McLennan County TX

McLennan County TX, located in central Texas, was formed on January 22, 1850, and organized later that year. The county was named in honor of Neil McLennan, one of the early settlers in the region. Waco, the county seat, is not only the administrative heart of McLennan County but also a cultural and educational center, home to Baylor University and various historical sites. Geographically, the county is marked by its position along the Brazos River, which provides a fertile valley for agriculture, and the Balcones Fault, giving rise to a varied landscape that transitions from flatlands to the rolling hills characteristic of the Texas Hill Country. McLennan County’s establishment and development were significantly influenced by its strategic location, which facilitated trade, transportation, and cultural exchange, making it a focal point for economic growth and innovation in the state.

Biography of William M’Kerrall

This well-known subject was born in Orange county, N. C., June 17,1824. At sixteen he received the appointment to West Point Military Academy, and entered same class with Gen. Hancock. He was compelled to leave school, however, on account of ill health, and returned to North Carolina. There he entered Caldwell Institute, John Wilson, D.D., president, and took a regular collegiate course. At the outbreak of the Mexican war, young McKerall volunteered and was elected first lieutenant of Co. E of the North Carolina regiment, which company he served with during the war, latterly as acting captain. On one occasion, … Read more

Waco Tribe

Waco Indians. One of the divisions of the Tawakoni, whose village stood until after 1830 on the site of the present city of Waco, Texas. The name does not seem unmistakably to appear until after 1820, occurring first in Anglo-American accounts. As the Tawakoni evidently are the Touacara, whom La Harpe visited in 1719 on Canadian river, it is not impossible (and it has been assumed) that the Honecha, or Houecha, given by La Harpe and Beaurain as one of the Touacara group, are identical with the Waco. Yet, if the later Waco had kept this name throughout the 18th … Read more

Bunnell, Ruth Marie – Obituary

La Grande, Oregon Ruth Marie Bunnell, 91 of La Grande died June 20. A memorial service will begin at 3 p.m. Friday June 23 at Daniels Chapel of the Valley, 1502 Seventh St. Burial will be in Santa Anna, Texas. Ms. Bunnell was born Nov. 11, 1914, to Frank and Birdie Letha McHorse Bunnell in Eddy, Texas. She married Thomas House, and after his death she married George Ward. After his death she resumed her maiden name. She worked in a shipyard in California during World War II and worked at various jobs before retiring in 1972. She moved to … Read more

Biography of Herman Genthe

Herman Genthe. The oldest bakery establishment of Topeka under one continuous ownership and management is that conducted by Mr. Herman Genthe, who now had associated with him his oldest son. Mr. Genthe is a master of his trade. He learned it as a boy in Germany, where his ancestors so far as known were millers and had a great deal to do with those grains that furnish the staple food stuffs, wheat and rye. Mr. Genthe’s talent as a maker of fine bread is therefore partly an inheritance from his ancestors, though it had been developed by his individual experience … Read more

Tawakoni Indians

Tawakoni Indians. Said to refer to “a river bend among red hills,” or “neck of land in the water.” The synonyms should not be confounded with those of the Tonkawa. Also called: Three Canes, an English form resulting from a mistaken attempt to translate the French spelling of their name, Troiscannes. Tawakoni Connections. The Tawakoni belonged to the Caddoan linguistic stock and were most closely connected with the Wichita, the two languages differing but slightly. Tawakoni Location. They were on the Canadian River about north of the upper Washita. (See also Texas.) Tawakoni Villages Flechazos, on the west side of … Read more

Slave Narrative of Liza Smith

Person Interviewed: Liza Smith Location: Muskogee, Oklahoma Age: 91 Both my mammy and pappy was brought from Africa on a slave boat and sold on de Richmond (Va.) slave market. What year dey come over I don’t know. My mammy was Jane Mason, belonging to Frank Mason; pappy was Frank Smith, belonging to a master wid de same name. I mean, my pappy took his Master’s name, and den after my folks married mammy took de name of Smith, but she stayed on wid de Masons and never did belong to my pappy’s master. Den, after Frank Mason took all … Read more

Slave Narrative of Allen V. Manning

Person Interviewed: Allen V. Manning Location: Tulsa, Oklahoma Place of Birth: Clarke County Mississippi Date of Birth: 1850 Age: 87 Occupation: Sells Milk I always been somewhar in the South, mostly in Texas when I was a young man, and of course us Negroes never got much of a show in court matters, but I reckon if I had of had the chance to set on a jury I would of made a mighty poor out at it. No sir. I jest can’t set in judgement on nobody, ’cause I learned when I was jest a little boy that good … Read more

McLennan County Texas Cemeteries

A complete listing of all available online McLennan County Texas cemeteries, with links to multiple cemetery transcriptions, gravestone photos, tombstone photos, official records, etc.

Waco Indians

Waco Indians. According to Lesser and Weltfish (1932), from Wehiko, a corruption of Mexico, and given the name because they were always fighting with the Mexicans. The same authorities report that the Waco are thought to have been a part of the Tawakoni without an independent village but separated later. Also called: Gentlemen Indians, by Bollaert (1850). Houechas, Huanchane, by French writers, possibly intended for this tribe. Waco Connections. The Waco were most closely related to the Tawakoni of the Wichita group of tribes belonging to the Caddoan Stock. Waco Location. They appear first in connection with their village on … Read more