James Alfred Head
Kosse, Limestone County, Texas
Marker Inscription
James A. Head was a Texas Ranger, veteran of the War for Independence, and Republic of Texas legislator. Born in Georgia in 1797, he moved to Texas in 1835, enlisting at San Felipe de Austin in Silas Parker’s ranging company and securing a land grant at Sarahsville de Viesca. With wife Elizabeth (Seale) Head, he farmed in what is now Brazos County, serving as Justice of the Peace in 1841. Later that year he was elected to the Sixth Congress of the Republic of Texas and served as Chief Justice of Brazos County, 1848-51. By 1852 Head farmed 17,800 acres in Robertson and Limestone counties. He died at Headsville in 1872. James Alfred and Elizabeth Head had 13 children.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Georgia-born James A. Head came to Texas in 1835 and enlisted at San Felipe de Austin in Silas Parker's ranging company, earning a land grant and a place among the Texas Rangers who guarded the frontier during the war for independence. With his wife Elizabeth he farmed in what became Brazos County, served as justice of the peace and chief justice, and won election to the Sixth Congress of the Republic of Texas. By 1852 he worked some 17,800 acres and died at Headsville in 1872, father of thirteen children.
Why it matters
Head's life traces the arc of Anglo settlement in Texas, from ranging companies on a contested frontier to landholding and self-government under the Republic.
Own a business near here? Add it to the map.
Related people
- · James Alfred Head
- · Elizabeth Seale Head
- · Silas Parker
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
James Alfred Head
Kosse, TX
This state marker honors James Alfred Head, who fought for Texas independence and then served in the Congress of the young Republic of Texas in 1841-1842. Erected in 1962, it commemorates a member of the generation that won and then governed the short-lived Republic before annexation to the United States.
A hero of San Jacinto William F. Williams
Reagan, TX
Kentucky-born W. F. Williams met Sam Houston in Tennessee and joined his army, fighting for Texas independence at the decisive Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836. He later settled in Falls County in 1857, farming, ranching, and partnering in a general store. He raised ten children and lived until 1878.
John Sadler
Groesbeck, TX
Born in 1811, John Sadler came to Texas in 1833 and joined the fight for Texas independence, serving as a volunteer in Captain William Ware's company at the decisive Battle of San Jacinto. He and his wife Bashie lived out their lives on the Texas land they helped win, dying within months of each other in 1885.
Abram Anglin
Groesbeck, TX
Born in 1817, Abram Anglin served as an early Ranger during the Texas War for Independence, riding with Captain Seale's company in 1835–36 under authority of the provisional Council of Texas. He lived on into the frontier era of the Republic and statehood, dying in 1875. His grave marker, crowned with the star and wreath, commemorates the volunteer soldiers who fought to sever Texas from Mexico.