Optional page text here. Mark L. Morris

Mark L. Morris

One of the first settlers in Wylie, Collin County, Texas was Mark L. Morris, born in Alabama in 1823 of Scottish ancestry. He and his family were among those who came with Andy Burns, Fayette Summers and Adam Scott to Texas from McNary, County, Tennessee. With their slow moving ox drawn wagons, they arrived in McKinney after 52 days of traveling on November 20, 1852.
On January 1, 1853 Morris settled on a 317-acre tract of land near Wylie. Even today one may receive a title stating that his land is the Mark L. Morris Survey. Elizabeth Farmer became the first Mrs. Morris. There were possibly three of them, but Elizabeth was the mother of his eight children. Little information is known of her except some of her descendants say she is buried in an unmarked grave in the Forest Grove Cemetery near McKinney. To Elizabeth and Mark were born the following:
I. BILLY MORRIS is said to be the oldest. He had one known son, and both are said to be buried in Mesquite.
II. JOHN WESLEY MORRIS was born June 14,1855 and died September 11, 1922. He married Jennie Walden, born Feb. 11, 1860 and died September 18,1912. Both are buried in the Wylie Cemetery.
III. MARK LINDSEY MORRIS II was born December 2,1864 and died May 28, 1943. He married Ella Walden (Born January 9, 1872 and died Oct. 15, 1940) on January 9, 1888. He was a school teacher, a farmer and a county official for twenty years, moving to Taylor County in 1891 and then to Post in Garza County in 1913. To them were born the following children-EARL MORRIS, MAX MORRIS, FAY MORRIS COGDILL, CECIL MORRIS, RAY MORRIS, HAZEL MORRIS LEWIS, and ESMA MORRIS CASH.
IV. LINNIE MAUDE was married twice. First she married a Mr. Pratt by whom she had one son, Lindsey Pratt. When she was widowed she married Harris Nall and bore him nine children. They were: MARVIN NALL, MARK NALL, BILLY NALL, JIMMY NALL, LEON NALL, MYRTLE NALL, MAGGIE NALL, ANTHEM NALL, and OLLIE NALL.
V. REATHEY MORRIS married the brother of her sister-in-law, John Walden, on August 27, 1872. They had nine children. Reathey died in 1918 and is buried in the Wylie Cemetery. Her children were: JOHNNIE WALDEN, WILLIE WALDEN, BOB WALDEN, FRANK WALDEN, LESTER WALDEN, ROLLIE WALDEN, EMMA WALDEN, ANNIE WALDEN, and LOTTIE WALDEN.
VI. MARY MORRIS was born December 18, 1847 and was married to John H. Bums (born Nov. 5,1848 and died May 29, 1942) on May 12, 1869. Mary died February 19, 1930. John and Mary Bums are buried in the Wylie Cemetery. To them were born: JIMM BURNS, HENRY BURNS, JENNIE BURNS JOKES , and ELLA BURNS STERLING.
i VII. ELLA MORRIS married Joe S. McCullah and moved to Paris, Texas. They had one daughter, Ella, who married Will McCullah or McCullough.
VIII. HARRIETT ANGELINE MORRIS was born December 10, 1850 and died April 9, 1930. She married James Adam Scott (born Aug. 23, 1842 and died March 31, 1898). Both are buried in the Wylie Cemetery.
Their children were:
A. WILLIAM RILEY SCOTT was born March 1, 1871 and died October 25, 1933 and is buried at Durant, Oklahoma.
B. HERBERT LINDSEY SCOTT was born Jan. 8,1881 and died August 1929. He married Willie Bowman.
C. JOHN EDWIN SCOTT was born March 2,1887 and died Feb. 15, 1956. A bachelor, he is buried in the Wylie Cemetery.
D. JAMES ADAM SCOTT JR. was born Feb. 22,1885 and died 1966 and is buried in Greenville, Texas. He married Leora Ross.
E. ERNEST "BROWNIE" SCOTT was born Jan. 28,1889 and he died Feb. 11, 1973 and is buried in Louisiana. He was married to Sallie Kees.
F. MARYELIZABETHSCOTTwasbornDec.25,1875and died October 28,1935 and is buried in the Plano Mutual Cemetery. She was married to Joseph Pierce Stovall (born 1862 and died 1925).
G. ELLA SCOTT was born March 7, 1879 and died 1970. She married John Jennings. H. DOLLY MAY SCOTT was born February 4, 1883 and died January 2, 1984. She was married in 1900 to Claude
C. Creekmore (born Dec. 13, 1872 and died April 20, 1952).

Many of the men in this area entered battle at the beginning of the War Between the States, and Mark L. Morris was no exception. He became Second Sergeant in the Sixteenth Regiment of Captain Gabriel H. Fitzhugh's Texas Cavalry Volunteers and served gallantly. Following the war, Morris not only farmed but hauled freight with neighbors and sons, especially "Uncle" Andy Burns and James Gallagher. Occasionally, there would be a sack of green coffee which he would bring home to distribute to friends and neighbors. Often this was the first coffee which they had seen since the beginning of the Civil War, and you can imagine their rejoicing. Before Protestant churches were formed here, Methodists and those of other faiths congregated at the homes of Mark L. Morris and William Spurgin to conduct afternoon services, which were usually hymns unless a circuit preacher rode by. When a Methodist Conference was held in Arkansas on July 26, 1865, Morris was appointed one of three members as a Board of Trustees for a Campground meeting place. He immediately gave two and two thirds acres of land so that families could congregate for old fashioned meetings and campings. This was quite the thing and was their way of vacationing.
Morris was quite a generous person, and in 1872 he noted a school was needed. With John and Elizabeth Skelton, he deeded a plot of land to be used as a school and a church. It was given Morris School and Liberty Chapel, but was better known as "Rawhide," because a door was made of rawhide stretched over a frame.
Mark L. Morris lived to 1909, having enjoyed a rich, full life. He is buried in an unmarked grave in the Wylie Cemetery.

Mark L. Morris is shown above with five of his children. Seated are Harriett Angeline Morris Scott, Mark L. Morris and Mary Morris Burns. At the back are Lennie Morris Nall, John Wesley Morris and Reathey Morris Walden.

Texans in the Civil War
The General Store