TXSSAR REVOLUTIONARY WAR PATRIOT GRAVE MARKING PROJECT



The Texas Society, Sons of the American Revolution, has taken on the project to mark ALL the graves of the Patriots from the American Revolution that are buried in Texas.  This is not a new idea, but with the death of past NSSAR President General Clovis Brakebill, FSP Texas Society and FPG NSSAR, it seems fitting that this is the very least we in the Texas Society can do to honor his work of writing a book about those heroes.  Clovis spent years researching the history of these Patriots and the location of their graves.  This information is wonderfully presented here from his book, "American Revolutionary Soldiers Buried in Texas", and we would like to encourage each of our TXSSAR chapters to select at least one of the Patriots and make plans to mark the gravesite, and/or the historic sites that may be associated with these men.

We should make each of the grave marking ceremonies very special and following are a few ideas that should be considered when planning the event.  Like many others in the TXSSAR who are also members of other historical societies and patriotic organizations, we should work together to place multiple markers on each of these men's grave.  Other organizations like the DAR, DRT, SRT, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, local news media, other Historical Societies and any other society with similar interest should be invited.  We should invite the descendants of these Patriots, and they should have a part in the ceremony.  There should be as many members of our Color Guard present as possible to perform a flag folding ceremony, and fire a musket salute.  We should have a pre-published program for these events, and the local public officials should be invited to participate.  If applicable, a chapter must check with the local cemetery to insure that we comply with their rules for placing a marker.  There are many other details involved in such a project, but this should give everyone the general idea.  The first step is for each chapter to commit to the project, and the next step is to select a Patriot in or near your area.  The chapters in the larger cities may want to work together with the smaller chapters in the rural parts of the state where many of the Patriots are buried.

If your chapter is interested in sponsoring a grave or site marking for one of these Patriots buried in Texas please contact Tom B. Green III at TBGreen3@prodigy.net.  Several chapters have already contacted him to discuss this project, and he will be glad to help in any way possible.  A list of the Patriots and the county where they are buried have been placed on our TXXSAR Web Page, and Tom will be glad to provide what information he has about each Patriot if you do not have access to Clovis' book.



Chapters Participataing in Grave and Site Marking of Patriots Buried in Texas

Sponsoring Chapter(s) Patriot County Buried Type Marking
Athens Chapter and Captain William Barron Chapter Samuel Smith Rusk Grave
Captain William Barron Chapter Benjamin Clark Red River Grave
Cradle of Texas Chapter William Smeathers Brazoria Grave
East Fork Trinity Chapter James Lemmon Dallas Grave
Freedom Chapter and PineyWoods Chapter Owen Shannon Montgomery Grave
Paul Carrington Chapter Aaron Cherry Liberty Grave
Robert Rankin (Katy) Chapter Robert Rankin Texas State Cemetery Grave
Plano Chapter John Abston Collin Grave
William Hightower Chapter Peter Sides Bexar Battle of Medina Site
East Texas Chapter Bailey Anderson Harrison Grave
Capt. William Barron and Athens Chapters Thomas Blair Hogg Cherokee Grave
PineyWoods Chapter Zachariah Landrum Montgomery Grave
Independence Chapter Richard Tice Washington Grave
PineyWoods Chapter Henry Bailey Greenwood Grimes Grave



American Revolutionary War Patriots Buried In Texas



Note:  Names marked with * need further research prior to marking
  1. John Abston was born January 2, 1761 in Pittsylvania County, Virginia and was only 18 years old when he fought in the Battle of King's Mountain.  In 1789 he married Frances Thurman in Virginia, before the couple moved to Kentucky, and later to Missouri in the 1830's.  In the early 1850's John Abston converted his bank notes to gold bars and hid them in a small trunk as he prepared to migrate to Texas.  The family settled near the community of Lavon in Collin County, Texas, where he died February 4, 1857.  John Abston is buried in the Abston Family Cemetery located adjacent to Lake Lavon, and his grave is one of only two Patriot graves in Texas that is marked by the DAR, SAR and State of Texas.

  2. James Adams was born about 1754 in Albemarle County, Virginia and served three years in the Virginia Continental Line. Capt.  James Adams married Mary Irvine March 4, 1776 and the couple moved to Kentucky after the war, before moving to Texas in the early 1800's.  He is reported buried in Orange County, Texas but his grave has not been located.

  3. Bailey Anderson was born November 13, 1753 in Overwharton Parish, Stafford County, Virginia and served about two years in the American Revolution and fought Indians on the Pee Dee River, participated in the Battles of Musgrove's Mills, Black Stocks, Ninety Six, and the Siege of Augusta.  He moved his family to Kentucky and then to Indiana after the Revolution, and in 1818 moved once more to Texas.  On the float trip down the Mississippi River his wife died, and Bailey Anderson arrived in San Augustine, Texas in 1819 and settled on the Ayish Bayou District in 1821.  He fought in the Battle of Nacodgoches in August of 1832 and the Battle of Bexar in December 1835, making him one of the few men who fought in both the American Revolution and the Texas Revolution.  Bailey Anderson died August 1, 1840 and is buried in the Old Family Cemetery near Elysian Fields in Harrison County.  There are both DAR and SAR markers on his grave.

  4. Benjamin W. Anderson was born in 1751 in South Carolina and joined the Continential Army after the Tories killed his father.  He first married Polly Rebecca Cureton and they had 9 children before she died. Benjamin next married Margaret Jane Williams and they had 16 children.  He also served with the local militia during the Texas revolution.  Benjamin loved racehorses and rode them until he broke a leg at the age of 96 during a horse race.  He died September 14, 1853 and is buried in Blackjack-Attoyac Cemetery located 3.9 miles north of Chireno, Texas in Nacodgoches County.  According to Clovis' book there are no markers on his grave, however there is a picture of it.  This is another grave that we need to get all patriotic groups interested in marking.  Which SAR Chapter wants to handle the organization of marking this Patriot grave?

  5. * John Bain (Beins) - The Revolutionary War service of this Irish Immigrant is not known.  He is buried at Vox Populi, Colorado Co.

  6. Joseph de la Baume was born in 1731 near Avignon, France and came with the French Army to fight for American Independence, and served under Viscomte de Bonneville.  He became stranded in Louisiana after the American Revolution and came to Texas in 1800 finally locating near Bexar (now San Antonio).  Joseph was caught up in the Magee-Gueterrieez effort to free Texas from Spain in 1813, and was imprisoned for seven months and fined 7,000 doubloons.  De La Baume later received land from the Mexican government after they won their independence from Spain, and later received a land grant from Stephen F. Austin.  Sam Houston certified his claim for a pension for his service during the American Revolution, but the claim was denied by the U.S. Government.  Joseph de la Baume died April 4, 1834 at the age of 103 and was buried near Bellville, Texas in Austin County.  There are old pictures of his grave, but attempts by Clovis to locate the grave were unsuccessful.  This would be a great project for one, or all the Houston SAR chapters to find and mark this Patriot's grave.  We could invite the French and Spanish government officials located in the Houston area to a ceremony along with the DAR, DRT and the SRT.

  7. * Eye Bead - An Ioni Caddo Chief who claimed to have commanded a Company of Indians under General Washington.

  8. * James Carter (1769 - 1850) - North Carolina native who enlisted in the First North Carolina Regiment of Militia.  He died on 1 March, 1850, and is buried in Russell Cemetery at Bonham.

  9. John James Cedar was born in England in 1761 and came to America as a British soldier, but deserted and served in the Continental Army.  He came to Texas in 1803 as is buried on the Palogacho Creek in Nacodgoches County.

  10. John Baptiste Chaison was born August 7, 1745 in Nova Scotia, but migrated to France when his country was ceded to England.  He returned to America when the American Revolution broke out and served with Colonel Benedict Arnold at the Siege of Quebec, General Lafayette at Brandywine.  He was wounded at the Battle of Eutaw Springs, but recovered to fight with General Lafayette at Yorktown.  In 1832 he migrated to Jefferson County, Texas, where he died on July 20, 1854.  He is buried in the Jirou Cemetery located north of Beaumont, Texas.  The cemetery was abandoned when the freeway was built, and a church was built over the site of his grave.  A DAR grave marker was placed on his grave site in 1944, but the marker was moved to Pipkin Park in 1969 on the west bank of the Neches River near downtown Beaumont when the church was built on the grave site.  In 1976 the Texas Historical Society placed a marker in Pipkin Park, but according to Clovis' book there is no SAR marker.  This should be an easy site to mark for our Beaumont chapter.

  11. Aaron Cherry was born September 22, 1746 in Virginia and served with the 5th Pennsylvania according to his grave marker.  We apparently have no other information on his service and no one knows who placed the marker on his grave site on Plantation Ranch located on the east side of the Trinity River near Romayor, Texas in north Liberty County.  The published Cherry Family History states Aaron Cherry and his sons settled in Liberty County, Texas in 1834 and Aaron died there October 2, 1856.  No patriotic organization has placed a marker on this gravesite located on land owned by Bill Daniels.  This should be a gravesite for both the SAR and the SRT.

  12. Benjamin Clark was born in January of 1758 in Dobbs County, North Carolina, and enlisted in the Militia at the age of 17.  After the war he lived in Kentucky, Tennessee, the Missouri Territory and in Arkansas before moving his family to Texas in 1819 settling in Red River County where he died in February of 1838.  Benjamin Clark is buried in the Clarksville Cemetery, and a new headstone was placed on his grave some years ago, but there is no SAR or DAR marker on the gravesite.

  13. James Potter Collins was born in Tryon County, North Carolina on November 22, 1763 and served in the Battle of King's Mountain with Moffit's Minute Men.  After the war he lived in Tennessee, Georgia, and Arkansas before coming to Texas to visit his son-in-law, John East.  He died in 1844 on his farm located north of Clarksville, Texas in Red River County.  He was buried near the Red River, but with the many changes in the course of the river over the years, his grave has probably been lost forever.

  14. Bernard D'Ortolant was born in Bordeaux, France about 1753, and migrated to Louisiana about 1773, and served in the American Revolution in Louisiana.  He married Marie Ann Grappe and in 1797 he was the Lieutenant of the Natchitoches, Louisiana Cavalry Militia where he served for 14 years.  He returned to San Antonio in 1779 and was in charge of the first cattle drive of 10,000 Texas long-horned cattle that were taken to Louisiana to be used by Bernardo de Galvez during his attacks on Mobil and Pensacola.  Lt. D'Ortolant was in charge of the Old Stone Fort in Nacogdoches when Philip Nolan was arrested in 1801, and died there about 1822.  The exact location of his grave has been lost, but it is believed that he was buried in the Old Spanish Cemetery located near the Old Stone Fort in Nacogdoches, Texas.

  15. Warren Davis was born in 1766 in Prince William County, Virginia and was a combat soldier in the American Revolution.  He was captured by the Indians while serving with General William Henry Harrison and was in danger of being killed, but he managed to establish a bond with the Chief who adopted him into his tribe.  Warren Davis married Mollie Kincheloe in Nelson County, Kentucky, and later moved to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, before moving to San Augustine County, Texas in 1820.  He died March 26, 1838 and was buried in an unmarked grave in the Upper Chireno Cemetery.

  16. William Delafield was another firebrand young man born in 1763 in Virginia, who served in the American Revolution as a substitute for a friend.  In 1785 he was charged with stealing a horse, and sentenced to death!  He received a pardon from Governor Patrick Henry and sentenced to hard labor for three years, however, he escaped from public jail and went to Georgia where he married and had a two sons and lost a leg fighting Indians.  In 1850 he moved to Texas to live with his son Nicholas who had already migrated to Texas.  William Delafield died in 1860 in Harrison County, Texas and was buried in a family farm cemetery located near LaGrone's Chapel.  In 1972 there was a Texas Historical Marker placed on his grave, but no SAR or DAR marker has been placed on his grave.

  17. John Dollarhide was born in 1751 and served in the Battles of Cowpens and King's Mountain.  He married Nancy Chittington, died in 1853, and was buried in the Dollarhide Family Cemetery located about five miles southwest of Diboll, Texas in Angelina County.  The grave is marked by a private family marker and the gravesite in on private land owned by the Dollarhide Hunting Club.

  18. William Eakin was born in 1764 and served with the South Carolina Continental Line.  We have his pension application and after he died July 11, 1840 in Shelby County, Texas, he was buried in San Augustine County, Texas.  We do not know the location of his grave.

  19. William Gates was born in North Carolina in about 1760 and served in the American Revolution, but we do not know where he served.  He married Catherine Hardin in about 1781 and the family moved to Kentucky.  They later moved to Missouri before moving on to Texas in 1821, where they settled near Washington-on-the-Brazos, where Gates became on to the Old 300 families settled by Stephen F. Austin.  He died on August 6, 1828 in San Augustine County while visiting his son, Charles Gates, and was buried in an unmarked grave probably on land owned by his son on Ayish Bayou.  Horses were run over his grave to hide its location from the marauding Indians.

  20. Henry Bailey Greenwood was born in 1756 in Virginia.  He was a Quaker and grew up in Loudon and Bedford counties.  In 1779 he married Nancy Jarvis.  Although he did not fight because of his religion, he did serve as a juror during the Revolution.  Between the end of the Revolution and 1830, Henry lived in Greenbrier Co, VA (by 1796), in Anderson Co, TN (by 1802) where sons Joel and Franklin were born, in Madison Co, IL, in Miller Co, AK territory (by 1827), in St. Augustine, TX (by 1829) and finally to Grimes Co, TX (by 1830).  He settled in "Old High Point," the forerunner of Stoneham, TX.  He died in 1835.  An SAR marker was placed on Henry Bailey Greenwood's grave by the PineyWoods Chapter in 2005.

  21. * Benjamin Hardin (TBD - 1845) - His Revolutionary War service is not known.  He died on 25 November, 1845, in Polk Co. 

  22. * James Wilson Henderson (TBD - ca. 1856) - Revolutionary War service is not known.  He died ca. 1856 and is buried in Shilo Cemetery in Cherokee County. 

  23. * Theophilus Hickman (1753 - ca. 1848) - Volunteer Edgecombe Co., North Carolina Militia.  He died ca. 1848 Jasper Co. (Pension rejected because service less than 6 Months.) 

  24. * Moses Hill (TBD - ca.1845) - Revolutionary War service from Massachusetts.  He died ca. 1845 reportedly in Sabine Co.

  25. Alexander Hodge is called the Hero of Two Republics since he served under the Swamp Fox, General Francis Marion in the American Revolution and when he was 76 years old, he participated in the struggle for Texas' Independence.  Alexander Hodge was born in 1760 in Pennsylvania, but the family moved to Edgefield, South Carolina, and at age 18 he served in the American Revolution.  After the Revolution he moved to Arkansas where he met Stephen F. Austin, and decided to go to Texas to obtain land.  In 1825 he moved his family to Texas settling in what is now Fort Bend County.  The 76-year old Patriot led and assisted the women and children in the "Run-away Scrape" in 1836 after the fall of the Alamo.  Alexander Hodge died August 17, 1836 and was buried in the family plantation cemetery called Hodge's Bend Cemetery located northwest of Sugarland, Texas in Fort Bend County.  According to Clovis Brakebill's book there is a Texas Historical Marker and a Citizen of the Republic of Texas plaque on his headstone in Hodge's Bend Cemetery, but not a SAR marker.  There is also a DAR marker in Sam Houston Park in downtown Houston, and a Texas Historical Marker on U.S. Highway 90 near Dayton, Texas.  Is this information up to date?

  26. Thomas Blair Hogg was born April 16, 1768 ion the Enoree River in the Newberry District of South Carolina.  In 1790 he married Martha Chandler and the family moved to Georgia, where he lived when he fought in the War of 1812.  He served in the Georgia Legislature before moving to Alabama in 1819, where he also served in their Legislature, before moving to Choctaw County, Mississippi where he was again elected to that state's Legislature.  In 1849 at the age of 81 he moved to Texas where he died at the age of 81 and is buried next to his wife in the Hogg Cemetery east of Rusk, Texas in Cherokee County.  These are the grandparents of the first native-born Texan to be elected Governor of the state, but there are no markers on his grave, according to Clovis.  An SAR marker was placed on Thomas Blair Hogg's grave by the Capt. William Barron and Athens Chapters in 2004.

  27. Thomas C. Holmes was born in Wayne County, North Carolina in 1759 and married Elizabeth Jourdon in 1794.  He served as an express rider for Capt. Benjamin Harrison's 1st South Carolina Regiment, under General Francis Marion, The Swamp Fox, and carried a message from General Marion to General George Washington.  He applied for his pension in 1854 while living in Newton County, Texas where he had been living since 1835, and he died there in 1861.  There is a brass US Government marker on his grave, but no SAR or DAR marker.

  28. * Micijah Hughes (1768 - 1857) - Possible service in Revolutionary War not known.  He died ca. 1857 and is buried in Skinner Cemetery, Lone Star, Morris Co. 

  29. Zachariah Landrum was born in 1766 in South Carolina and grew up to be a tall stocky man and was the third generation in his family to fight in the American Revolution.  He received 150 acres of land in Georgia for his war service, and married Letitia Tine in about 1795.  On January 20, 1830 the family arrived by wagon train at the Old Stone Fort in Nacogdoches, Texas.  On July 19, 1833 Zachariah Landrum died and was buried in a small plot on a hilltop and his family made an above ground crypt, four feet tall, over his grave.  The location of his grave is about two miles south of Old Montgomery and one mile west of Texas Highway 149 in the Springer Cemetery in Montgomery County, Texas.  There are both DAR and SAR markers on his grave.

  30. James Lemmon was born about 1765 probably in Maryland, and served with his uncle in the American Revolution at the age of 12.  He married Sarah Carr in about 1800 and took his new bride to New Indiana and later to Illinios.  His father went with Major George Washington to tell the French to leave Fort Boeuf in Pennsylvania in 1752.  In 1754, he again went with Major Washington to rout the French at Fort Duquesne with General Braddock.  Young James Lemmon was a messenger during the American Revolution and later served with the 4th Virginia Regiment.  In 1845 he moved to the Republic of Texas and settled south of Lancaster, Texas in Dallas County.  He died July 4, 1858 and was buried in the Edgewood Cemetery just south of Lancaster, Texas in Dallas County, Texas.  In 1948 a Revolutionary Soldier's plaque was placed on his headstone, but it was barely readable in 1998 when Clovis visited the grave.

  31. Able Allison Lewis was born in about 1761 probably in South Carolina where he served for 477 days under Capt. Thomas Price's South Carolina 96 District Company.  He married Martha "Patsy" Wofford in about 1795, and the family moved to Missouri before coming to Texas to settle in the Sabine District of San Augustine County.  He died before 1839 and was buried in the Chapel Hill Cemetery about six miles east of San Augustine, Texas.  His grave is marked, but not with an SAR or DAR marker.

  32. Mark Lott Manning war born about 1750 probably in North Carolina and served with General Francis Marion in the American Revolution.  He moved to South Carolina and then to Alabama before coming to Texas at the age of 97.  He died in May 1850 at the age of 100 and is buried in the Manning-Brimberry Cemetery located about 12 miles north of Huntsville, Texas in Walker County.

  33. * Issac Moore (1753 - 1843) - Revolutionary War service as Massachusetts soldier/volunteer is not specifically known.  He also served as a seaman aboard the Bermuda before capture by the British.  He died in 1843 in Liberty Co.

  34. John Parker was born September 5, 1758 in Baltimore County, Maryland and served with Virginia troops under General Nathaniel Greene in the American Revolution.  In 1779 he married Sarah White and his family moved to Crawford County, Illinois where in 1827 a granddaughter was born named Cynthia Ann Parker.  The family moved to Texas in 1832 and Reverend John Parker built a church.  The trip was hard and the survivors finally arrived at Fort Houston located near present day Palestine, Texas.  In 1833 the family started clearing trees to build a stockade located between the present towns of Grosebeck and Medina, Texas in Limestone County.  It was on May 19, 1836 that the large band of Comanche Indians approached the stockade under a white flag, but then attacked, killing five of the Parker family, and capturing Cynthia Ann Parker, who became the wife of Nacoma and the mother of Quanah Parker, chief of the Comanches.  John Parker was scalped and killed that day and buried in a mass grave at the Pioneer Cemetery near Fort Parker.  The DAR placed a marker on the gravesite in 1946, but there is no SAR marker.  Which SAR chapter wants to mark this famous Patriot's gravesite.

  35. Charles Polk was born on January 18, 1760 in Mecklenburg County, Virginia, and fought in may battles of the American Revolution including the Battle of Sullivan's Island under Col. Mountrie.  After the war he married Margaret Baxter and the couple moved to Tennessee before finally migrating to Texas in 1839.  He was buried in the Lynn Flat Cemetery located about one half mile north of Cushing, Texas in San Augustine County.

  36. * Page Portwood Jr. (1758 - 1847) - Native of Virginia whose Revolutionary War service is not certain.  He died in 1847 and was buried in Anderson Co. 

  37. Edmund Quirk was born about 1759 in Virginia and served with the Virginia State troops in the American Revolution.  After the war he married Ana Maria Alsop and they moved to Kentucky, before coming to Texas by 1795.  He became involved in the Gutierrez-Magee Texas Revolution in 1812, and survived the Battle of Medina August 18, 1814, but was a prisoner in the Alamo until he escaped.  Edmund Quirk owned the land where the town of San Augustine, Texas is now located and he was killed there by John Bodine in 1835, but the location of his grave is unknown.

  38. Robert Rankin was born in Virginia in 1753. He  fought in the American Revolution in the Battles of Brandywine, Germantown, and Stony Point.  He was captured at Charleston, South Carolina, and later exchanged.  He married Margaret Berry after the war and they moved to Kentucky and he was a delegate to the convention that drafted the Kentucky constitution.  The family then moved to the Mississippi Territory before coming to Texas in 1832.  He received a land grant where the present town of Cold Springs, Texas was later located in San Jacinto County.  Robert Rankin was initially buried near his home, but in 1936 his remains were reentered in the Texas State Cemetery in Austin, Texas.  His grave has a DRT marker, a Society of Cincinnati marker and a Texas State Historical marker, but there is no SAR or DAR marker on his grave.

  39. * Joshua Seale (1765 - 1864) - Revolutionary War Service from South Carolina not specified.  He died in 1864 in Jasper Co. 

  40. Owen Shannon was born about 1762 and served with the Georgia's Roster of the Revolution.  He married Margaret Montgomery in Wilkes County, Georgia on October 22, 1792, and he received a bounty land grant in Franklin County, Georgia for his Revolutionary War service.  In 1821 Owen Shannon and his family moved to the Mexican State of Texas, just after Mexico gained independence from Spain.  In 1826 he received his league of land in Montgomery County, Texas from Stephen F. Austin and the family operated the Montgomery Trading Post on their land located about 2 miles north of the town of Montgomery.  Owen Shannon died in 1834 on his property and was buried in an unmarked grave, but the DRT and the DAR have placed markers at the First Methodist Church cemetery in Montgomery, Texas.  In 2001, the Freedom Chapter of the SAR in Conroe, Texas and the Piney Woods Chapter of Kingwood, Texas marked the grave of Owen Shannon with a gravestone, foot marker and a SAR Patriot emblem.

  41. Peter Sides was born about 1750 in North Carolina and served as an Ensign with the 2nd Battalion of the North Carolina Regiment, and after the war married Barbara Carpenter in about 1774.  The family moved to Tennessee after the war, and then to East Baton Rouge, Louisiana about 1799. Peter Sides joined the Gutierrez-Magee expedition to free Texas from Spain in 1812, and was killed in the Battle of Medina on August 18, 1813 by the Spanish Army led by General Arrendondo.  Most of the Republican Army of the North were killed in this battle and their remains were left on the field of battle for several years.  Years later, the remains were buried in one mass grave under a large Oak tree on the banks of the Medina River located south of San Antonio, Texas in Bexar County.  Peter Sides was the ancestor of my son-in-law, and it is hoped that others will contribute information about other Patriots that are buried in Texas.

  42. Isaac Simpson was born in Virginia in 1760 and served in the American Revolution.  He probably came to Texas about 1834 from Tennessee, and made his home with his daughter, Elizabeth and her husband, John Engledow, and he is believed to have died on their farm located northeast of Nacogdoches, Texas, but his grave has not been located.

  43. William Smeathers was born about 1759 on the Holston River in western Virginia, and married Nancy Cecilia Fitzpatrick in 1781.  He died August 13, 1837 and was buried on the banks of the Brazos River near Columbia, Texas in Brazoria County, but his gravesite has been lost probably due to the flooding of the river over these many years.  William Smithers or Smothers, as his name was spelled at different times, fought in the Battle of King's Mountain, the Battle of Eutaw Springs, and the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, before being discharged from General Nathaniel Greene's Southern Army.  Captain William Smeathers fought with the Mounted Spies of the Kentucky Militia during the War of 1812, and came to Texas and camped on Galveston Island before Jean Lafitte's pirates set foot on the island.  Sixty two year old William Smeathers came with Stephen F. Austin on his first inspection trip to Texas in 1821, and stayed with four other men to build a small fort while Austin returned to bring the Old 300.  The fort was on the bend of the Brazos River where the city of Richmond, Texas now stands, and the Texas Historical Commission placed a monument at the site of Fort Bend.  Both Owensboro, Kentucky and Hartford, Kentucky have placed historical markers at various sited in their states, but neither the SAR, DAR, DRT, SRT or the Old 300 have placed a marker honoring William Smeathers here in Texas where he lived or died!  Surely we can do better than this!

  44. Samuel Smith was born in Albemarle County, Virginia on August 29, 1756 and as the age of 18 he was sent some 250 miles to deliver a peace proposal to the Cherokee Chief by Colonel McDowell.  The journey took weeks, but he was successful in bringing peace with the Indians.  He married Mary Jarrett on February 28, 1797 and the couple led a wagon train to Nacogdoches, Texas in 1845.  Samuel Smith settled in Rusk County, Texas where he died May 27, 1856 and is buried in the Pleasant Hill Cemetery near New London, Texas.  His grave is marked with a tombstone, but no SAR or DAR markers have been placed on the grave.

  45. John SoRelle was born about 1763 in Virginia and served with Capt. John Harding's company in Burke County, North Carolina.  He married Mary Watts in 1789 and moved his family to Georgia.  He arrived in Texas in 1837 and first settled in Plum, Fayette County, Texas.  He died September 27, 1841 in his daughter's home in La Grange, Texas and he is believed buried in an unmarked grave in a cemetery near the community of West Point in Fayette County.  John was a very interesting man, as his last name indicates.  It was spelled Sorrell, Sorel, Sorell, Sorelle, and in Texas as SoRelle.  Perhaps the reason for changing the spelling was that a Reverend Sorrell and his beautiful young daughter held very popular "Tent Meetings" in Alabama and while they held the audience spellbound members of their "gang" would steal the better horses of the audience!  Tall tales and ballads are still told about them today.  Does anyone know any more about this interesting Patriot?

  46. William Sparks was born in North Carolina April 3, 1761 and served with the Rowan County, NC Militia in the American Revolution.  After the war he moved to Georgia where he married Mary "Polly" Fielder.  The family moved to Mississippi and in 1834 he moved to Texas.  He lived in the Old North Church community located north of Nacogdoches, Texas where he died in 1848.  In 1992 a marker was placed on his grave, but there is no SAR or DAR marker on the grave.

  47. Jeremiah Stell was born about 1760 probably in Prince George County, Virginia, and married Sally Lewis Wynne October 19, 1786 in Amelia County, Virgina.  The family moved to Georgia and in 1830 he moved to the part of Red River County, Texas that became Lamar County in 1840.  Jeremiah Stell died before December 1845 and he is believed buried on his farm located near the community of Marvin, Texas.  His grave appears to have been lost to time.  Can anyone shed any light on the gravesite of this Patriot?

  48. David Strickland was born about 1759 and served most of the Revolutionary War with units from Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York.  He was living in the Missouri Territory in 1819 when he petitioned for a pension, but moved to Arkansas and later to Texas where he died in about 1825 on his farm in the community of Pecan Point located north of Clarksville, Texas in Red River County.  His farm has been searched repeatedly for a trace of David Strickland's grave, but the Red River has flooded and changed courses many times since 1825 and there is little hope of ever finding his grave.  This does not mean that we can't place a marker in an appropriate place in the area where he died.

  49. * Jose Tessier (1750 - TBD) - Spanish Army.  He died in the Nacogdoches area, most likely on his ranch along the Angelina River.

  50. James Thompson was born in 1759 in North Carolina, and he married Mildred Williams.  After serving in the American Revolution the family first lived in Alabama before coming to Daingerfield, Morris County, Texas.  James Thompson died in 1841 and was buried at the Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery in the town of New Hope, located near Daingerfield, Texas.

  51. Dr. Samuel Thompson was born about 1765 probably in Virginia where he served in the American Revolution.  He married Precious Thompson and they were some of the first settlers in the Chapel Hill area of San Augustine County, Texas where Sanuel Thompson died in 1843 and was buried in the Chapel Hill Methodist Cemetery located about 6 ½ miles east of San Augustine, Texas on Highway 21.

  52. Richard Tice was born September 28, 1762 in Gloucester, New Jersey and first served as a "fifer" in a company commanded by Capt. Jonathan Williams as he was only 14 years of age and too young to handle a musket.  He later served as a private at the Battles of Trenton, Princeton and Monmouth as well as a number of smaller battles.  He lived in Philadelphia, Chester County, Pennsylvania, and Long Island, New York before coming to Texas some time after October 1842 to live with his daughter and son-in-law, Adam James Hall.  Richard Tice died August 27, 1848 in Independence, Texas located in Washington County.  He was buried in the Old Independence Cemetery and his grave is marked by the DAR and the SAR.

  53. James Tinsley was born in Culpeper County, Virginia in 1759, but moved to South Carolina before the American Revolution where he fought with General Benjamin Lincoln, and General Sumpter.  He fought at the Battles of King's Mountain, and Cowpens.  In 1837 he came to Texas with his second wife, Susannah Hooker Tinsley.  He died in 1844 in Huntsville, Texas in Walker County, and was buried on his farm located southeast of Huntsville, Texas.  His grave has not been located.

  54. Evan Thomas Watson was born January 11, 1759 in Albemarle County, Virginia, and served under General Lafayette as he retreated from Lord Cornwallis.  He came to Texas after fighting in the American Revolution and settled in Bowie County, when he died June 15, 1834 at the age of 76.  He was buried in the Watson Family Cemetery in Bowie County, but when lake Wright Patman was built only two token graves were moved from the lakebed, and Evan Watson was not one of them!  Maybe one of our chapters in northeast Texas could arrange to place a marker on the County Courthouse property?

  55. Benjamin Wightman was born in Norwich, Connecticut on August 31, 1755, and served with the Tyron County Rangers of New York in the American Revolution.  He married Esther Randall and became a Baptist minister.  Their son Elias Wightman became a surveyor for Stephen F. Austin, and brought a group of colonists from New York to Matagorda, Texas in 1828, including his parents.  From New Orleans the group came on a small schooner named Little Zoe, and the trip was terrible, as the food and water ran out, forcing them to eat seagull soup!  The first year they lived in a small stockade built by Stephen F. Austin, and Esther Randall Wightman died of Typhoid fever June 20, 1830 becoming the first person buried in the Matagorda County Cemetery.  Six weeks later Benjamin Wightman died on August 1, 1830.  There is a Texas Historical Marker on their graves with a Citizen of the Republic of Texas marker for both these brave Pioneers.  There is no SAR marker on this Patriot's grave.  Which chapter wants to mark this grave.

  56. Stephen Williams was born May 9, 1760 in North Carolina and enlisted with Capt. Allen's Company at the age of 18.  He then returned home and married Delilah Rhodes before enlisting again with Capt. Alford's Company, this time to fight in the Battle of Camden, South Carolina.  Stephen Williams enlisted a third time under Edward Scarbough's Company and fought in the Battle of Eutaw Springs.  After the war he moved his family to Louisiana where he fought in the War of 1812.  His wife died in 1830 and Stephen Williams came to Texas with his sons settling land that became Bevil's Settlement in Jasper County.  When war broke out in Texas, 75-year old Stephen Williams walked to San Antonio with three of his grandsons to fight with old Ben Milam at the Battle of Bexar.  On January 2, 1836, Stephen Williams was discharged form the army for the last time.  He died about 1848 and was buried on his home site, but in 1936 Texas re-interred his remains at the State Cemetery in Austin, Travis County, Texas.  His grave is marked by all Societies.

  57. Antonio Gil Y'Barbo was born in 1729 in Los Adaes, Louisiana, which was in the province of Spanish Texas at that time.  He served as Lieutenant Governor and Commander of the Militia in Nacogdoches, Texas and participated in the first cattle drive in Texas, which was to provide beef for General Bernardo Galvez's Spanish Army that captured the British Forts on the Mississippi River and the Gulf coast, therefore contributing to the American Revolution.  Gil Y'Barbo became the leader of the displaced citizens of Nacogdoches in the 1770's and finally led the citizens back to rebuild the town.  He was first married to Maria Padilla who died on September 24, 1794, and then married Marie Guadalupe de Herrera January 25, 1796.  He died in 1809 in his home called Rancho La Lucana, located on the west bank of the Attoyac River, and was buried in the Old Spanish Cemetery in Nacogdoches, Texas.




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