Newburn-Rawlinson House

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker says about the Newburn-Rawlinson House in Cherokee County. Now settle in, because this old house has lived more lives than most people ever dream of. A house that was a home, then a dormitory, then a hospital, and somewhere in all of that, became a piece of Jacksonville history that folks felt worth remembering.

Let's start at the beginning. The Reverend John Madison Newburn was born in Mississippi in 1868, and by the winter of 1896 he had made his way from Neches, Texas, to Jacksonville to take up the pastorate of the First Baptist Church. He and his wife Lula put down roots, and in 1901 they purchased a piece of property right on this site from two men named F.

A. Fuller and R. B.

Longmire. Two years after that, in 1903, they built themselves a house. And not just any house.

This was a late Victorian residence with what the marker calls transitional classical revival elements. Now that's a fancy way of saying the place had style. A two-story balustraded porch.

Four ornamental gables. The kind of house that makes you slow down when you drive past it. The Reverend Newburn served that First Baptist congregation for twenty-two years, and in that time the family wove itself deep into the fabric of Jacksonville.

They grew especially close to Jacksonville College. So close that when the college ran short on housing for its students, the Newburns opened their doors. Their home became a dormitory.

Think about that. The same house where the family lived, where Lula kept a household, also kept students. After Reverend Newburn passed in 1926, two Jacksonville College presidents, the Reverend J.

V. Vermillion and Deacon B. J.

Albritton, were among those who sat down and penned a special memorial record of his work with the First Baptist Church. That's the kind of mark a man leaves when he's spent twenty-two years in one place, doing the work. But Lula Newburn wasn't done with this house, not by a long shot.

In 1928, a fire destroyed the small Newburn Hospital that had been owned and operated by J. M. Newburn's brother, Doctor C.

L. Newburn. When that hospital burned, Lula offered her home, right here, to serve as a temporary hospital.

For five months it held that role, until a new facility could be erected. A home becomes a dormitory. Then a temporary hospital.

Then the Newburn heirs kept it going, living there, until 1945, when Dallas and Thelma Rawlinson purchased it and gave the house the second name it carries today. In later years it served again, this time as a day care facility for the children of the area. And then, in 1994, the house came back around.

It was sold to Jacksonville College, returning, as the marker puts it, to the friends of its first owners. That's not just a real estate transaction. That's a house finding its way home.

What the marker says

The Rev. John Madison Newburn (1868-1926), a native of Mississippi, came to Jacksonville from Neches, Texas, in the winter of 1896 to assume the pastorate of the First Baptist Church. He and his wife Lula purchased property on this site in 1901 from F. A. Fuller and R. B. Longmire. Built in 1903, this house is a late example of a Victorian residence with transitional classical revival elements, including a two-story balustraded porch and four ornamental gables. The Newburn family formed close ties with Jacksonville College and other family and friends in the community. When housing facilities were limited at the school, the Newburn home served as a dormitory. Two Jacksonville College presidents, the Rev. J. V. Vermillion and Deacon B. J. Albritton, were among those who penned a special memorial record of Newburn's work with the First Baptist Church after his death. The Rev. Mr. Newburn had served 22 years as pastor. In 1928, after a fire destroyed the small Newburn Hospital owned and operated by J. M. Newburn's brother, C. L. Newburn, M. D., Lula Newburn offered her home to serve as a temporary hospital until a new facility was erected five months later. The home was owned and occupied by Newburn heirs until it was purchased by Dallas and Thelma Rawlinson in 1945. In later years the home served as a day care facility for area children. The house was returned to the friends of its first owners in 1994 when it was sold to Jacksonville College. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1998