Vicory Barker Tunstall TX7601
VICORY BARKER TUNSTALL
(October 21, 1876 -- February 8, 1953)

Born west of Crockett. A noted musician. Houston County District Clerk, 1918-22. A barber by trade. In boyhood, studied violin. At 16, began teaching. At 20, opened Tunstall Music House. Traveled East Texas 50 years with band that included his ten children. Founded World's Championship Fiddler's Festival, 1937. At 1951 State Fair was proclaimed the Champion Fiddler of Texas. Married (1st), Emma Virginia English; (2nd) Mrs. Lillie Shanks.

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W. E. Mayes Property TX11161

Alabama native William Elbert "Buck" Mayes (1836-1915) came to this area in 1856. After serving in the Civil War, he returned home to Houston County and became a successful businessman with interests in banking, real estate, construction and retail sales. By April 1893, he owned the three commercial structures at this site (509-513 E. Goliad). The buildings became an important part of Crockett's business community, providing space for such operations as a newpaper and theater. The site now serves as a reminder of Mayes' many contributions to the growth of the city.

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W. V. McConnell Building TX11238

Crockett native William Van McConnell (1855-1919) built this victorian commercial structure soon after he purchased the site in 1891 from Maj. J.C. Wooters, a former Mayor of the city. Known for his wit and his Irish stories, McConnell opened a mercantile store here which developed into a business that lasted until 1973. A landmark on the square for many years, the McConnell Building now serves as a reminder of Crockett's early growth.

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Weches CCC Camp TX7021

Weches Camp P-58-T was established by the Federal Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in June 19, 1933. Manned by Company 888, the Weches Camp was the first CCC Camp established in Houston County. It contained barracks, a mess hall, recreation area, post office and medical infirmary. Camp enrollees helped restore and develop the Davy Crockett National Forest and the Historic 118-acre San Francisco Mission State Forest. They planted trees, built roads, developed park facilities and erected log structures and fire observation towers. The camp closed in November 1935.

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Whitehouse Cemetery TX5060
Whitehouse Cemetery

According to local tradition, this cemetery may take its name from the 19th-century Cole family home, a structure whose whitewashed exterior stood out from the majority of other log houses and frame buildings in the area. It lies on what was once a thoroughfare from the former Angelina County Seat of Homer to Crockett, the county seat of neighboring Houston County. Although the oldest marked grave - that of Catherine Wheat Wideman - is from 1893, there are earlier burial sites on the property.

Whitehouse Cemetery contains the burials of people who lived and worked in the central part of the county, including early settlers and residents of the area. Family names on the tombstones reflect many who were influential in shaping and organizing Lufkin and Angelina County government and businesses. Among the most significant were the Ganns, who for many years owned the land on which the cemetery is located.

In 1934, the Whitehouse Cemetery Association was organized to care for the property. It purchased additional land from the Gann family in 1941. Until the 1960s, all graves were kept clear of vegetation in the traditional "scraped-earth" manner.

As a reminder of the people who settled permanently in this part of Angelina County, the Whitehouse Cemetery remains a significant part of the area's heritage.

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William Barret Travis TX9135
WILLIAM BARRET TRAVIS
(August 9, 1809 - March 6, 1836)

Co-commander with James Bowie, siege of the Alamo. Born in South Carolina; moved with family in 1818 to Alabama, where at 19 he was admitted to the bar; came to Texas 1831. In Anahuac he joined William H. Jack and others resisting tyranny of customs collector Juan Davis Bradburn and was jailed 50 days in the fort (1832). In 1835 he led in capture and disarming of Mexican garrison reoccupying Fort Anahuac. As Lieutenant of volunteers sent to key city San Antonio in war against Mexican Dictator Santa Anna, he drew men and food into the Alamo on Feb. 23, 1836, and defied with a cannon shot Santa Anna's call to surrender. On Feb. 24, civilian leader James Bowie fell ill, leaving 26-year-old Travis in charge. At Travis' call for aid, 32 men from Gonzales joined the Alamo forces, but Fannin's 500 failed to march in time from Goliad. With doom upon him, Travis drew line on floor to separate men wishing to leave from those staying; only one left. The 182 remaining -- including hero Davy Crockett -- made Santa Anna's Army of 2,500 pay dearly for triumph on March 6, 1836. Travis' last message, telling of his resolution to achieve victory or death in face of the foe's overwhelming numbers, has been called one of the world's noblest documents.

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William Monroe Patton TX7606
WILLIAM MONROE PATTON
(1855 - 1915)

William Monroe Patton moved to Crockett from Tadmor in 1899 after the death of his brother James H. Patton, with whom he owned a dry goods store. William purchased property on the southwest corner of the public square in Crockett and built a brick structure for his general merchandise business. He constructed six one-story buildings on what became known as Patton Block. William married Flora Elizabeth Gause (1869-1957) and had four children.

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William Van McConnell TX11239
WILLIAM VAN McCONNELL
(April 18, 1855 -- March 17, 1919)

A native of Crockett, William V. McConnell was the son of Irish-born blacksmith John McConnell. After helping his father with that trade, McConnell opened a mercantile store on the square and developed there a family business that lasted nearly a century. McConnell was a charter member of the First Christian Church. After the death of his first wife, Jennie McLean (1868-1888), McConnell married her sister Daisy (1875-1935).

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Black Warrior's Town AL182
One-half mile north was the Creek Indian village known as Black Warrior's Town, of which Oce-Oche-Motla was chief. After Tecumseh's visit in 1811, these Indians became hostile to white settlers. In 1812 Little Warrior brought Mrs. Martha C. Crawley of Tennessee to this Indian Village as a captive. She was rescued by Tandy Walker, a blacksmith, and taken to St. Stephens. This was one of the incidents which led to the Creek War. The village was destroyed in October 1813 by Colonel John Coffee and his Tennessee Volunteers, one of whom was Davy Crockett.

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First Baptist Church 1898 Sanctuary FL114

This structure represents an adaptation of the Queen Anne style of architecture to local ecclesiastical needs and traditional building materials. Both the stimulus for constructing a new sanctuary and the idea for its basic design are attributed to the Reverend Stephen Crockett, an Englishman who served as pastor at the time. Crockett's design is unusual for the time and place; however, its most unusual facet remains hidden until the visitor enters: the interior plan is octagonal. The sanctuary was moved to this location in 1956. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

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