Samuel P. Newcomb

Born in Connecticut in 1839, Samuel P. Newcomb made his way alone to Texas at age 17, arriving in 1857. A schoolteacher, he settled at Fort Davis on the Clear Fork of the Brazos River in Buchanan county. Newcomb held several public offices. In 1860 he was elected county clerk of Buchanan county (renamed Stephens county in 1861.) He became a surveyor when the commissioners court assigned him the task of surveying the boundaries of Stephens county. In 1861 Newcomb functioned as Justice of the Peace, and was appointed collector of the confederate war tax for eleven counties. He served in a Texas state troops ranger unit during the Civil War. His writings have proved an important primary source for historians and archeologists. As a diarist, Newcomb chronicled the daily life of the pioneers, and carefully described the physical appearance of Fort Davis. He also told of droves of buffalo nearby, what young people did for entertainment, and the treatment for the sick and dying. He married Susan Reynolds, who also became a diarist. Her writings reflect the conditions of the county, and the isolation of the settlers. Newcomb died at age 31 in 1870, and is buried here beside his first child, an infant son. (1996)

Samuel P. Newcomb is a historical marker in Breckenridge, Stephens County, dedicated in 1996. It is one of 16 historical markers documented in Stephens County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 65 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.9279, -98.9836 near Breckenridge. The nearest cataloged historic site is Newcomb Cemetery (cemetery), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Maxwell Cemetery, Hurford Cemetery, and Snake Den Cemetery.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5429004516. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.