DUANE
Duane's take
The way the marker tells it, here's the story of John Hawkins Singleton — and I'll let the facts speak for themselves, because they speak plenty loud. Now, most folks go through life and maybe — maybe — answer one great call to arms. John Hawkins Singleton answered three.
He was born in Kentucky on June 25, 1818. And if you're keeping track, that means by the time Texas was fighting for its very existence in 1836, this young man from Kentucky was already there, musket in hand, serving in the Army of Texas. Eighteen years old, give or take, and already writing himself into the kind of history that ends up on a marker.
But that was just the first chapter. A decade later, when the Mexican War came calling in 1846, John Hawkins Singleton was back in uniform — this time with the Army of the United States. Two wars.
Two flags. Two separate generations of young men marching off to something they couldn't fully see coming. And Singleton was there for both.
Then 1861 rolled around. You already know what that means. The country split right down the middle, and John Hawkins Singleton stepped into the Confederate Army.
He served through 1865 — four years of a war that ground hard on everyone it touched. He came through it. He made his way to Ellis County, Texas, and that's where he spent his final years.
He died there on August 3, 1884. Now, the marker doesn't forget Rebecca Ann. Born in Tennessee on October 9, 1830, she became Rebecca Ann Singleton — born Barker — and she outlasted her husband by years, living on in Ellis County until May 8, 1901.
The State of Texas put this marker up in 1936 — exactly one hundred years after a young man from Kentucky showed up to fight for a republic that didn't yet know if it would survive the week. Three armies. Three wars.
One man. That's the whole story, and not a word of it needed any embellishment.
What the marker says
Served in the Army of Texas, 1836 The Army of the United States in the Mexican War, 1846 The Confederate Army 1861 - 1865 Born in Kentucky June 25, 1818 Died in Ellis County, Texas August 3, 1884 His Wife Rebecca Ann (Barker) Singleton Born in Tennessee October 9, 1830 Died in Ellis County, Texas May 8, 1901 Erected by the State of Texas 1936