CARRIED MAIL TO M'KINNEY ON
HORSEBACK
Thos. A. Kirby
Nearly Ninety—Living Here With Son Ed
F. Kirby
Courier
January 14, 1938
One of
McKinney's oldest citizens is Thos. Alexander Kirby, who if he reaches his
next birthday, March 31, will be ninety years old. He makes his home with
his son, former County treasurer Ed F. Kirby 16 North Kentucky Street. Until
the last few months, he has been unusually active in mind and body, but his
physical condition has not been so good for the past few months.
This dear old
father was born at Millville, Henderson County, Illinois, twelve miles south
of Burlington, Iowa, on March 31, 1848. When he was eighteen years old, he
came with his parents to Texas in covered wagons—horse drawn. Several
families came along in the caravan, taking just two months to make the toll
some trip by that slow mode of travel.
They landed at
Rock? on December 11, 1866. Some of the groups of emigrants settled in
Dallas County and became leading citizens of that city in late years.
Thos. A. Kirby's
parents were Charles and Agnes Kirby, who bought land at old Millwood, in
Southeast Collin on which they lived from 1868 until 1888 when they moved to
Haskell, West Texas where both are buried.
Thos. A. Kirby
clerked in the general mercantile store of C. L. Jones in Rockwall during
the year 1867. In 1870 he had the contract of carrying the mail from old
Millwood to McKinney on horseback. James Walter Thomas was Postmaster at
that time here at McKinney. His remuneration was 5 cents per letter each
way, and papers free. The party receiving the letter did the paying. He had
many experiences of an interesting nature during this period of service for
Uncle Sam.
Although he is
now practically ninety years old, his memory of those early days is vivid
and he likes to talk about them.
Mr. Kirby
married December 27, 1870, to Miss Martha L. ?hardt at Millwood. She died
twenty years later, on March 12, 1890 one mile east of Farmersville and is
buried at Old Millwood.
Mr. Kirby has
four sons and two daughters living—Chas. B. and Lee Kirby, both of Nevada in
Southeast Collin; Tom Kirby of Dallas, and his son, the former county
official, with whom he is residing here in McKinney. His two daughters are
Mrs N. J. Davis and Mrs. J. Q. Davis whose husbands are brothers and well
known citizens of Nevada in Southeast Collin. These editors join the many
other friends of this aged father and veteran Collin citizen in wishing him
good health and happiness throughout the new year.
