Charles C. Stibbens

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll carry that story down the road for you. Now, most folks who come to Texas come looking for something: land, a fresh start, a little bit of glory. Charles C.

Stibbens came around 1835, all the way from Maryland, and it didn't take long for Texas to hand him exactly that. He was born May 14, 1810, and by the time he arrived on this side of the Sabine, Texas was fixing to have the fight of its life. Stibbens served in the Army during the Texas Revolution, and he didn't just hover at the edges of history; he was there at San Jacinto.

The battle that settled things. That one. Afterward, he put down roots in Anderson County (farmer, shoemaker, a man who knew how to work with both the land and his hands).

He married Julie Ann Frost Slaughter, and life moved forward the way it does. Then, following Julie Ann's death, he married again in 1849, Elizabeth Creekman, and together they built something considerable. Eleven children.

Eleven. You'd need more than one rocking chair on that porch. In 1870, Charles and Elizabeth Stibbens made their way to Saint Paul, here in Collin County.

And that's where Charles C. Stibbens, born 1810, died March 31, 1879, was laid to rest. Here's the thing that stops you cold: of all the men who stood on that field at San Jacinto, Charles C.

Stibbens is the only one known to be buried in Collin County. One man. One county.

A whole revolution resting quiet in the ground right here. This marker was made possible by Brenda Burns Kellow and James C. Evans, Jr., folks who made sure that veteran didn't go unremembered.

What the marker says

(May 14, 1810-March 31, 1879) A native of Maryland, Charles C. Stibbens came to Texas about 1835. He served in the Army during the Texas Revolution, participating in the Battle of San Jacinto. He settled in Anderson county soon after the war and worked as a farmer and shoemaker. Following the death of his first wife, Julie Ann Frost Slaughter, he was married in 1849 to Elizabeth Creekman. They eventually were the parents of eleven children. Charles and Elizabeth Stibbens moved to Saint Paul in 1870. He is the only veteran of the Battle of San Jacinto known to be buried in Collin county. (1992) Incise on base: Brenda Burns Kellow and James C. Evans, Jr.