Memorials › Sparrell Hale Chitwood

Sparrell Hale Chitwood

8 Feb 1847 – 2 Jan 1911

Birth	8 Feb 1847
Death	2 Jan 1911
Cemetery	Belmont Cemetery Ector , Fannin County , Texas , USA
Added by	Ben Cynova on 07 May 2007
FaG	https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/19278886

Bio

Sparrell Hale Chitwood (1847–1911) A Bridge Between the Pioneer and the Frontier Introduction Grandson of Squire Chitwood, the Virginia-born patriarch whose name is written into the early record of Franklin County, Virginia, Sparrell Hale Chitwood carried forward the enduring legacy of a family that helped shape early American settlement from the colonial frontier to the Texas plains. The Chitwood line began with the Chetwood family, English immigrants who came to Virginia in the seventeenth century, bringing with them a tradition of integrity and enterprise that endured through every generation. From the wooded ridges of Bedford and Franklin Counties to the farmlands of Tennessee, and ultimately across the Red River into Texas, the Chitwoods exemplified the westward movement of the American pioneer spirit. Early Life in Tennessee Born February 8, 1847, in Dyersburg, Dyer County, Tennessee, Sparrell was the son of Angerue (Angeran) Chitwood (1823–1879) and Martha Tabitha Allen (1815–1876). He grew up with siblings Hettie Burl Jane (1848–1896), Timothy Smith (1849–1905), Charles Claude (1851–1932), Cathren (1852–1853), and Alexander (1855–1856). The family lived through the shifting social and agricultural realities of mid-nineteenth-century Tennessee. The Civil War, which unfolded during Sparrell's youth, profoundly affected the region, shaping a generation of resilient men and women who would later seek fresh opportunities in the expanding West. First Marriage and Family Losses At age 20, Sparrell H. Chitwood married Emily (Emer A.) Pursell (1849–1876) on April 16, 1867, in Dyer County. They had four children: Ausburn Brown Chitwood (1868–1941) Ernest Henry Chitwood (1870–1873) Martin Luther Chitwood (1873–1921) Joe Sparrell Chitwood (1876–1876) The young family endured heartbreaking losses, with two sons dying in infancy. Then in 1876, both Emily and Sparrell's mother Martha Tabitha Allen Chitwood died within the same year. These personal tragedies left Sparrell widowed with small children and marked a turning point in his life—one that would soon lead him westward. The Journey to Texas and the Stephenson Connection In the years following his first wife's death, Sparrell joined many postwar families migrating from Tennessee to North Texas in search of new beginnings. By 1878, he had resettled in Bonham, Fannin County, where he met Mary Cassandre ("Cassie") Stephenson (1858–1932), daughter of William B. Stephenson, an early Fannin County settler. On December 29, 1878, Sparrell and Cassie were married in Fannin County. Their union joined two well-respected Southern families and laid the foundation for the Texas branch of the Chitwoods. A year later, this connection deepened when Sparrell's brother Timothy Smith Chitwood married Fannie Stephenson, Cassie's sister, on December 1879, also in Fannin County, Texas. The two brothers—each wed to a Stephenson sister—settled near Ector, where they established adjoining farms and brought their families to maturity on the Texas frontier. Their migration marked a defining moment in family history: the Tennessee Chitwoods had officially planted roots in Texas soil, carrying forward the pioneer strength of their Virginia forebears. Life and Family in Ector, Texas Sparrell and Cassie raised a large family that became deeply woven into the fabric of Fannin County life. Their children were: Pearl Gertrude (1880–1898) Eulla Lee (1882–1883) Clyde Timothy (1883–1943) Floyd Clinton (1886–1959) Bernice Shedrick (1889–1966) Dona Gay (1891–1985) Bruce (1893–1963) Earl (1898–1976) Leonard Leondus "Lyn" (1902–1971) Bluford Blanton (1907–1986) The Chitwood homestead in Ector became a place known for its hospitality and strong moral grounding. Sparrell was remembered as a man of steady character and practical wisdom, his opinions valued among neighbors and church members alike. The nearby home of his brother Timothy and wife Fannie reflected the same industrious and family-centered life. Together, the brothers helped define the early civic and agricultural identity of the Ector region. Final Years and Death By the dawn of the twentieth century, Sparrell and Cassie were established as respected residents of western Fannin County. The 1900 U.S. Census records them surrounded by their many children, their lives emblematic of the hard-won prosperity of the second-generation pioneers. Sparrell Hale Chitwood died January 2, 1911, at his home in Ector, Fannin County, Texas, aged 63. He was laid to rest at Belmont Cemetery, his grave a testament to the long journey that began in the hills of Virginia more than a century earlier. His widow, Cassie Stephenson Chitwood, survived him until 1932, continuing to be honored as one of the steadfast pioneer women of Fannin County. Legacy Through the lives of Sparrell Hale and Timothy Smith Chitwood, the family's migration from Virginia to Tennessee and onward to Texas was fulfilled. Their marriages to Cassie and Fannie Stephenson tied the Chitwood name inseparably to the early history of Fannin County, where their descendants would live for generations. They represent a continuum of American settlement and endurance: from Squire Chitwood's colonial Virginia homestead, to Angerue's Tennessee farm, to the broad fields of Ector, Texas—each generation bearing forward the family's values of hard work, loyalty, and faith. For every Chitwood descendant in America, the story of Sparrell and his brother Timothy is a cornerstone—one of courage, kinship, and legacy.

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