Fannin County, Texas -- Thanks to Steve Coker of the Leonard History Museum for sharing these wonderful images with us.

These two of the images are assumed to be Woodman of the World “unveilings” at the Delba cemetery. Delba was a small community in Fannin County east of Leonard. The photos do not appear to be taken on the same day, so they must be of two separate unveilings.

The Woodman of the World, organized in 1893, was very popular in Fannin County. It was a fraternal organization which provided a monument over the grave of deceased members. There are many WOW monuments in Fannin County cemeteries. Most, but not all, take the form of a tree stump.

The monuments were “unveiled” or “decorated” in often elaborate ceremonies, as these photos from this small rural cemetery show. The ceremonies included speeches and often music.

Note the uniforms and the axes that the Woodmen are holding. Note the wonderful band and that the women all seem to be dressed in white and are wearing beautiful hats. This ceremony would have taken place at least months after the death of the individual and seems to be a joyous affair.

The various local organizations were called “camps.”

It is beyond the scope of this small article to discuss the many activities of the Woodmen of the World in Fannin County. I just want to share these wonderful images.

The Fannin County Museum of History has an extensive online database of Fannin County photographs which you can access at https://fannin.pastperfectonline.com.

If you have historic photos of Fannin County we would love to scan them and add them to our collection.