Herald Democrat
Sunday, June 12, 2011

Yesterday
By Donna Hunt

TWO SHANNON CEMETERIES EXIST IN GRAYSON COUNTY
Sarah Dye may have answered everyone's questions about the two Shannon Cemeteries in Grayson County with a piece about the Shannon family.
Sarah said that there are indeed two Shannon cemeteries in the county.  The large and better known one lies adjacent to the Shannon Church of Christ, just east of Sherman.  The one we've talked about in two previous columns is the family cemetery of James Shannon, one of two brothers who followed their father to Grayson County in the early 1840s.
James and Thomas Shannon were noted for their many land dealings.  According to information Sarah had collected, James Shannon lived and  had some sort of farm on land he acquired in some manner from Hardin Jones in 1848.  The land today is in west Denison,  Keep in mind that this was more than 30  years before Denison was founded.


In 1845 the John Hendrix family headed for Texas, partly due to the influence of James B. and Thomas Shannon, who were already in Grayson County.  The wagon train with the Hendrix family and two other families, the Jennings and the Collingsworth families, were two days from Colbert's Ferry when they heard the cannons at Ft. Washita celebrating Texas joining the United States, according to a brief Hendrix family history in "Ancestors and Descendants of Grayson County, Texas."
In 1846, however, Grayson County was a part of the Fannin County District.  John Hendrix helped lay off the county boundary of Grayson.  He, James Vaden and James B. Shannon were appointed by the legislature to lay off the town of Sherman for which John donated part of the land.
John Shannon and his brother, Thomas, had the site moved to a more advantageous location for themselves.  James Shannon was shot and killed by an ordained minister, John Jennings, on September 11, 1849.  The reason for the killing is not known.  It's also not  known if this Rev. Jennings was the same Jennings who came with the Hendrix family to Grayson County.
Oldest marked grave in the Shannon Cemetery off Morton Street in Denison is that of James Shannon's first wife, Nancy.  Three months after her death, James married Tabitha Randolph, the widow of Thomas Randolph, who lived at old Shawneetown and who was appointed the first Sheriff of Grayson County.
Randolph only performed one deed while Sheriff before he was removed from office for misconduct.  The time and cause of Randolph's death remains a mystery.  The Randolph and Shannon families were combined and it is believed they lived on the Shannon farm.
After James Shannon was killed, his widow, Tabitha Randolph, then married a name named Abram Myers, who also was murdered a short time later.  It is not know if he is buried in the cemetery.
The Shannon land became valuable as a racetrack and sort of fair grounds with exhibition barns for livestock after Denison was settled.  Wild Bill Hickok and his troupe performed there one time, and in 1899 The First and Last Chance Saloon was built nearby and operated by Ed Ford.
When the railroad acquired the property in 1925, the land deal required they leave a 10-foot strip around the cemetery and keep it fenced and clean.  It hasn't been cleaned in years and is grown up with tangled brush, weeds and bushes.  It is said that puddles of creosote can be smelled in the area even though the W.J. Smith Wood Preserving Company, better known as "the tie plant", has been closed for several years.
Among those buried in the cemetery are:
Nancy Shannon, born June 7, 1814, died June 10, 1848
James B. Shannon, born April 15, 1812, died September 11, 1849
Ada P. Shannon, born October 29, 1874, died September 1, 1875
Mary C. Shannon, born October 17, 1859, died August 5, 1860, age 9 months, 19 days
Eliza J. Shannon, "Died May"
Katie  W. Ansley, born 1822
Caldonia A. Holder, born May 22, 1837, died May 4, 1877, an infant (Caldonia was the wife of Dr. I.N. Holder, early day Preston doctor.  She came from Alabama with Indian removal)
Mattison Sifford, son of Green and Rebecca
E.L. Thomas, born June 29, 1873, died July 6, 1873
and a few others.
It's interesting to hear of happenings before Denison was even founded.  The Shannon family was among the earliest settlers in the area.
Many thanks to Sarah Dye for providing information for the column.