DUANE
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Duane's take
The way I tell it, I'm drawing straight from the official marker, so here's the story as the record has it. Robert Newton White. Born in South Carolina, in 1810.
By 1845 he had packed up his family and made the move out to this part of Texas, settling in the area that would become Navarro County. And I say "would become" because when White arrived, the county didn't exist yet. He had to wait exactly one year for that.
Navarro County was created, and when it was, the people looked around and decided Robert Newton White was their man. He was elected the first County Clerk. First one ever.
And he held that position for ten years. Ten years of keeping the records straight for a brand new county still figuring out what it was going to be. But White wasn't the kind of man who stopped at one title.
While he was serving as County Clerk, he also took on the job of first postmaster of Corsicana, from 1849 to 1852. Letters coming in, letters going out, and Robert Newton White was the man in the middle of all of it. Now, a lesser civic mind might have called that enough.
Not White. He was instrumental in persuading railroads to build lines to the city. You want to talk about shaping a place, that's shaping a place.
He also helped start a Cumberland Presbyterian Church right here in Corsicana. And where did all of this begin? Right here at this site.
This is where White built his first Corsicana home, a log cabin, constructed right on this very ground. The man died in 1891, but stand here long enough and you can almost feel the weight of what got started in a log cabin on this spot.
What the marker says
First County Clerk - First Corsicana Postmaster A native of South Carolina, Robert Newton White (1810-1891) moved his family to this area in 1845. One year later Navarro County was created and White was elected the first County clerk, a position he held for ten years. During that time he also served as the first Corsicana postmaster, 1849-52. A civic leader, White was instrumental in persuading railroads to build lines to the city and also helped start a Cumberland Presbyterian Church here. His first Corsicana home, a log cabin, was constructed at this site.