William Rees

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker says about William Rees, out here in Limestone County. Now, every detail comes straight from that stone and mortar record, so settle in and listen close. Some men chase fortune.

William Rees chased something else entirely, and it turns out that made all the difference. Rees was born in Castletown, in Marshfield Parish, England, to Welsh parents. As a young man he spent several years as an apprentice stonemason in Liverpool, England.

That trade, working stone with your hands until you understood it the way most men never do, would follow him across an ocean and shape everything that came after. He came to America in 1870, and by 1872 he had made his way to Tehuacana, Texas. One year later, in 1873, William Rees was given the contract for the construction of the wings of a stone building.

That building belonged to Trinity University, then operating under the auspices of the Presbyterian Church. And here is where the story gets interesting, and maybe a little humbling. Trinity was short of funds at the time.

Now, a man purely in it for the money might have cut corners, or walked away. Rees did neither. Because he had a love for the cause of higher education, and a particular love for Trinity itself, this skilled craftsman took on the stonecutting himself.

Stonecutting, a chore usually left to laborers. He did it anyway. With his own hands.

There is something quietly remarkable about that. A man of his skill, choosing the hard, unglamorous work because the cause was worth it. He stayed connected to education for the rest of his life.

He served as a member of the local board of education and, in his turn, as its president. He remained a staunch supporter of Trinity University, and later of Westminster College. His life was full in other ways too.

On January 3, 1875, William Rees married Georgia Ann Sanders, and the ceremony was performed by Dr. Beeson, the first president of Trinity University. Together they had six children.

The marker that tells his story reaches for a proverb to sum the man up, and it lands just right: a good name is rather to be chosen than great riches. William Rees was honest. He was humble.

And he had, they say, a keen appreciation for the finer things of life. He is buried in the Tehuacana Cemetery. Not a king, not a captain of industry.

Just a stonemason who crossed an ocean, picked up a chisel for a university that couldn't fully pay him, raised a family, served his community, and left behind a name worth keeping. Some men build monuments. William Rees was one.

What the marker says

Born in Castletown, Marshfield Parish, England, of Welsh parents. In youth spent several years as an apprentice stonemason in Liverpool, England. Came to America in 1870, and to Tehuacana in 1872. In 1873 William Rees was given the contract for the construction of the wings of this stone building. At that time, Trinity University (under the auspices of the Presbyterian Church) was short of funds. Because he had a love for the cause of higher education and a love for Trinity, Rees, a skilled craftsman, did much of the stonecutting-- a chore usually left to laborers. Always interested in education, he was a member of the local board of education and in his turn its president. He was a staunch supporter of Trinity University, and later of Westminster college. Dr. Beeson, first president of Trinity, performed the ceremony when on Jan. 3, 1875, Rees married Georgia Ann Sanders. They had six children. The life of Rees proved the truth of the proverb: "A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches." He was honest and humble, and had a keen appreciation for the finer things of life. He is buried in the Tehuacana Cemetery. 1967