DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it — and I'll do my best to honor every word. James English. Born 1810, died 1871, and between those two years, the man packed in more Texas history than most folks ever get to stand near.
He came out of Tennessee and found his way to East Texas in the 1820s — back when East Texas was about as far from settled as a place could be and still have a name. Then 1835 rolls around, and there's James English in the thick of the siege of Bexar. Not watching from a hillside, not hearing about it later — in it.
And if that weren't enough, when the Texas Revolution demanded more of the men around him, English stepped up as commissioner for the Shelby County Militia. Commissioner. That's not a man who hung back.
The Republic of Texas took note. They granted him land right here in Houston County — a recognition of his service, laid down in ink and deed. About 1842, James and his wife Mary Lucinda, born a Walker, came to settle on that very land.
They built a life on it. And at some point, they looked out at a piece of that property and made a quiet, permanent decision — to set it aside as a cemetery. A man who fought for the ground beneath his feet, and then gave part of it back for the rest of those who'd come after him.
That's the kind of ending a story like this deserves.
What the marker says
(1810 - 1871) A native of Tennessee who settled in East Texas in the 1820s, James English fought in the siege of Bexar (1835) and served as comissioner for the Shelby County Militia during the Texas Revolution. English received a land grant in Houston County for his service to the Republic of Texas. He and his wife, Mary Lucinda (Walker), settled on this land about 1842 and later set aside part of the property for this cemetery. (1983)