N. B. Lynn died at the
home of his son, A. W. Lynn, in South McKinney yesterday morning at 7:20
o'clock at the ripe old age of 83. The burial took place this afternoon at
Princeton where his remains were laid to rest by the side of his wife with
whom he lived for nearly sixty-two years and who died March 2, 1906. The
aged people were at the time of her death the oldest married couple in
Collin county. On Aug. 18, 1904, they celebrated their 60th wedding
anniversary at their home at Princeton.
The following sketch
appeared in The Weekly Democrat-Gazette Aug. 25, 1904 on the occasion of the
60th wedding anniversary of Mr. And Mrs. Lynn, which was celebrated Aug. 18,
1904:
One of the oldest, if not
the oldest, married couple in Collin county is Mr. And Mrs. Newton B. Lynn
of near Princeton, eight miles east of McKinney. They were married Aug. 18,
1844, in Russell county, Alabama. Sixty years afterward, Aug. 18, 1904,
found them enjoying good health for people of their advanced age and able to
join in a family reunion of their numerous posterity.
The occasion of their
sixtieth anniversary was observed by their children, grandchildren and
great-grandchildren, who gathered at the home of the old couple and spent a
day of pleasure in a family reunion. Eighty persons were present, all being
relatives except twelve who were close friends. These descendants took their
dinners with them and all spread the good things to eat on a long table
under an arbor in the yard where everybody had plenty and much remained.
Newton Bennett Lynn was
born December 22, 1824, in Jasper county, Georgia. At the age of fifteen he
moved with his parents to Russell county, Alabama, where five years later he
was married to the bride and faithful companion who has shared his lot for
60 years. Her maiden name was Sarah Dickens. She was born in Washington
county, Georgia, Jan. 18, 1826, and moved with her parents to Russell
county, Alabama, in the winter of 1843.
Mr. Lynn's father was Wm.
Lynn, who was born in Warren county, Georgia, in 1874, and died October 24,
1860. [probably 1774] His wife was Miss Mary West, their marriage taking
place in 1811. After their marriage Mr. And Mrs. N. B. Lynn remained in
Alabama for 31 years, living that time in Russell, Macon, Chambers and
Butler counties. In 1875 they moved to Texas, and settled at Bluff Springs,
now Bluffdale, where they lived for two years and then came to Collin County
in 1877, where they have continuously resided since. They lived near Allen
for several years and then moved to his farm eight miles east of McKinney
where he has lived for 18 years.
Mr. And Mrs. Lynn are the
parents of 14 children, 8 of whom lived to be grown men and women- four sons
and four daughters. The oldest, Saluda Enseline, then Alexander Winfield,
Thomas Jefferson, William Newton Jr., Catherine Wiles, John Clinton, Sarah
Francis and Martha Virginia. Emma, the eldest, married John F. Lockhart in
1871, and died in McKinney, November 21, 1900, leaving eight children.
Catherine married J. A. Godwin in 1871 and now lives near Princeton. Frances
married T. A. Phillips in 1881, and lives at Vineland. Martha married R. A.
Campbell in 1881 and lives at Princeton. A. W. Lynn lives in McKinney. Thos.
J. Died in Dallas, July 2, 1903. W. N. died May 10, 1885. John, the youngest
son, is unmarried and still lives with his aged parents. He has been a
confirmed invalid from rheumatism for 30 years. This aged couple have five
children still living, 46 grandchildren; 25 great-grandchildren. Mr. Lynn
and his wife both joined the Missionary Baptist church in July, 1849. When
the civil war broke out Mr. Lynn enlisted in Company B, 17th Alabama
Infantry and served the Confederacy during the entire war in the Army of
Tennessee. In politics he is a follower of Thos. Jefferson, always voting
the democratic ticket until Clevelandism dominated that party, he then
affiliated with the people's party, believing that it more nearly
represented the true Jeffersonian democracy. Mr. Lynn is a hale old
gentleman, though his wife is growing rather feeble. Yet they are able to do
their own housekeeping, cooking and chores about the farm and bid fair to
add several more years to their already extraordinary long married life. Mr.
Lynn has always actively followed farming for a livelihood but until the war
he engaged in overseeing negro slave labor on Alabama cotton plantations.
Mr. Lynn in his 80th and his wife in her 79th year, are old time Southern
people to the manor born and glory in the traditions of the southland. This
fact was abundantly demonstrated at the beginning of the war when Mrs. Lynn
willingly consented to give up her husband to the service of the Confederacy
and assumed the care and support of their ten children, the eldest of whom
was just 12 years old the day its father enlisted.
Surname Index
Recommended Citation:
"N. B. Lynn,
EARLY SETTLERS OF COLLIN COUNTY." Collin County, Texas History
and Genealogy Webpage by Genealogy Friends of Plano Libraries, Inc., <http://www.geocities/genfriendsghl>
[Accessed Fri February 13, 2004 ].
