Perrin Log Cabin
Decatur, Wise County, Texas
Marker Inscription
William Perrin and his wife, Charlotte, along with two other families, left Rock Castle, Kentucky in the fall of 1853, arriving forty days later in the Peters Colony near Dallas. They moved west again, arriving in Wise County on Christmas Eve 1854 and settling on 160 acres southeast of Decatur. They sold that land in 1860 to blacksmith Joseph Dannelley for $1,000. The Perrins located this homestead south of town on the banks of Martin’s Branch and Center Creek, along the eastern boundary of the Samuel Isaacs survey. Here they built this two-room dogtrot log cabin sometime between 1855 and 1861. In 1861, Perrin obtained clear title to the land by paying Samuel Smith of Walker County $960 for 320 acres. The warranty deed cites “so as to include the residence and farm of said Perrin.” The Perrin family lived in the house continuously from its construction until 1990. Upon the death of William Perrin in 1875, his son, Temoleon (T. Perrin), became the owner, and later grandson Earl Perrin acquired the house and land. Around 1940, Earl covered the house with siding, effectively preserving the log cabin and protecting it from the elements for decades. The historic cabin was restored in 2007 based on historic photographs and architectural evidence. Original materials utilized in the restoration included the original stones for the fireplace, original chinking and nearby clay for daubing, and original logs for the v-notch walls, rafters, and floor supports. The cabin is the most intact structure of its kind in Wise County, being the only double log cabin restored and still at its original location. It is a testament to pioneer craftsmanship and the memory of a pioneering family. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2013
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In 1853 William and Charlotte Perrin left Rock Castle, Kentucky, joining the westward stream into the Peters Colony near Dallas before pushing on to Wise County on Christmas Eve 1854. On the banks of Martin's Branch they built a two-room dogtrot log cabin, a classic frontier form, sometime between 1855 and 1861. The Perrin family lived in it continuously until 1990, and a 2007 restoration used the original stones, chinking, and v-notched logs to bring it back.
Why it matters
The cabin is a rare, still-standing testament to pioneer craftsmanship and the multi-generational settlement of North Texas.
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Related people
- · William Perrin
- · Charlotte Perrin
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Wise County Reunion
Decatur, TX
Confederate veterans and Wise County pioneers gathered for an 1881 reunion at Cold Springs, timed to the anniversary of Captain George Stevens' 1874 victory over raiding Indians; some 5,000 people came. Settling into its present grounds by 1896, the gathering grew to a multi-day festival of speeches, rodeos, and sham battles drawing crowds of 12,000. Sponsored by the Old Settlers Association, it endures as the oldest recurring public event in the county.
Site of Wise County Poor Farm & Cemetery
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From 1885 to 1962, Wise County ran a 320-acre poor farm here to shelter and put to work its dependent and needy citizens, while county convicts labored off their fines on the same land. Its first superintendent managed the farm as his wife cooked, washed, and sewed for inmates and guards alike. The now-leveled cemetery at a bend of Center Creek held the poorest of the poor, most of them remembered by only a first name or none at all.
New Salem Freewill Baptist Church
Decatur, TX
In April 1893, Reverend Josephus Wesley Ford and several families organized this Freewill Baptist congregation southwest of Decatur. Ford, who had earlier pastored in Missouri, led the church until his death in 1898. Meeting at first only once a month, the congregation grew and eventually settled into a former schoolhouse after the Perrin School consolidated into Decatur's district.
Sam Woody's Cabin
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Tennessee-born pioneer Sam Woody (1826–1920) reached Texas in the 1840s and brought his family to Wise County in 1854, where friends and kin raised this log cabin near Deep Creek in a single day. As the area's first dwelling it became a hub of frontier hospitality, a trading spot where Native people exchanged buffalo robes and moccasins for corn, and a haven where travelers were never turned away. Woody helped guard the settlements as a ranger and served in the Confederate army during the Civil War.