In 1828, a 12-year-old David McFadin moved from Tennessee to Texas, where he began work at a young age in the cattle business, until 1836 when he enlisted to fight in the Texas Revolution.
In 1838, he married Jerusha Dyches and they began to grow their family on this property.
David McFadin, one of the earliest white settlers in this area, was elected to the first group of County Commissioners in 1848, a position he held for 12 years. He also served as County Sheriff.
As his family began to expand so did their need for more space, so in 1850, construction started on this impressive home.
Built of native stone quarried on-site, this home has 27-inch thick walls and backs up to a cool, perpetual creek. In 1859, David built a mill near this home that became the first in the town.
Although David opposed secession and took no part in the Civil War, his children felt differently, and at the outbreak of war, his 20-year-old son, William, left to join the Confederate Army.
In a bizarre twist of events, he never showed up in any Texas military records, and no reports or signs of him were ever found again.
His mother Jerusha, desperate for her son to return home, reportedly kept a candle burning in the upstairs window in hopes that it would help guide him home one day.
According to the family legend, she continued to burn that candle every night until her death 18 years later in 1880.
David would pass away here in 1896.
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