For as long as I can remember, before he died, my Grandpa Themer would drive by a location about a mile out of Kingfisher, Oklahoma, and say to me, “There is ‘College Mound,’ location of a fairly renowned college from 1890—1922, and still being utilized as the ‘Kingfisher College Chair’ at the University of Oklahoma.” And, to the best of my memory, I seem to recall seeing “structural remains” as a boy.
So, you can imagine my surprise when one day in the early 1980s, I was driving on the farm road to Kaufman and spotted a large water storage tank and associated building that had a large sign, stating—“College Mound Water Supply.” Through the next very several years, I would ask folks who I knew lived near or traversed that area about where I might see the “mound” upon which the college had been built. However, I could never get a satisfactory answer to my questions concerning the origin of the name!
Finally, at a Kaufman County Historic Society meeting a year or two ago, I asked one of the members my usual question, and he did tell me a few things about the location of the “community” and where the cemetery is located.
Still not satisfied, I kept looking around for more information and finally found most of what I wanted in A History of Kaufman County, Part I, a very good resource/information book for several of my recent articles.
**COLLEGE MOUND** 1840: The “College Mound” story begins! Eighty rough and hardy settlers from Washington County, Indiana, travelled in ox-drawn wagons over seemingly endless “wilderness” paths. They arrived at their destination, or at least it turned out that way, and pitched tents and slept under their wagons and began cutting out camps in the mesquite and oak heavily forested area—and steadily made progress towards establishing homes and farms.
More than likely, a name for their “area” was not very important to them at this early “sweaty” time, and as they were working, an “Easterner,” a VISIONARY as he might be called by the more acceptant of the group, came looking for a site for a school—a COLLEGE!
He was unknown to the settlers, but they were glad to see him and accepted his plan for the future. Sadly, he died before his dream was ever fulfilled, but the name—COLLEGE MOUND—caught on with the folks of the area, and the Community adopted it as their own!
Some of the earliest settlers were Captain John Beck and wife, Annie, and their five married daughters/families—Claridas, Henrys, Foglemans, Fullers, and Gardners.
Travelling the Chisolm Trail later in 1857, the “PATTONS” found College Mound not only still there, but growing and prospering. Log cabins “dotted” the landscape of the area. In 1858, Philip and Isaac Cole came with their families to the “Mound” from Tennessee and settled south of the present (1970s) church building. By 1865, the Coxes, Ed Kings, Billie Johnsons, and Rushings had joined the Community. By 1872, Hogans, Fenders, Stovalls, Welborns, Tidwells, and “Uncle Jo” Liston had arrived and “settled in.” And still today, some of their heirs are around the area.
These early PIONEERS had thriving farms, with wheat and cotton as the principal crops. The corn that some grew had to be hauled some 100 miles to a grist mill for grinding, or probably more corn would have been part of the main crops! Supplies for this growing settlement sometimes had to come from as far as Shreveport, Louisi ana!
Before either Kaufman or Terrell had a post office, College Mound had its own. W. C. Patton, in 1868, opened the first one in his own home, and wagons brought in the mail once per month! As many as four spans of mules pulled the wagons as a result of the boggy conditions that often prevailed in/on the roadways!
A. H. Henry, Grandfather of the Love Family, opened the 1st Store in 1865, and by 1879 Jim Rushing and Will Cole had opened their own stores, too!
1885—Pat Hogan, Grandfather of James Hogan, opened the community’s 1st Cotton Gin!
Before 1870, Drs. Snow and Pyle of Johnson Point (Abner Community) served the families of College Mound. And then, in that year, Dr. H. Fender built a new home and opened an office in one of its rooms. Other doctors who later served included Boykin, Stovall, Kimbrough, Neely, and Alexander.
Preachers and Teachers also came (and some times one person was both) and left their marks and influences!
The COLLEGE MOUND CHURCH was begun back in 1840, mostly by the Becks and their Children. The original building was of logs and served five different denominations for years until four of them found other locations for worship. The METHODISTS were then the primary worshippers in that edifice.
Reverend J. W. Fields, young minister from Kentucky, volunteered for Texas duty in 1844 and arrived as a “missionary” in 1845, during the stewardship of A. H. Henry and Ed King while the building was still being used by all five denominations. The Church maintained a Parsonage on land donated by A. H. Henry until 1932, when it was decided to buy one in Terrell for the Minister. In 1974, Consecration and construction of a new “Love Memorial Parsonage” on the original Parsonage site was begun, and the Dedication and “Note Burning” were held in 1977.
The CHURCH CEMETERY dates back to 1846, and more than 3,000 have been buried there. As this historical article was being readied for printing in the book I noted earlier, a marker still stood in the Cemetery and could be read: “Annie, wife of John Beck, 1790—1871.” She was the mother of eleven children!
With the passing of the many years since the founding of the Community and the passing of more years since the original article detailed it, COLLEGE MOUND has remained a close-knit Community, still “peopled” by many descendants of original settlers!
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