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 Sarah Creath McSherry Hibbens Stinnett Howard
N 29° 25.375 W 097° 09.391
14R E 678835 N 3256256
A marker commemorating the hard life of a TX pioneer woman who, in her 60+ years of life, survived 4 husbands and numerous depredations by various Indian attacks. By 25 years old, she had lost three husbands, a brother, and a baby by violence.
Waymark Code: WMQ6HG
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 12/29/2015
Views: 1
Sarah C. M. H. S. Howard is the kind of woman deserving of a TX historical marker! Imagine the sorrows involved in loosing your husband; then multiply that by at least 4 times. Now imagine birthing and rearing young children in the wilderness only to have them attacked and kidnapped by Indians. During all this, imagine the daily grind of scratching out an existence as a pioneer in a sparsely populated wilderness area. Such was the actual lifestyle of Sarah's existence. You can list lots of worthy and honorable character traits that pioneers have, but determination, a will to live, and a sense of survival have to be in the top ten of whatever character traits she had. Husbands and brother dying from Indian attacks or being killed by slaves. Children being captured and taken away. Being captured herself by Indians and surviving to escape! Discovering one son survived and returned many years after she had accepted his loss! These are things movies are made of, yet she lived them throughout her entire adult life. Over time, I suspect the Indians in her neighborhood gave Sarah a certain level of respect for her tenacity. The plaque references 1810-1870 for Sarah's life span, but reference articles seem to use dates of 1812-1876, making her 64, not 60 when she died. Additional references: ( visit link) ( visit link)
Marker Number: 16809
Marker Text:
(1810-1870)
Sarah Howard suffered much at the savagery of the Texas wilderness. Born in Illiniois, Sarah came to Texas with her husband, John McSherry, in 1828. The next year, John was killed near their home by Indians. Sarah later married John Hibbens, but Indians took the lives of John and Sarah's brother near this site. Sarah and her two sons were taken captive, and she alone escaped. Eventually, Sarah's oldest son was returned unharmed. In 1836, Sarah married Claiborne Stinnett. Two years later, he was killed by runaway slaves. In 1839, Sarah married Col. Phillip Howard in Gonzales. Sarah epitomizes the Texas pioneer woman by her determination and will to survive.
175 years of Texas Independence * 1836 - 2011
Marker is property of the State of Texas
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