seat of Menard County which was created in 1842. Original seat of government for Tyler County created in 1846. A ferry has been operated at this point continuously since 1833. Was commercial center of this section and important river port until railroads were constructed through the county. Erected by the State of Texas---1936 |
| Marker Number: | 11458 |
| Marker Title: | Tyler County |
| Index Entry: | Tyler County |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 364501 |
| UTM Northing: | 3405556 |
| Subject Codes: | counties |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | junction of US 69 and US 190 |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | (Crossroads to East Texas) Home ground of civilized tribes of Indians. Visited 1756 by Spanish explorers, who were trying to keep French trading expeditions out of Texas. Site in 1831 of Fort Teran, commanded by Colonel ellis Peter Bean, famous and colorful adventurer. The county was created an organized in 1846. It was named for President John Tyler, who signed the resolution to annex Texas to the United States. A 200-acre plot for a county seat was donated by a leading early settler, Josiah Wheat. It was named "Woodville" for George T. Wood, sponsor of the bill in the First Legislature of Texas which created the county. (Wood later served as Governor of Texas, from 1847 to 1849.) In the "Big Thicket." Home of the annual Dogwood Festival. Economy is based on timber, oil, livestock. First county officials: William P. Sansour, chief justice; Ezekiel Green, George Kirkwood, Angelina Parker, Ivy Taylor, commissioners; James Sapp, sheriff; James Barclay, tax assessor and collector; J. Dobb and William Gray, justices of the peace; Harmon Frazier, surveyor; John C. Arnett, treasurer. 1966 county officials: Jeff R. Mooney, county judge; Joe I. Best, F. C. Hicks, Leon Fowler, H. H. Powell, commissioners; J. F. Boyd, treasurer; Tom Sawyer, county clerk; A. L. Thornton, tax assessor & collector; Clyde E. Smith, Jr., county attorney; Grady Ray, sheriff; B. M. Minter, county school superintendent; Hilda Coats, district clerk; Joe H. Loggins, E. E. Sheffield, Clarence Woodrome, L. L. Parrish, justices of the peace. |
| Marker Number: | 11360 |
| Marker Title: | Valentine Burch |
| Index Entry: | Valentine, Burch |
| Address: | |
| City: | Chester |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 346478 |
| UTM Northing: | 3424979 |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1936 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | 5 mi N of via US 287 N to FM 2097, Peach Tree Village from Chester |
| Marker Size: | Grave Marker |
| Marker Text: | - - - |
| Marker Number: | 11459 |
| Marker Title: | West-Stephen Law Office |
| Index Entry: | West-Stephen Law office |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | |
| UTM Northing: | |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | |
| Marker Size: | |
| Marker Text: | -- |
| Marker Number: | 11460 |
| Marker Title: | Home of James Edward Wheat |
| Index Entry: | Wheat, James Edward, Home of |
| Address: | 107 W. Wheat St. |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 364626 |
| UTM Northing: | 3405549 |
| Subject Codes: | houses, residential buildings |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | Located on a 2,952.2-acre tract of Republic of Texas land awarded in 1838 to Dr. Josiah Wheat, an early settler of Tyler County, and donor in 1847 of 200 acres for county seat, soon named Woodville. Site for this residence was acquired by William G. McDaniel, who built earliest part of house (two rooms downstairs and two upstairs) in 1848. Most memorable feature was gallery over the front porch. On this gallery jurors used to sleep when housing was scarce during sessions of the county court. The several owners after 1881 included T. C. Mann, father of 20th century U. S. Diplomat Thomas Mann. In 1918 the house was purchased by James Edward Wheat (Jan. 6, 1887 - Oct. 10, 1968), son of Light Nowlin and Martha Bryant Wheat, and great-grandson of Dr. Josiah Wheat. James Edward Wheat, an attorney, was president of the Woodville School Board (1920-49), first mayor of the city after its incorporation in 1929, and member of Texas Centennial Commission, 1936. He served on Texas State Prison Board, 1942-48; was secretary (1950) and chairman (1951-52) of the Executive Committee, State Democratic Party; also first chairman of Texas State Historical Survey Committee (1953-59). He enlarged and improved this house on his ancestral land. |
| Marker Number: | 11461 |
| Marker Title: | John Wheat |
| Index Entry: | Wheat, John |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 364621 |
| UTM Northing: | 3401450 |
| Subject Codes: | Texas Revolution, Republic of Texas; military topics |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Mt. Pisgah Cemetery on US 69, 3 mi. south of Woodville |
| Marker Size: | Grave Marker |
| Marker Text: | (August 7, 1813 - April 24, 1889) A native of Lawrence County, Ala. Migrating to Texas in 1835, Wheat located his headright and bounty lands here, and named many Tyler County creeks while hunting bear and other game. A soldier in Texas War for Independence, he guarded a Mexican officer prisoner after Battle of San Jacinto. He donated land for this cemetery, and served as county commissioner in 1852-54. Married four times, he had several children, and left to descendants many legends of the early days. |
| Marker Number: | 11462 |
| Marker Title: | Woodville Academy and Woodville College |
| Index Entry: | Woodville Academy and Woodville College |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 364501 |
| UTM Northing: | 3405556 |
| Subject Codes: | educational topics |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | junction of US 69 / 190, Courthouse |
| Marker Size: | 18" x 28" |
| Marker Text: | Organized in 1849 in the new county courthouse (formerly at this site), the Woodville Academy offered advanced courses of study. Some of the subjects were astronomy, orthography (spelling), surveying and logic. In 1850 the school moved (1,500 ft. SE); it was sold, 1856. That same year the town of Woodville and Woodville College were chartered. The school-- in the old Masonic Lodge (1,200 ft. W)-- closed after a few years. Among some 40 higher schools chartered in Texas 1845-1861, these two reflect a state-wide surge of interest in education. |
| Marker Number: | 11463 |
| Marker Title: | Woodville Magnolia Cemetery |
| Index Entry: | Woodville magnolia Cemetery |
| Address: | N. Nellius St. |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 363927 |
| UTM Northing: | 3406303 |
| Subject Codes: | graveyards |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | In 1855 M. Priest deeded one acre of land, containing several graves, for use as a public burial ground. Another acre was donated by Jane Bean in 1859, and additional land was acquired later. Woodville Magnolia Cemetery contains the graves of numerous pioneer settlers and early community leaders. Handmade bricks outline some of the older graves not marked with headstones, such as the graves of five wives of George Van Vleck and several of his children. Van Vleck, who is buried in Houston's Glenwood Cemetery, served as the first district clerk of Tyler County for 16 years and as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Texas, A. F. & A. M., in 1862. Among the other pioneers buried here are Captain Charles Bullock (1825-1902), who raised a company of soldiers for the Confederate army, and the Rev. Acton Young (1823-1873), early Methodist minister in this region. Also located here is the gravesite of Nancy Shivers (d. 1890), a widow who brought her family to Texas before the Civil War. Allan Shivers, Governor of Texas from 1949 to 1957, is one of her descendants. Veterans of the Civil War, Spanish-American War, World Wars I and II, and the Vietnam Conflict are interred here. |
| Marker Number: | 11464 |
| Marker Title: | Lt. Col. Philip A. Work |
| Index Entry: | Work, Lt. Col. Philip A. |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 364501 |
| UTM Northing: | 3405556 |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Juc. of US 69 & US 190 on US 190-Woodville-Courthouse |
| Marker Size: | 18" x 28" |
| Marker Text: | Came to Texas, 1838, represented Tyler County, Texas secession convention, 1861. Raised and was Captain, Co. F. 1st Regt., Hood's Texas brigade. As Lieutenant Colonel, commanded Hood's Texans June 1862-Jan. 1864, in battles such as Sharpsburg, where brigade had over 82% casualties. Greatest loss for any unit in any Civil War action. Col. work led Texas brigade second day, Gettysburg; And in Chickamauga victory, 1863. After coming home to regain health, was in David S. Terry's Texas cavalry. After war practiced law. Is buried in old Hardin Cemetery. |
| Marker Number: | 11465 |
| Marker Title: | The Yale Summer Forestry Camp and Gifford Pinchot |
| Index Entry: | Yale Summer Forestry Camp and Gifford Pinchot, The |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 362916 |
| UTM Northing: | 3401322 |
| Subject Codes: | educational topics; lumber topics |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1986 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Texas Forest Service Area IU HQ, Woodville, 3 mi. S off US 69 |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | In 1909 at Mooney's Lake, now known as Twin Lakes (2 mi. WSW), senior students from the Yale University (New Haven, Ct.) School of Forestry met for their annual spring camp to study local timber management and lumber operations. In April that year the camp was visited by Gifford Pinchot (1865-1946), who served as the first chief forester of the U. S. from 1895 to 1910. He was accompanied by members of the newly appointed Yellow Pine Manufacturers Assn. Conservation Committee, including Yale Forest School director Henry Solon Graves (1871-1951), and Texas lumberman John Lewis Thompson (1875-1938). Both Pinchot and Thompson had studied forestry in Europe and advocated the adoption of conservation in American forest lands. Pinchot, whose family founded the Yale Forestry School in 1900, remarked that this committee meeting was the first accord among foresters and lumbermen. The group proposed that pine manufacturers support federal and state legislation to discourage clear cutting, assure forest fire prevention, and revise taxation of forest lands. Six years later the state of Texas prescribed that forestry courses be taught at its A & M College, and established a forestry agency, renamed the Texas Forest Service in 1926. Texas sesquicentennial 1836-1986 |
| Marker Number: | 11466 |
| Marker Title: | The Rev. Acton Young |
| Index Entry: | Young, Rev. Acton |
| Address: | |
| City: | Woodville |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 363889 |
| UTM Northing: | 3406046 |
| Subject Codes: | |
| Year Marker Erected: | |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | N Nellius St. Woodville in S. Side of Magnolia cemetery |
| Marker Size: | 14" x 24" |
| Marker Text: | (January 16, 1823-April 16, 1873) Born in Tennessee. Settling in East Texas, he married Margaret McMahan, daughter of founder of chapel called earliest permanent Texas Protestant Church. Licensed as a Methodist minister, Young served (1849-73) many communities, including Woodville. Here he had family home and at one time a store operated by son-in-law Bronson Cooper, who later served in the United States Congress. His children were Phebe, Samuel Doak, Charles Acton, and Ettina. Recorded - 1972 |
| Marker Number: | 11467 |
| Marker Title: | Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church |
| Index Entry: | Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church |
| Address: | |
| City: | Colmesneil |
| County: | Tyler |
| UTM Zone: | 15 |
| UTM Easting: | 363948 |
| UTM Northing: | 3420491 |
| Subject Codes: | churches; African American topics |
| Year Marker Erected: | 1991 |
| Designations: | na |
| Marker Location: | Hwy 69 in Colmesneil |
| Marker Size: | 27" x 42" |
| Marker Text: | Zion Hill Missionary Baptist church is one of the earliest churches to serve this area's African American community. In the early 1880s, a Freedmen's colony grew here in response to the availability of jobs at a newly opened sawmill. The Rev. George Durden and his congregation, with the assistance of the Rev. A. Venerable, moderator of the Trinity Valley Baptist Association, officially organized Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church in 1881. It was the first black church congregation in Colmesneil. Worship services were held in a log cabin built by the congregation until the early 1900s. The church has occupied several locations and has served not only as a place of worship, but also as a school for black children. In the early 1990s Zion Hill Missionary Baptist church was moved to a site east of the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks adjacent to the Odd Fellows Hall. In 1933, the church was rebuilt at this site six blocks southwest of its original location. For over one hundred years Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church has served the community witht a variety of worship and educational programs and maintained a leadership role in civic activities. |
