Phillip John Burrow

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker says about Phillip John Burrow, out of Wilson County, Texas. Pull up a chair, because this one earns it. Phillip John Burrow came into this world in Guilford County, North Carolina, the oldest of seven children.

His father, Ishmael, was a farmer and ran a mill house, and that combination of working the land and keeping things moving seems to have been the blueprint Phillip carried his whole life. In 1806, he and other family members pulled up stakes and moved to Tennessee. The man was already movin'.

Around 1819, Phillip married, though history has not been kind enough to preserve his first wife's name. Together they had their first child in 1821, and seven more children followed. By 1838, the whole family was farming and ranching in Missouri.

That's a lot of miles and a lot of life. Then in 1844, Phillip's first wife died. And here's where the story takes a turn that would define everything after.

With land opportunities opening up in the Republic of Texas, Phillip Burrow made his decision. In 1845, he moved south. He sought a Mercer Colony Land Grant in Navarro County and received it in 1850.

While he was out there, he met and married Martha Ellender Moore in 1853. A new chapter, a new wife, new Texas soil under his boots. But Navarro County wasn't the end of the road either.

Whether it was ongoing land disputes or poor agricultural land, the marker leaves the exact reason a little open, the Burrow family sold their property and moved to Parker County by 1857, settling on Ash Creek Tributary near a small community called Veal's Station. Now. Here is the part of this story that stops you cold and makes you do the math, then remember you heard it right.

In 1861, Phillip Burrow, at age seventy-seven, volunteered for service with the Parker County Minutemen Militia alongside his oldest son, William Henry Burrow. As a Private, Phillip J. Burrow rode as a ranging scout from May through September of 1861.

Seventy-seven years old, ranging and scouting. His other two sons, Philip Sterling and Zachariah, known as Zachry Sr., joined the Texas State Troops in 1864. Three sons in service.

One father who refused to stay home. After the Civil War, Burrow, his three sons, and their families gathered themselves up one more time and moved to Wilson County, settling on the waters of Borrego Creek in 1866. Phillip J.

Burrow died at age eighty-six and was buried in the far northeast corner of his Picosa Creek homestead, with red sandstone boulders surrounding the headstone. Over the years, his story circulated through this part of Wilson County, and that grave became a local landmark. A man marked by stone the way he'd been marked by distance.

Then in 2020, due to road construction, Phillip J. Burrow's remains were reinterred at Fairview Cemetery. He moved one last time.

Seems almost fitting for a man who never much stopped moving. Born in North Carolina. Tennessean.

Missourian. Texan. Ranging scout at seventy-seven.

Some lives just refuse to sit still.

What the marker says

Born in Guilford County, North Carolina, Phillip John Burrow was the oldest of seven children. His father, Ishmael, was a farmer and operated a mill house. In 1806, he and other family members moved to Tennessee. Around 1819, Phillip Burrow married (wife's name unknown). The couple had their first child in 1821 and seven more children before moving to Missouri in 1838, all the while farming and ranching. In 1844, Phillip's first wife died and he decided to take advantage of land opportunities in the Republic of Texas, moving in 1845. He sought a Mercer Colony Land Grant in Navarro County and received it in 1850. While there, Burrow met and married Martha Ellender Moore in 1853. Perhaps because of ongoing land disputes or poor agricultural land, the Burrow family sold their property and moved to Parker County by 1857 on Ash Creek Tributary near the small community of Veal's Station. In 1861, Burrow and his oldest son, William Henry Burrow, volunteered for service with the Parker County Minutemen Militia. His other two sons, Philip Sterling and Zachariah (Zachry) Sr., joined the Texas State Troops in 1864. As a Private, Phillip J. Burrow was a ranging scout from May through September 1861 at age 77. After the Civil War, Burrow, his three sons and their families moved to Wilson County where they settled on the waters of the Borrego Creek in 1866. Phillip J. Burrow died at age 86 and was buried in the far northeast corner of his Picosa Creek homestead with red sandstone boulders surrounding the headstone. Over the years, the story of Phillip J. Burrow circulated in this part of Wilson County and his gravesite became a local landmark. Due to road construction, Phillip J. Burrow's remains were reinterred at Fairview Cemetery in 2020.