Captain George Stevens

Duane's take

The marker's got the story, and I'm just the one drivin' it home; so here's what the record says about Captain George Stevens of Wise County. Born in Alabama, Stevens made his way to Wise County in 1855, and from that point on, this part of Texas had itself a particular kind of man. The kind they called a champion of the defenseless.

Now that's not a title you put on a man's marker unless he earned it the hard way, out here where the frontier wasn't finished with anybody yet. Stevens was active in resisting Indian attacks on pioneers, out in the open, in the thick of it, when the settlers around him needed someone who knew what to do and wasn't afraid to do it. He didn't just show up for one fight either.

He was a member and guiding officer in numerous home guard units (numerous, mind you), which tells you something about how long and how wide his reach ran across this county. And when Wise County needed law, they turned to the same man. Stevens served as sheriff not just in the 1860s, but on through the 1870s.

Decade after decade, the same name at the front of things. Born in Alabama, buried in history. Captain George Stevens came to Wise County in 1855, and this place never forgot it.

What the marker says

Born in Alabama. Came to Wise County in 1855. Well known as champion of the defenseless. Active in resisting Indian attacks on pioneers. Member and guiding officer in numerous home guard units. Served as sheriff in 1860s, 1870s. (1968)