John Silas Edens
Ross, McLennan County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Arkansas native John Silas Edens (b. December 15, 1820) arrived in present-day Houston County, Texs, in 1831. He served in the Republic of Texas army in 1836 then joined the Texas Rangers and participated in several Indian campaigns in 1841. He returned to farm and ranch in Houston County where he and his first wife Amanda Adams reared a family of 7 children. He served in the Confederate army during the Civil War then returned to his Houston County home and established the area's first school. In 1868 the Edens moved to McLennan County and settled in the Leroy Community. Edens died at his Leroy home on July 3, 1892.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
John Silas Edens arrived in Texas as a boy in 1831, when it was still Mexican territory, and lived nearly every chapter of the state's frontier saga: he fought in the Republic of Texas army in 1836, rode with the Texas Rangers on Indian campaigns in 1841, farmed and raised a large family, and served the Confederacy during the Civil War. Back home in Houston County he opened the area's first school before moving on to McLennan County in 1868.
Why it matters
His life traces the whole arc of nineteenth-century Texas—from revolution and Ranger campaigns to Civil War and settlement—in a single frontier biography.
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Related people
- · John Silas Edens
- · Amanda Adams
Related events
- · Texas Revolution
- · Civil War
Themes & tags
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