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The Allen Cabin
that has recently been moved to the grounds of the White Settlement
Historical Museum.
TE Photo February 2004 |
History in
a Pecan Shell
White Settlement
dates to the 1850s, shortly after the establishment of Fort
Worth (November 1849) and the creation of Tarrant
County. The name comes from the fact that there were no Indians
living in the immediate vicinity. At that time there were only one
or two trading posts and scattered farms that extended across hostile
territory from Fort Worth
to the Parker County
line. The road leading into Parker
County was known as the White Settlement Road.
An organized community developed around the homesteads of the three
Farmer Brothers from Tennessee. John Farmer had his first cabin burned
by hostile Indians. The Farmer Brothers were later joined by a fellow
Tennesseean named Paul Isbell who provided a footnote in Texas
history by playing a prominent role in the hanging of two men
believed to be organizing a rebellion of slaves in 1860.
Other settlers came from Kentucky in 1854 in a ten wagon “train,”
settling on the creek known as Farmer’s Branch.
After the Civil War the town remained a frontier outpost, but when
the threat of Indian attack was removed, it grew. The town was granted
a post office in 1866 which closed sometime in the 1870s. In the 1880s
the town was bypassed by the railroads
and growth remained slow until WWII
when Carswell Air Force Base was built (1942) and nearby aircraft
plants employeed thousands. White Settlement incorporated in 1950.
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Historical Marker
(8320 Hanon Dr) :
William
Terry Allen Log Cabin
In 1854 young William
Allen (1842-1893) came with his family to Tarrant
County from Todd County, Kentucky. By 1857 they had settled at
this location on 360 acres. After serving in the Confederate Army,
Allen married Sarah Fannie Grant (1849-1870). They bought 160 acres
about 1864 and built this 13' x18' cabin on White Settlement Road
six miles west of Tarrant
County Courthouse. After his first wife died, Allen married her
sister Theodocia E. Grant (1854-1931). They added to the cabin several
times, including a bedroom, "The Professor's Room". It was reserved
during school months for the local teacher.
The cabin was the family home until 1908, when a frame cottage was
built nearby. In 1933 Allen's heirs sold 22 acres which included the
cabin. The new owner moved the cabin north of the original site and
enlarged it. In 1953 the land was sold to the United States government
for runway additions to Carswell Air Force Base. The cabin was moved
to Fort Worth.
The White Settlement Historical Society, organized in 1976, raised
funds to number the logs and move the dismantled cabin to the present
site. It was restored to its original size and opened to groups interested
in local history.
(1978) |
White Settlement
Historical Museum
8320 Hanon Drive
White Settlement, Texas 76108
Phone: 817-246-9719 |
| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories,
landmarks and recent or vintage photos, please contact
us. |
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