John B. Denton | Denton County, TX (2024)

In 1826, John B. Denton entered the Methodist ministry first as a local preacher in Clark County. In 1833, he officially joined the Missouri Conference of the Methodist Church and became a full-time minister preaching in Arkansas and southern Missouri. He traveled for a year, but then returned to being a local preacher. In 1837, Denton resumed life as a circuit preacher and was assigned to the Sulphur Fork Circuit which included Red River and Lamar Counties in Texas. In the fall of 1837, along with fellow minister Littleton Fowler, John B. Denton crossed over the Red River into Texas. His family remained behind in Hempstead County, Arkansas, but in 1838 the Dentons moved to Clarksville, Texas.

Denton gained the reputation for being a skillful orator but he was discouraged with the difficulty of establishing a ministry in the frontier. The pay was low, the work was hard, and he was away from his growing family.

In the spring of 1838, Denton began to study law. He formed a partnership with John B. Craig, a part-time Methodist minister in Clarksville. The older Craig stayed behind while Denton traveled to court sessions. Denton and Craig also speculated in thousands of acres of land in the newly opened northeast territory. Denton’s skill as a preacher carried over into the courtroom. His traveling also allowed him time to preach. He delivered one of the first sermons in Grayson and Fannin Counties while attending court at Old Warren on the county line. He remained an active member of the Masonic Lodge at De Kalb in Bowie County, one of his stops on his ministry and law circuits and helped establish the Constantine Lodge Number 13 at Fort Warren. Denton became increasingly well-known amongst the settlers and ran unsuccessfully for the Texas Senate in 1840.

As the frontier became more settled, the Republic of Texas relied primarily on volunteers to patrol the area. In 1839, Denton answered the call and was commissioned captain of a company in Brig. Gen. Edward H. Tarrant’s Fourth Brigade, Texas Militia. It is possible that Denton also served as informal chaplain for his company, preaching wherever they happened to camp. In April 1841 the Ripley family south of Clarksville was attacked and killed by a party of Indians. The volunteer militia was in charge of finding the attacking party.

On May 14, 1841, a group of volunteers led by company commander Capt. James Bourland left Fannin County to find the Indian villages. Capt. Denton, along with Henry Stout served as aides to Gen. Tarrant commanding a detachment of scouts. On May 24, 1841, the group of men located a group of Keechi Indian villages along Village Creek east of present-day Fort Worth. The men took the first two villages with little effort, but were met with gunfire at the third. Denton and Stout took a group of men to scout out the area each taking a separate path. When the two paths converged into one, Stout stopped but Denton charged ahead. Shots were fired and both Denton and Stout were hit. Denton’s wound was mortal. The men retreated taking the injured Stout. A group later returned to recover Denton’s body. Learning that the villages contained over a thousand men, Tarrant called the retreat. The men crossed into what would be Denton County and buried Denton’s body beside a creek.

The sad news of Denton’s death hit Clarksville hard. The young captain left a widow and six children, the youngest barely a year old. Mrs. Denton later married Abner McKenzie. She died in 1849. Two of Denton’s sons followed their father into the Methodist ministry and another son became a respected physician.

The story of John B. Denton does not end there. In 1856, John Chisum, a successful rancher in the Bolivar area of Denton County, remembered the stories his father told him of Denton’s death. Clabe Chisum was a member of the militia party with Denton. When a grave was discovered by some boys along Oliver Creek in Denton County, the younger Chisum investigated. Some survivors of the raid identified the bones by the blanket they were wrapped in, an old broken arm, and some gold teeth. Chisum took the body back to his home and kept it in a box hoping a family member would claim it. When no one did, Chisum buried Denton’s body in the corner of the yard near his house. When he sold his property to J.M. Waide years later, he left written instructions with an old friend, J. W Gober.

In 1900 the Old Settler’s Association of Denton County wanted to bury John B. Denton in the city that bears his name. They placed an advertisement in the paper which Gober answered, producing the letter written by Chisum. The body of John B. Denton was exhumed once again and buried during a large ceremony on the Denton County Courthouse lawn on November 21, 1901.

John B. Denton | Denton County, TX (2024)

FAQs

Where is John B. Denton buried? ›

The brigade retreated and buried Denton in what would later become Denton County. Denton is now buried in his namesake county and city, on the southeast corner of the lawn of the Denton County Courthouse-on-the-Square.

Who was Denton named after? ›

Denton County and its county seat, the city of Denton, were named for John B. Denton, a pioneer preacher and lawyer who was killed in an Indian battle in 1841.

What do you know about Denton city? ›

Welcome to Denton, famously home to the University of North Texas, Texas Woman's University, and a world-class music and arts scene. Located just a short drive from Dallas-Fort Worth, Oklahoma, lakes, and state parks, Denton is a town where hip intersects with historic.

What are some interesting facts about Denton Texas? ›

Denton incorporated in 1866; its first mayor was J.B. Sawyer. As the city expanded, it became an agricultural trade center for the mill and cottage industries. The arrival of the Texas and Pacific Railway in 1881 gave Denton its first rail connection and brought an influx of people to the area.

Where is Red Smiley buried? ›

He died on January 2, 1972, at the age of 47. He was buried at the Dehart Cemetery in the Jackson Line Community of Bryson City, NC.

What is Denton County, Texas known for? ›

Throughout its history, Denton has been known as a university town, home to two state universities, the University of North Texas and Texas Woman's University.

What is the sister city of Denton Texas? ›

Denton is a part of the Sister Cities International program and maintains cultural and economic exchange programs with its sister cities, Madaba, Jordan, and San Nicolás de los Garza, Mexico.

Is Denton, TX a nice place? ›

Denton is a city in Texas with a population of 142,262. Denton is in Denton County and is one of the best places to live in Texas. Living in Denton offers residents a dense suburban feel and most residents rent their homes. In Denton there are a lot of bars and parks.

Is Denton Texas a cheap place to live? ›

The Cost of Living in Denton, Texas

In Denton, the cost of living is rated at about 3% less than the national average, meaning that it is more affordable to live in Denton than in many other U.S. cities.

How old is Denton, Texas? ›

Less than forty miles north of the cities, Denton has become closely associated with the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. The city was not an early settlement. It was founded in 1857 in order to become the county seat, because residents wanted one located near the center of the county.

What is the ethnicity of Denton Texas? ›

White: 67.83% Black or African American: 11.48% Two or more races: 11.14% Other race: 5.2%

Is Denton cheaper than Dallas? ›

In Denton, the cost of living index is 97.1. That means that, compared to the average across the United States, Denton is about 3% less expensive. When you compare Denton to Dallas as a whole, it is impressively affordable.

Where is the Confederate president buried? ›

Hollywood Cemetery, Grave of Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederate States of America during the Civil War. Richmond, Virginia.

Where is Mississippi John Hurt buried? ›

Where is Harry Burnett Reese buried? ›

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/22429/harry_burnett-reese: accessed ), memorial page for Harry Burnett “H.B.” Reese Sr. (24 May 1879–16 May 1956), Find a Grave Memorial ID 22429, citing Hershey Cemetery, Hershey, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, USA; Maintained by Find a Grave.

Where is Denton Cooley buried? ›

Denton Cooley died November 18, 2016 and is buried at Glenwood.

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