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Jesse Graham - Martha Fannin
Family tradition states that this family began with the marriage of
John Graham and Mary. It is beiieved that they were both from North Carolina. The only
public record to date on this couple is the 1860 Coryell County census where Mary is
listed with her son Jesse, and she claims to have been born in l781. No one seems to know
where or when John or Mary died. They did have at least seven children. They were Mary, Jesse, Jane, Hugh, John, David, and Gideon. Only Jesse and Gideon appear to have moved to Texas.
John and Mary's son Jesse, was born March 9.1804 in North Carolna. He married Martha
Fannin, daughter of Middleton Fannin and Delphia Ann Moore about 1827. Jesse was livng in
Jackson County Alabama. by 1830 and probably several years before that date.
Jesse Graham came to Texas with his son-in-law, Joel Blackwell and other allied families
about 1848 and settled for a time in Rusk County. Most of these famiiies made another move
to Coryell County around 1855.
In 1856 Jesse Graham who was a Primitive Baptist preacher, organized a church in the Sugar
Loaf Mountain community. He also helped to establish a church at Rainey Creek in 1857.
Jesse died October 26 1887 and was buried in the vicinity of the community where he lived.
He was later removed to the Restland Cemetery at Gatesville when Fort Hood was built. His
tombstone reads "Was a primitive Baptist 65 years and a minister of the gospel of
Christ 56 years and a moderator of Concord Association 28 years." His wife Martha
Jane. died on May 23. 1894 and is buried next to him She was born july 9.1811 in
Tennessee.
Jesse and Martha had eleven children. They were
- Sarah Emeline, married Joel Blackwell;
- Issac Jackson, married Sarah Ann Kinsey;
- Curtis B. married #1 Elizabeth Thornton
#2 Melissa Swanner;
- John, married Martha Jane Sartin;
- Ozias Denton, married Martha M. Thornton;
- Martha Jane, married James Duncan
Manning;
- William Smith, married Anna Elira Alley;
- Jesse married Cornelia Griffin;
- Hulda Ann, married #1 Joseph Abbott, #2 J.P. McCloud;
- Benjamin Franklin, married Sarah A. Fleming;
- James Monroe, married Elizabeth Jane Fleming.
According to one source Jesse Graham was 6'2" and weighed 210
pounds. He had blue eyes and light hair.
-- Eleanor Rogers Edmondson
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