William McKendree Lambdin
Waco, McLennan County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(January 16, 1811 - September 11, 1867) A native of Virginia, William McKendree Lambdin was the son of a Methodist minister. In 1834, he married Phebe G. Lamb, and after her death in 1849 he married Susan A. Thompson (1830-1910) in 1855. Two years later, the Lambdins moved to Texas and settled in Waco. Ordained in the Methodist church, Lambdin began his ministry in Texas as president of Waco Female College in 1857. He later served churches in Bosqueville, Houston and Waco, and was presiding elder of the Fort Worth district from 1860 to 1864. He died of yellow fever in 1867. Recorded - 2001
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
A Virginia-born son of a Methodist preacher, William McKendree Lambdin followed his father into the ministry and moved to Waco in 1857. There he became the first president of Waco Female College, then served churches across central Texas and rose to presiding elder of the Fort Worth district during the Civil War years. He died of yellow fever in 1867, one of the recurring epidemics that stalked 19th-century Texas.
Why it matters
His life traces how frontier Texas built its earliest churches and schools — including higher education for women — through circuit-riding ministers who doubled as community founders.
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Related people
- · William McKendree Lambdin
- · Susan A. Thompson
Themes & tags
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