Texas Historical Marker #12965
William Whitley Wheat. William Whitley Wheat William Whitley Wheat (1820-1890) was born in Alabama to Samuel and Cynthia (Stinson) Wheat. He married Cynthia Ann Maynard, and the couple came to Texas in 1842 to Peters Colony. They moved three years later to what is now Grayson County, settling and raising ten children near Farmington. Wheat was an early cattle drover to northern markets, and he became a respected and successful farmer. He served for many years as Grayson County Commissioner in the 1870s and 1880s and was first presiding president of the Old Settlers Association of North Texas. As such, he worked to ease local tensions in the post-Civil War years. Recorded - 2002 #12965
?, Howe, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #07388
Howe Lodge No. 430, A. F. & A.M.. Constituted on June 5, 1875, this lodge was organized in the early Grayson County community of Farmington (5 mi. SW). Members voted to move the lodge to Howe in 1887, after the earlier settlement was bypassed by the railroad. In Howe, the first lodge hall was constructed above the Early Methodist Church Chapel. Later facilities were built as the lodge grew. Part of its growth came as a result of a merger with the Dorchester Lodge in 1966. Numerous war veterans and civic leaders have been members here. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836 - 1986 #7388
100 W. Young St., Howe, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #12709
Mame Roberts (Aug. 19, 1883-Dec. 24, 1976). Mame Roberts (Aug. 19, 1883-Dec. 24, 1976) The daughter of James M. and Martha Sue (Baxter) Roberts, Mame Roberts lived her entire life in or near the community of Howe. Largely self-taught, she worked as a substitute teacher in the lower grades at the Howe Public Schools in the early 1900s before turning to her life's work-promoting civic improvements and beautification. As the writer of a weekly column in the Howe Messenger, Mame Roberts promoted her hometown and encouraged its beautification. Her campaign to make Howe the "prettiest little town in Texas" motivated other small Texas towns to take similar action. A series of articles in the Dallas Morning News provided step-by-step instructions for carrying out beautification efforts, and she was in great demand as a speaker at garden club gatherings throughout this part of the state. Mame's work attracted the attention of Life magazine and Reader's Digest, and she was named "Woman of the Day" on May 14, 1949, on Eleanor and Anna Roosevelt's national radio program. Her leadership positions included: president of the Grayson County Federation of Women's Clubs; president of the Texoma Redbud Association, which urged the planting of redbuds along highways in Texas and Oklahoma; and founder and president of the Howe Sesame Club. Her work, which spanned the decades before and after World War II, is a significant part of the civic history of Howe and of all the towns that put her lessons into action. (2002) #12709
?, Howe, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #12872
First Christian Church of Howe. First Christian Church of Howe In the 1840s, settlers moved to this area as part of the Peters Colony. In the early 1870s, plans for the Houston and Texas Central Railroad coming through the settlement brought new residents to the community, known as Summit. Renamed for railroad official F.M. Howe, the town of Howe was established circa 1872. That same year, several residents met to organize what would become the First Christian Church of Howe. Founders and charter members included George Miller, J.A. Hughes, Henry Stevens, J.A. Matthews, W.T. Copeland, Si Collins, C.E. Wheat, L.M. Davis, J.C. McBee, Jim McCoy and John Grigg, and members held their first Sunday School classes and worship services in homes, schools and other buildings. The congregation grew and purchased this site in 1893 from John W. and Minnie B. Simpson. The church, led by trustees Charlie Hanna, J.W. Bearden, and John and Frank Grigg, constructed a building on the site. The structure was one of four Protestant sanctuaries constructed in Howe during that period. Each had similar vernacular designs showing Victorian influences. Features included fishscale shingling, steep-pitched gable roofs and neo-gothic details. The First Christian Church congregation added an annex in 1925 and later purchased a parsonage on adjoining property. During its years as a congregation, the First Christian Church members held revivals in the churchyard and ministered and witnessed to those in the Howe community. In 1982, because of declining membership, the church disbanded, and members donated the sanctuary and site to the city, which prepared to use the facility for community purposes while maintaining a link to the community's past. (2003) #12872
?, Howe, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #07381
Hall Cemetery. Located on land patented by Anderson White (1801-85), on certificate issued April 23, 1850, by Peters colony, an immigration project which had received a large land grant in this region from the Republic of Texas. Burial plot was begun Jan. 6, 1857, upon the death of White's daughter, Sarah White Haning, wife of Aaron Haning. One week later, on Jan. 13, a second grave was added, that of Haning's mother, Rachel Pierce Haning. In June 1857, White sold his land in the area, but reserved 2 acres surrounding the burial site, deeded April 1859 to trustees for a public cemetery. Named for Benjamin F. Hall (1803-73), pioneer minister of the Disciples of Christ, doctor, dentist, and lawyer, who owned the White property from 1857 to 1872, and founded several churches in the region. Among those buried here are the first settlers of this part of Grayson County, who migrated to Texas from the eastern United States; a number of veterans of the army of the Confederate States of America; and several rural victims of the great Sherman tornado of May 15, 1896. Subsequent donations of land by J. D. Barnett and #7381
?, Howe, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #07382
Jabez and Harriet Haning. Jabez Haning (1827-1883) came to Grayson County with his family in 1846. In the 1850s Jabez Haning obtained a grant of 320 acres of land from the Peters colony. His land was located about nine miles south of the town of Sherman. Harriet Campbell (1834-1880) and Jabez Haning were married in 1854 and established a farm. In 1873 the Houston & Texas Central Railway established a line south of Sherman. The route went through the Haning property, and they donated land for a town site in 1876. The town was named Howe, probably in honor of a railroad official. #7382
?, Howe, TX, United States