Joseph Thomas La Rue_Stella E. Parsons La Rue
Athens, Henderson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
JOSEPH THOMAS LA RUE (Nov. 18, 1864 - Feb. 13, 1930) Alderman on Athens' first city council (1901). La Rue (town 13 mi. SE) was named for him. Educator, merchant, civic leader, banker, humanitarian, prohibitionist, Democrat, historian. Married March 16, 1892, Stella Elvira Parsons. They had seven children. STELLA E. PARSONS LA RUE (Feb. 16, 1874 - Dec. 7, 1949) Known as first white child born in Terrell; Daughter of Confederate Army surgeon, Dr. Homer Lee Parsons, M.D. (Yale University), and wife, Margaret C.R.R. Parsons. In role of wife and mother, 'Mammy La Rue' was beloved of family and community. Recorded - 1970
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Joseph Thomas La Rue (1864–1930) served on Athens' first city council in 1901 and wore many hats—educator, merchant, banker, and civic booster—with the nearby town of La Rue named in his honor. In 1892 he married Stella Elvira Parsons (1874–1949), the daughter of a physician, and together they raised seven children. Warmly remembered in their community, the couple embodied the merchant-civic leadership that knit together small East Texas towns around the turn of the twentieth century.
Why it matters
Their story reflects how local educators, merchants, and bankers built the institutions of everyday civic life in the small towns that anchored rural America.
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Related people
- · Joseph Thomas La Rue
- · Stella Elvira Parsons La Rue
Themes & tags
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