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Name | James Franklin Courts | |
Birth | 1865 | Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() |
Gender | Male | |
Census | 23 Jun 1870 | Sparks and River Settlement, Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() |
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1870, Texas, Jefferson County, Sparks Settlement census |
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Census | 12 Jun 1880 | Beaumont (District 40), Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() |
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1880 Texas, Jefferson County, Beaumont (District 40) Census Courts, James Madison and Julia Sparks Courts, and Helmer, James, Annie, Lillian, Fannie, Emmett, Viola, also Clifton Courts and family and William Courts and family. |
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Residence | 1904 | 1 blk w of 747 South Grand Ave, Beaumont, Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() |
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1904 Texas, Beaumont, Jefferson County, City Directory Court, Edgar; Court, Emmett; Court, Homer; Court, H. Clifton; Court, James F.; Court, Julia A (wid James); Court, S. Helmer and 5 children, Bea,Hal, Effie, Gladys, and Lillian, a baby. |
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Death | Abt 09 Nov 1910 | Beaumont, Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() |
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Burial | 09 Nov 1910 | McFaddin, TF Smith Homestead, Forest Lawn Cem, Beaumont, Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() |
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McFaddin Cemetery - TF Smith Homestead Grave 4 COURTS, Madison Elias Madison "Matt" - s/o James & Julia m Sallie Gibson SMITH, Irving (or Ivy) son of Lillian Courts Smith SMITH, Lillian Courts d/o James & Julia - m Mr. Smith, prob Irving COURTS, James F. s/o James & Julia, died 1910 - m Matilda Gibson COURTS, Julia A. (our Julia) COURTS, James M. (our James) COURTS, Sarah A. - might be d/o Thomas and Ann, m Lewis King COURTS, Beulah - unknown COURTS, Brad - likely James Bradley s/o Elias "Matt - m Sallie Gibson, m Maggie Bumstead; however his d.c. says buried in Saratoga. No other Brad's known of. Perhaps erroneously included in this group. |
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McFaddin Cemetery - TF Smith Homestead McFaddin Cemetery was located on property south of Beaumont, in Port Neches, Central Gardens at a location within the grounds of where DuPont is now. The cemetery was discovered in the Fifties, and due to the impending construction of the plant. (See attached newspaper coverage). There were about 30 people buried there whose remains were subsequently placed in four separate concrete boxes and relocated to Forest Lawn Cemetery where they were laid once again to rest in the Garden of Peace section. The headstones for the four graves are all identical, reading simply "TF Smith Homstead Tract Cemetery." The detailed list of occupants only exist on an index card in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park records (see copy attached). All of these people were either residents or descendants of the Sparks Settlement, also called Aurora, (what later became Port Arthur. The families were predominantly the Sparks, Courts and Gentz families and other family names who married into these families. Sparks Settlement was abandoned in late 1800s due to storms and disease; even the houses were moved. Most of them started another community in the Port Neches, Central Gardens area where they started a new cemetery - i.e. what was called the McFaddin Cemetery. Sparks Cemetery was also abandoned. The occupants of that cemetery, those who died while the community was active, were never moved; only recognized by a historical marker placed in a boulevard on DeQueen at Lakeshore (see photo). There is some false information on the Internet that the remains in Sparks Cemetery were removed to Forest Lawn. But what I have been able to discover is that is not the case. It is the later cemetery, McFaddin Cemetery, that was removed. There is also some belief that the cemetery was used even into the 1920s for burial needs; but that also seems to be mistaken information. The were fine and strong and brave pioneers who I am so proud to call my ancestors. They helped build our community here, and somehow, I hope to bring to mind the signifcance of those four plain little headstones marked simply "TF Smith Homestead Tract Cemetery." |
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McFaddin Cemetery - TF Smith Homestead |
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McFaddin, TF Smith Homestead, Forest Lawn Cemetery, Garden of Peace Section |
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McFaddin, TF Smith Homestead, Forest Lawn Cemetery, Garden of Peace Section |
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Other-Begin | 30 Sep 1952 | Beaumont, Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() |
court case: Smith graves | ||
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McFaddin Cemetery - TF Smith Homestead
1952 Article Beaumont Enterprise; "Early Burials Found on Neches"; "One of Area Private Cemeteries Uncovered on DuPont Tract" |
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Other-Begin | 10 Aug 1961 | Beaumont, Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() |
court case: Smith graves | ||
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McFaddin Cemetery - TF Smith Homestead Forest Lawn Index Card on occupants of graves. |
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Notes |
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Person ID | I514 | Roots |
Last Modified | 12 Jun 2017 |
Father | James* Madison Court, b. 1829, Louisiana ![]() ![]() | |
Mother | Julia* Ann Sparks, b. 13 Oct 1836, Franklin Co, Tennessee ![]() ![]() | |
Marriage | 15 Oct 1850 | Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() |
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James Madison Court and Julia Sparks Marriage Certificate 15 Oct 1850 Beaumont, Texas |
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Documents | ![]() | Courts, James and Julia Ann Sparks Marriage certificate license 12 Dec 1850 recorded by I.K. Robertson, county clerk of Jefferson County, Texas marriage performed by Wm Chisholm, Justice of the Peace, Jefferson Co, Texas Precinct 5 provided to me by Jaye Hendon on 10/13/2015 |
Family ID | F203 | Group Sheet | Family Chart |
Family | Matilda Grace Gibson, b. 10 Nov 1866, Sabine Pass, Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() ![]() | |||||||||||
Marriage | 3 Aug 1887 | Jefferson Co, Texas ![]() |
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Children |
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Family ID | F246 | Group Sheet | Family Chart | ||||||||||
Last Modified | 16 Jun 2011 |
Event Map |
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Sources |