DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, friends. Andrew Jackson Montgomery. Born April 4th, 1801, in Blount County, Tennessee.
Now, some men live quiet lives and leave the world more or less as they found it. Andrew Jackson Montgomery was not that kind of man. In 1819 — when most of Texas was still a rumor to most of the world — he came to this land with the James Long Expedition.
That right there should tell you something about the man's disposition. You don't ride out with an expedition like that if you're looking for a rocking chair. Then, in 1823, Montgomery set himself down at the crossing of two Indian trails and opened a trading post.
The marker calls him the first known settler in what would become Montgomery County. A crossing of trails. A trading post.
And from that post emerged a town — the town of Montgomery — and from that town, Montgomery County took its name. He wasn't just passing through. He was planting something.
As if that weren't enough to fill a life, Montgomery was also a veteran of the Battle of San Jacinto. He was there when the republic was won. He married Mary Mahulda Farris at the age of forty-three, and together they had nine children.
Andrew Jackson Montgomery died December 3rd, 1863. One man, two Indian trails, and a trading post — and look what grew from the crossing.
What the marker says
(Apr. 4, 1801 - Dec. 3, 1863) Born in Blount County, Tennessee, Andrew Jackson Montgomery came to Texas in 1819 with the James Long Expedition. In 1823, as the first known settler in Montgomery County, he opened a trading post at the crossing of two Indian trails. From his post emerged the town of Montgomery from which Montgomery County took its name. A veteran of the Battle of San Jacinto, Montgomery married Mary Mahulda Farris at age 43, and they had nine children. Recorded - 1986