Christopher
Columbus Stalcup was a twin to Frances
America (Stalcup) Etter. They
were born September 3, 1848 on the family
farm in Tennessee. He married
Frances John February 28, l971 McMinn
County, Tennessee. Son
Edwin King was born there on August 25, 1876
Tennessee.
Approximately
1877/1878 Chris and his small family, along
with brother Levi's family
and their mother Nancy, moved to Pottsboro,
Grayson County, Texas.
Unlike his four siblings in the area, Texas
was not the "end goal" in
Christopher's plans. But, as they say, "the
best laid plans" - what was
originally expected to be a few months
stay before moving on
became several years.
A man has to provide for his family,
even short-term, so Chris settled onto a
small 20 acre farm near
Pottsboro. As chance would have it, it was
during this time that
brother John W.'s wife died leaving him with
2 children to care for. As
mothers do, Nancy Stalcup stepped in to care
for her son and
grandchildren during that trying time. Chris
had assumed the role of
looking after his mother after their
father's death in 1867 and
therefore was not willing to resume the
family's travels until his
mother could join them. Chris and Frances
had their second child Joseph
Harrison - born July 13, 1880 Texas.
By 1882 Chris and Frances
eventually continued their planned journey
to join younger brother
Joseph in Sebastian County, Arkansas. Nancy
Stalcup continued on to
Arkansas as well and died in 1886.
Ironically, Chris returned
to
McMinn County, Tennessee in the mid-1890s
but his only daughter, Marie,
married and moved to Denison, Grayson
County, Texas in 1919. Carl
Clifton and Jessie Marie (Stalcup) Jones are
both buried in Fairview
Cemetery, Denison, Grayson County, Texas.
C. A. Parsons
January 16, 2021
