Bonham, Texas -- Please join us at the March meeting of the Fannin County Historical Commission on March 18 at 6:00 p.m. to learn about the contributions of Mabel Gilbert, a very early Fannin County pioneer, to Fannin County, Dallas and points west.
Mabel Gilbert, born in 1797, left Tennessee in 1837 and moved with his wife and seven children to Fannin County. As shown on the map below from the 1840 Military Road Expedition, his home was located south of Bailey Inglish’s fort.
While living in Fannin County he served as a member of the first Fannin County Commissioners Court. He owned 1,280 acres and established the first horse-powered gristmill in the area.
In 1842 he moved his family west and became one of the earliest to settle in what became Dallas. He returned to Fannin County in 1845, only to move west again in 1856, where he became one of the first settlers in Wichita County and later Montague County. He died in 1870.
Deborah Cornelius has written a historical novel about his remarkable life and times. Join us at 6:00 p.m. on March 18 at the Fannin County Historical Commission’s office at 1 Center Street in Bonham to meet Deborah and learn about Mabel Gilbert’s time in Fannin County.
Copies of her book will be available for sale.
