DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I wouldn't change a word. August 9, 1840 — that's when Raleigh Richardson White, Sr. came into the world, born to a wealthy Missouri plantation family. Now, a boy raised in comfort like that might've been expected to stay put when the shooting started.
His father certainly thought so. But at age 21, Raleigh White joined the Confederate army against his father's wishes. That right there tells you something about the man.
He served under General Nathan Bedford Forrest, which was not a quiet posting by any measure. And somewhere in the chaos of all that, he made a lifelong friend — a fellow soldier by the name of J. B.
Gambrell. Hold onto that name, because it's going to keep turning up. In 1863, in the middle of a war, Raleigh married Annie Davidson — a family friend of Gambrell's, as it happened.
By the time the war ended, White had risen to the point where he was acting as colonel of his company, and that was on the recommendation of Forrest himself. Now here is where the story pivots. The young soldier — war-hardened, well-connected, heading into a medical practice in Mississippi in 1870 — found himself pulled in a different direction entirely.
His devout wife Annie and their friend Gambrell had been quietly working on him, and in 1869 Raleigh White joined the Baptist church. He'd barely gotten his medical practice off the ground before he felt drawn to the ministry. He was ordained in 1873, and soon enough he was an influential preacher, deep in the work of Baptist associations.
In 1882, the Reverend Raleigh R. White packed up his large family and moved to Texas. He kept right on preaching — sometimes traveling to serve three churches at once.
He was particularly invested in seminaries, in missions, and in denominational work with African Americans. The man was not one for sitting still. But life has its costs.
Annie White died of heart failure in Temple in 1902. Two years after that, the couple's oldest son — Dr. Raleigh R.
White, Jr. — opened Temple Sanitarium with his medical partner. That institution would later be renamed Scott and White Memorial Hospital. The elder White took note, I'm sure, and then kept right on riding from church to church as an itinerant preacher.
He died on January 11, 1919. And when he did, his lifelong comrade J. B.
Gambrell — the same man he'd met in the Confederate ranks, the same man who'd been part of bringing him to the faith — was by then president of the Southern Baptist Convention. Gambrell wrote a eulogy for the Baptist Standard. A man who defied his father to fight a war, was changed by his wife's faith, became a preacher, helped seed a hospital dynasty, and was sent off at last by the oldest friend he had.
That's a long road from a Missouri plantation. And Raleigh Richardson White, Sr. rode every mile of it.
What the marker says
(August 9, 1840 - January 11, 1919) Born to a wealthy Missouri plantation family, Raleigh R. White joined the Confederate army, against his father's wishes, at age 21. During his service White fought under Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest and made a lifelong friend of fellow soldier J. B. Gambrell. In 1863 Raleigh married Annie Davidson (1844-1902), a family friend of Gambrell's. By war's end, White was acting as colonel of his company on Forrest's recommendation. His life began to change dramatically when the young soldier, through the influence of his devout wife and their friend Gambrell, joined the Baptist church in 1869. He began a medical practice in Mississippi in 1870, but soon found himself drawn to the ministry. Ordained in 1873, White soon was an influential preacher and member of Baptist associations. In 1882, the Rev. Raleigh R. White and his large family moved to Texas. White continued his ministry, often traveling to serve three churches at once. Always active in association work, he was particularly interested in seminaries, missions, and denominational work with African Americans. Annie White died of heart failure in Temple in 1902. Two years later, the couple's oldest son, Dr. Raleigh R. White, Jr., opened Temple Sanitarium, later renamed Scott & White Memorial Hospital, with his medical partner. The elder White carried on his work as an itinerant preacher. When he died in 1919, his lifelong comrade J. B. Gambrell, then president of the Southern Baptist Convention, wrote a eulogy for the Baptist Standard. (1998)