Dr. William Renshaw

Duane's take

The way the marker tells it, here's the story of Dr. William Renshaw. Now, most men who end up shaping a county don't start there.

William Renshaw started in Illinois, studied medicine, and set up his practice way over in Sparta, Tennessee. A long way from Wise County, Texas, but Wise County had already started pulling at him, whether he knew it or not. His wife Sarah held a land grant from the Mexican government.

Texas land. And that land had a history heavier than most. Her father, Samuel Worthington, had lost his life in a colonization attempt back in 1828 trying to make something of this ground.

That's the kind of inheritance that demands a reckoning. So in 1853, Dr. Renshaw traveled to Texas to locate that headright.

When he found it, it encompassed many acres of Wise County, north of the very spot where this marker stands. He took a good look at what Sarah's family had bled for, and then he went back to Sparta. But Texas doesn't let go that easy.

Before he made the full move, Renshaw served two terms in the Tennessee Legislature. A doctor and a lawmaker. Then in 1859, he packed up his family and came to Wise County for good; becoming the first doctor to settle permanently in the county.

First. In a place where the nearest neighbors might be a hard ride away, that word carries some weight. And he worked for it.

His practice stretched from Denton all the way to Jacksboro, which meant he was often away from home for long periods. The county was his waiting room, and the road was his office. Meanwhile, the Renshaws didn't let the children sit idle.

They organized one of the county's earliest schools (for their own children and the neighbors' too) taught by a man named J. D. White.

Out on the frontier, you built what wasn't there yet. After the Civil War, the family moved to Decatur. Dr.

Renshaw and his son Lute opened a drugstore together. They were devout Baptists, and they put their support behind Decatur Baptist College. A man who doctored bodies and tended to the community's soul and mind all at once.

Dr. Renshaw died in 1887 and was buried at Oak Lawn Cemetery in Decatur. But here's where the story gets quiet and deep.

As his ten children married, each one received a portion of the Worthington survey, the very land Sarah's father Samuel had died trying to claim back in 1828. Passed down, piece by piece, to a new generation. At the time this marker was placed, two family members still owned part of that property.

And a number of descendants became doctors. Samuel Worthington lost his life for that land. His daughter Sarah held onto the claim.

And Dr. William Renshaw turned it into something that lasted; in the soil, and in the people who carry his name.

What the marker says

Born in Illinois, William Renshaw studied medicine and set up practice in Sparta, Tennessee. His wife Sarah received from the Mexican government a grant of land in Texas, where her father Samuel Worthington lost his life in a colonization attempt in 1828. Dr. Renshaw traveled to Texas in 1853 to locate this headright, which encompassed many acres of Wise County north of this marker site. Dr. Renshaw returned to Sparta and served two terms in the Tennessee Legislature before moving his family to Texas in 1859. The first doctor to settle permanently in Wise County, Dr. Renshaw was often away from home for long periods, with a practice extending from Denton to Jacksboro. The Renshaws organized one of the county's earliest schools, taught by J. D. White, for their own and neighbor children. After the Civil War, the family moved to Decatur, where Dr. Renshaw and his son Lute opened a drugstore. They were devout Baptists and supported Decatur Baptist College. Dr. Renshaw died in 1887 and was buried at Oak Lawn Cemetery in Decatur. As his 10 children married, each received a portion of the Worthington survey. Two family members still own part of the property. A number of descendants became doctors. (1977)