Rounding out our interesting headstones from the Rowlett Creek Cemetery in Plano, I present the double headstone of the Baccuses. Jacob Baccus and his wife Emily have their birth and death dates on the headstone, but they also have round insignia that indicate they were “Citizens of the Republic of Texas”. That means they were settled in Texas before it became the 28th state in February 1846.
I did some digging. Jacob and Emily Baccus were married in 1811 in Illinois. When they were in their early 50s, they made the journey from Illinois to Texas accompanied by their two oldest sons. In 1844, Jacob received 640 acres as a married man. Each son received 320 acres as single men. (I assume they were both in their late 20s/early 30s at the time, which makes it unusual that neither was married). A third son would arrive in north Texas 1845 and a fourth son in 1850.
The sons appear to be buried in Baccus Cemetery which is rather famous for being in the center of Legacy Town Center. (Legacy Town Center is a shopping mall/entertainment district full of bars and restaurants. I have seen the cemetery through the gates, but it is locked against visitors.) Baccus Cemetery is roughly 7 miles southwest of Rowlett Creek Cemetery which served the earliest Baptist congregation in northern Texas.
