DUANE
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Duane's take
The official marker for the Home of Captain Charles G. Graham in Marion County is the one I'm taking my cue from tonight, so let's get into it. Now, Charles Gibbs Graham did not exactly start life as a Texan.
He was born in Tennessee in 1833, and he was just a boy, no more than ten years old, when his family loaded up and came to Texas in 1843. By around 1850, young Charles had put down roots in Jefferson. That's where his story really starts to take shape.
Then came the Civil War. Eighteen sixty-one through eighteen sixty-five, and Graham was in it. He served in the Confederate army, and he climbed through the ranks until he wore the title of captain.
But titles have a way of costing something. In 1864, at the Battle of Mansfield, Captain Graham was wounded. Let that sit for a second.
The man earned that rank the hard way. He came through it. And in 1868, he married Texanah Harris, born in 1848.
Together they raised three sons and one daughter. Graham built himself a life in Jefferson, becoming a prominent local merchant and cotton broker. He was somebody in that town.
And in 1885, he built this Victorian residence. The kind of house a man builds when he intends for it to last. Charles Graham died in 1896.
Texanah lived on until 1927. And that house, the one he put up in 1885, kept right on standing, kept right on belonging to the Graham family. By 1977, three generations had continuously owned and occupied it.
Some houses are just lumber and nails. This one is a captain's testament, still standing in Jefferson.
What the marker says
Born in Tennessee, Charles Gibbs Graham (1833-1896) came to Texas in 1843 with his parents. He settled in Jefferson about 1850. During the Civil War (1861-1865), Graham served in the Confederate army, earning the rank of captain, and in 1864 was wounded at the Battle of Mansfield. Married in 1868 to Texanah Harris (1848-1927), he had three sons and one daughter. He became a prominent local merchant and cotton broker and in 1885 built this Victorian residence. In 1977 the structure had been continuously owned and occupied by three generations of the Graham family. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1986