Freestone County, Texas Reflections FREESTONE PAST/PRESENT J. R. (Sonny) SESSIONS SHERIFF1965-2001 FORT PARKER-QUANAH PARKER One of the assets in being Sheriff was in the many places you sometime traveled. While Sheriff was able to visit every State with the regular trips with prisoners the Texas and National Sheriff Assn. and some paid by Peggy and I, like Hawaii and Alaska. The story starts with the murder of Fort Parker occupants in 1836 and kidnapping of Cynthia Ann Parker and her younger brother which occurred north west of Groesbeck In Limestone Co. A Parker descendent spoke at the Historical Meeting some years back describing the long and futile search by the family (A movie the Searchers was based on this). Cynthia Ann and little daughter were rescued against their will in l860 and returned to her family, both died soon after and first buried near old church near Elkhart in Anderson Co. Cynthia married Chief Pete Nocona and had three children, one was Quanah Parker the last Great War Chief of the Comanche’s. In June l874 he led an attack on Buffalo Hunters at Adobe Walls in the Texas Panhandle. This began the Red River War. For many years the Comanche had their winter camp in the Palo Duro canyon located south of Amarillo which revealed by Mexican traders. Col. Randall Kenzie with a regiment of Union Soldiers in led a surprise attack. While the Comanche’s scattered the camps were destroyed along with their winter provisions. About 1450 Indian horses were either given to other Indians or shot and killed with over l000 killed that day. Without their horses and other they had to return to the Reservation at Fort Sill. At every opportunity I drove into the Canyon with regrets. Some of the British Ranches still existed, some even had their own post offices and went for miles. There were still Prairie Dog town in the area and other. You could visualize the Indian encampment as if they still there with a little imagination Visited Fort Sill in Oklahoma where Quanah Parker and Cynthia Parker buried along with Geronimo who in my opinion was treated as bad as could be. One of the best painting ever seen of Quanah was done by Grandson Kyle grandmother Sandra Folk. Bobby Richardson in Wortham did have copies at her frame shop. My mothers family lived near Horn Hill and Thelma which near Fort Parker and most of her family buried at Fort Parker Memorial Park where the victim of the l836 massacre buried. The Fort was abandoned until reconstructed in the l930. This stopped all early immigration into this area until the 1842 peace treaties. After Quanah returned to the Reservation he was instructed to advise his wives (he had several) that there could be only one, after some thought he responded with “You Tell Them”. This one of his many wise decisions. Freestone Co. Cemeteries Continues From 1976 Book Dew Cemetery- The Dew cemetery is located behind the Methodist Church in Dew. This cemetery is enclosed with a cyclone fence and is very well kept. There is a hard surface road down the middle of the Cemetery, the oldest part of the cemetery being located on the east side of the road and the newest section on the west side. The graves in the east section are recorded in this volume. Lone Star Cemetery- is located in Lone Star Community, Freestone Co. and approximately 18 miles northeast of Fairfield off Highway U.s. 84. This burial plot was formerly named the Maise Cemetery founded around l854 by the Maise Family, owners of the property at that time. It was known by that name until fire destroyed the church in l950 when the name of the church and the Cemetery were changed to Lone Star Mt. Zion Cemetery-The land for the Mt. Zion Cemetery was given by A. P, Vaughn and J.C. Jones. The Cemetery is located about seven miles east of Fairfield and one fifth mile south off U.S. Highway 84. A Texas Historical Marker was placed at the Cemetery in l968.