Site of Collin McKinney Homestead

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now, some men leave their mark on a place. Collin McKinney left his mark on a whole republic, and then, just for good measure, he came and settled down in the middle of it.

McKinney was a delegate to the General Convention at Washington-on-the-Brazos, where he helped draft the Texas Declaration of Independence from Mexico, and later the Constitution of the Republic of Texas. That's the kind of résumé that makes a man a legend before he's even unpacked his wagon. And around 1846, that's exactly what he did: he settled right here in this area of north Texas.

Then on July 10, 1848, he made it official, buying the Rob Whitaker survey around this very site from Anna Whitaker, 640 acres for five hundred dollars. Now, whether that was a bargain or a stretch, the marker doesn't say, but the man had work to do either way. The McKinney family didn't exactly sit still on those 640 acres.

They were instrumental in building the Mantua Road, in organizing the town of Mantua, and in establishing the Van Alstyne Christian Church. When a family helps build a road, a town, and a church, they're not just living in a place; they're shaping it. In 1857, Collin McKinney divided his land among his heirs.

He died in 1861. The house he'd called home was eventually given by the McKinney family to the city of McKinney in 1936. And then, in 1980, that structure burned.

Gone. But here's the thing about a man who helped write the words that made Texas Texas: the walls can burn, and the land can pass on, and still, as this marker makes plain, Collin McKinney's legacy continues to influence the history of north Texas. Some marks, it turns out, you just can't undo.

What the marker says

Collin McKinney, a delegate to the General Convention at Washington-on-the-Brazos who helped draft the Texas Declaration of Independence from Mexico and later the Constitution of the Republic of Texas, settled in this area about 1846. On July 10, 1848, McKinney bought the Rob Whitaker survey around this site from Anna Whitaker, paying $500 for 640 acres. The McKinney family was active in the the region: they were instrumental in building the Mantua Road and the organization of the town of Mantua and the Van Alstyne Christian Church. Collin McKinney divided his land among his heirs in 1857. He died in 1861. The McKinney family gave his house to the city of McKinney in 1936. The structure burned in 1980. Collin McKinney's legacy continues to influence the history of north Texas. (2000)