DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about James Thompson of Morris County. Now settle in, because this one reaches back a long way — all the way back to the Virginia colony in the seventeenth century, where the ancestors of James Thompson first put down roots on this continent. From those roots grew a family that just flat refused to stop moving until they'd helped build a republic.
James Thompson himself was born in 1759, and by 1781 he was servin in Capt. Bynum's Company of the North Carolina Militia, doing his part to win the American Revolution. That's not a small thing to have on your ledger.
When the fighting was done, though, Thompson didn't sit still. He gathered his family and moved to Alabama. Then Mississippi.
Then — because apparently Mississippi wasn't far enough — to the Republic of Texas. And once he arrived in this new land, he became what the marker calls a revered patriarch. That word, revered, carries some weight.
It means people looked at this man and saw something worth honoring. Now let's talk about the family he brought with him, because Thompson didn't travel alone through history. His son-in-law, John Peacock — born 1786, died 1848 — had his own hard road.
Peacock fought in the War of 1812 with the Second Regiment of the North Carolina Militia, and the war broke his health. Afterward, he went to Ittawamba County, Mississippi, where he received land in lieu of army pay — that's how the government settled up with him. Around 1840, Peacock made the move to Paschal County, which we now know as Morris County, and he brought quite a company with him: his wife Zilpha, who was Thompson's own daughter, four sons, two daughters, and his father-in-law James Thompson himself.
Once he arrived, Peacock donated sites for a church, a school, and a cemetery. A man who'd had his health broken by war still found something to give. But the family story has one more thread, and it's the kind that makes you lean a little closer to the fire.
James Thompson's grandson, Williams Peacock — born 1811, died 1864 — came to Texas in the 1830s on his own. And then he turned around and went back to Mississippi to fetch his grandfather, his parents, and other relatives and bring them home to Texas. The man made the trip twice, once for himself and once for his people.
In 1841, President M. B. Lamar appointed Williams Peacock sheriff of Paschal County.
Sheriff. Then he became a member of the Texas Rangers. And in the end, he was killed in an Indian fight.
Three generations. A Revolution, a War of 1812, a republic being built from raw land, and a Ranger's death out on the frontier. The marker puts it plainly: this family helped make Texas great.
James Thompson was born in 1759 and died in 1841, and he rests today in the Daingerfield Cemetery, along with many of the descendants he led across half a continent to get there. Some legacies you don't have to dress up. You just tell 'em straight, and they stand on their own.
What the marker says
(1759-1841) Veteran of the American Revolution. Ancestors of James Thompson lived in Virginia in the 17th century. Thompson served in Capt. Bynum's Company of North Carolina Militia in 1781, helping win victory in the American Revolution. In pioneer spirit, he and his family later moved to Alabama, then to Mississippi, then to the Republic of Texas. Here in the new land, he was a revered patriarch. His son-in-law, John Peacock (1786-1848), fought in the 2D Regiment, North Carolina Militia, in the War of 1812. His health broken by the war, he went to Ittawamba County, Miss., where he received land in lieu of army pay. About 1840 he emigrated with his wife Zilpha (Thompson), four sons, two daughters, and his father-in-law to Paschal (Morris) County. Here he donated sites for a church, school, and cemetery. Thompson's grandson, Williams Peacock (1811-64), came to Texas in the 1830s, then returned to Mississippi and brought back his grandfather, parents, and other relatives. In 1841 President M. B. Lamar appointed him sheriff of Paschal (Morris) County. Later a member of the Texas Rangers, he was killed in an Indian fight. This family helped make Texas great. Thompson and many descendants rest in the Daingerfield Cemetery.