DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I aim to do it justice. Now, some men just live a life. And then there are men like William Tom, who seem to show up wherever history is being made — whether history invited them or not.
William Tom was born in Maury County, Tennessee, on January 12, 1792. And if you think Tennessee in 1792 was a quiet place to grow up, well, you would be wrong. By 1813, this man was serving under General Jackson in the Creek War.
General Jackson. The man himself. William Tom was there.
That alone would be enough for most folks. Hang up the rifle, tell the grandchildren, call it done. But William Tom was not most folks.
Because come 1835 — more than two decades after that Creek War — William Tom signed on again. Soldier in the Army of Texas, 1835. Texas was fixing to become Texas, and William Tom apparently decided he had one more fight left in him.
He showed up for that too. He settled in Guadalupe County, Texas, and he lived there the rest of his days. Long days, as it turns out.
William Tom died on February 15, 1871. He'd been born in Tennessee in 1792, and he left this world in Texas in 1871. Two wars.
Two centuries, practically. One long road from Maury County to Guadalupe County. And he didn't walk that road alone.
His wife, Kissiah Hines Tom, was with him. Born October 15, 1805, she died July 13, 1862 — nine years before her husband, there in Guadalupe County. The State of Texas erected this marker in 1936, because some names deserve to be said out loud.
William Tom. Creek War veteran. Soldier in the Army of Texas.
A man who answered when history called — and it called him more than once.
What the marker says
Who served under General Jackson in the Creek War, 1813 Soldier in the Army of Texas, 1835 Born in Maury County, Tennessee January 12, 1792 Died in Guadalupe County, Texas February 15, 1871 His wife Kissiah Hines Tom Born October 15, 1805 Died July 13, 1862 Erected by the State of Texas 1936