Darius H. Edens
Grapeland, Houston County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(May 20, 1815 -- September 14, 1883) A native of Illinois, Darius H. Edens moved to Texas in 1831. He served in a Texas army infantry unit commanded by Thomas J. Rusk in 1836. A surveyor by trade, he worked in present Houston and Anderson counties. He and partner James E. Box platted the town of Palestine, where he later owned a store and was elected Anderson County's first Chief Justice. After a brief foray to California during the 1849 gold rush, he returned to Texas and settled at Augusta. He and his wife, Nancy Rice, operated the Augusta stagecoach station and inn on the road between Rusk and Crockett. (1994)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Illinois-born Darius H. Edens came to Texas in 1831 and served in Thomas J. Rusk's infantry during the 1836 revolution that won Texas its independence. A surveyor, he helped plat the town of Palestine and became Anderson County's first Chief Justice before chasing the 1849 California gold rush. Returning home, he and his wife Nancy Rice ran the stagecoach station and inn at Augusta on the road between Rusk and Crockett.
Why it matters
Edens embodies the surveyor-settler generation that literally drew the map of early Texas, tying frontier towns together with roads, courts, and stage lines.
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Related people
- · Darius H. Edens
- · Thomas J. Rusk
- · James E. Box
- · Nancy Rice
Related events
- · Texas Revolution
- · California Gold Rush
Themes & tags
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