William Lewis Ellis - Masonic Cemetery - Seymour, TX
N 33° 34.475 W 099° 14.541
14S E 477508 N 3715014
Woodmen of the World headstone for William Lewis Ellis, in Seymour's Masonic Cemetery. He was a Baylor County lawman who was killed in the line of duty, per a Texas Historical Marker at his grave site.
Waymark Code: WMXVW9
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 03/04/2018
Views: 0
Note the "H T W S S T K S" Masonic keystone on the cap, complemented by fronds. The family name, "Ellis", is on the plinth, and the inscription is:
W.L. Ellis
Jan. 25, 1861
Aug. 6, 1916
Earth has one pure spirit less, Heaven one inmate more.
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The 1969 Texas Historical Marker reads:
(January 25, 1861 - August 6, 1916)
Sheriff of Baylor County 1912-1916. A champion of the law, he was feared by the many rustlers and bandits in the area. He gave his life in the line of duty.
First wife was Barnetta (Ashton); second, Sarah E. (Scott). He was Presbyterian.
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He has a listing on the Officer Down Memorial Page, describing his fate. Sheriff Ellis had previously (1913) been shot by an escaping prisoner in Baylor County, and on August 6, 1916, history repeated itself. Ellis had apprehended an alleged thief, Stephen Brown, and was bringing him into town when Brown attacked the sheriff with his handcuffs, stunning him long enough to take his gun and shoot him fatally. Brown, still locked in his handcuffs and carrying the sheriff's pistol, was caught by a posse four miles from town, and the posse administered prairie justice to him.