Democrat
February 1931

Pioneer Dies at
Van Alstyne Home

Oldest Business Man in City
Was Also Active Church-
man 50 Years

Special to the Democrat
VAN ALSTYNE - S. L. McKinney, 85, for eighty years a citizen of Van Alstyne and vicinity, and a grandson of Collin McKinney, early settler for whom Collin county and the county seat were named, died suddenly Monday at the home of his daughter, Mrs. J. H. Neill, of Van Alstyne. He was stricken Friday with a heart attack which went into pneumonia.
BURIAL TUESDAY
Funeral services will be held on Tuesday afternoon at 2:30 o'clock at the Methodist church conducted by the Rev. T. H. Browning, pastor, assisted by request of the deceased, by J. D. L. McKinney, a brother, and W. F. Barnett of Waco, as well as by several former pastors of the church. S. L. McKinney had been an active member and a trustee in the Methodist church here for over fifty consecutive years. He was the oldest churchman as well as the oldest business man in the vicinity. Yoder Undertaking company is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. McKinney is survived by three children, Mrs. Gus W. Thomasson of Dallas, Mrs. Neill, and Lee McKinney of Van Alstyne. He was associated with the latter in business. Also surviving are his brother, J. D. L. McKinney and three grandchildren, Neill McKinney, John H. Neill, Jr. and Gus W. Thomasson Jr., the latter a student at Centenary college, Shreveport, La.
Mr. McKinney was born Oct. 23, 1846 in Clark county, Ark, the son of the late Younger Scott McKinney and Sarah James McKinney, and he came to Texas with his parents in the spring of 1849, settling in Collin county five miles east of Van Alstyne. The family of Younger Scott McKinney made the trip in covered wagons of the old prairie schooner type and arrived at the home of Collin McKinney in February 1849.  The home consisted of two large rooms made of logs with a large hall between. They lived here about nine months after which they moved to a farm east of Van Alstyne, now owned by J. D. L. McKinney.
EARLY DAY SCHOOL
The McKinney boys attended school at a building made of split boards one mile south of where Cannon community is now located, six miles east of Van Alstyne. Split logs on pegs were used as benches and desks and an old stick and dirt chimney four feet wide was used for heating.
In his thirtieth year, Feb. 25, 1887, Mr. McKinney married Miss Caroline Narcissus Baldwin. He first went into business as an employe of F. C. Umphress, dry goods merchant. He later was employed by J. W. Pattie in a furniture store. In 1883, he formed a partnership with W. H. Cave in the furniture business and later became full owner of a business which occupied him from then to the time of his death. The brick foundation for this business house was the first brick laid in Van Alstyne. In forty years neither the name nor the type of business underwent change.
Prior to going into business, he had served for eight months in a reserve corps of the Confederate army located at Tyler. This corps was connected with Martin's troup camped on the Brazos river bottoms near Marlin. He registered with th Sixty cavalry but had to be returned home on account of illness and the war was ended before he was well enough to return.