Historic trees have been recognized in Texas for many years. The City of Dallas recently joined the movement by recognizing a 175 year old pecan tree known as the West Dallas Gateway Pecan. It stands at the west end of the Commerce Street Bridge opposite the Trinity River from downtown Dallas, on the south side…
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From Proud Heritage, Volume I by DCPA, currently out of print. Francois Santerre was born near Blois, France, in 1809, an only son and a descendant of an old French family. Scholarly in nature, he was well educated and mostly interested in scientific agriculture. As a young man he served in the French Army and after his…
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By Frances James (1922 – 2019) Routh Cemetery, also known as Spring Creek Cemetery The two cemeteries known as the Routh Cemeteries are located about fifteen miles northeast of the Dallas County Court House. Situated east of Central Expressway (US Highway 75), south of Renner Road, and north of Glenville Avenue, they are located a…
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By Frances James (1922 – 2019) The Crawford Cemetery has an address of 700 Cedar Hill in Cedar Hill, Texas. This site is in the southwest corner of Dallas County. Ever since histories have been written about Dallas County mention has been made of “the tornado that wiped out the village of Cedar Hill in…
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The above image is a portion of an article in 1976 discussing the congregation of the First United Methodist Church of Cedar Hill, which traces its membership back to the congregation that met in the Methodist church destroyed by the tornado. The article below is transcribed from The Dallas Daily Herald issue of May 10, 1856. Warning: Some…
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The Munger family got its start in the cotton industry in the Mexia area. Henry Munger was the patriarch. He was born in Colchester, Connecticut in 1825. When he was still a child his parents, Sylvester Munger (1787 – 1838) and Asenath “Sene” Ingham Munger (1777 – 1840), moved to South Carolina. By 1840, both…
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From Proud Heritage, Volume I by DCPA, currently out of print. George M. Mellersh led quite a colorful life after coming to the United States with his parents in 1850. He was born November 24, 1836 in Surrey County, England, son of Francis Mellersh, a carriage maker, and Margaret Brooker. An older brother, Francis Jr., came with…
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The outlaw Sam Bass was born to Daniel Bass (1821 – 1864) and Elizabeth Jane Sheeks Bass (1821 – 1861) on July 21, 1851 in Lawrence County, Indiana. Elizabeth died when Sam was ten. Sam was the third son and the fourth of seven children born to Daniel and Elizabeth. Daniel married Margaret Seibert one…
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Mabel Gilbert and family only lived in Dallas a few years, but they were contemporaries of the Beemans, John Neely Bryan and other early settlers. The Gilbert family story in Dallas County begins in the 1840s. Mabel Gilbert was born on March 4, 1797 in what is now Dickson County, Tennessee. At that time, however,…
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The Dallas Daily Herald carried the following proclamation dated June 3, 1876. Proclamation Mayor’s OfficeCity of DallasJune [July] 3, 1876 WHEREAS, Tuesday, the Fourth day of July, is a national holiday; and whereas, in this, the Centennial year of American Independence, it is not only the duty, but should be the pleasure of our citizens…
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