Bushrod W. J. Wofford

Bushrod William John "Bush" Wofford was born in February 1832 to William M. and Mariah Frances Johnston Wofford in Madison County, Alabama. He grew up an only child in Tippah County, Mississippi. His parents died when he was a young man, and he came to Texas in the early 1850s. In 1852, Wofford married Martha A. Miller of Anderson County, Texas. The following year, he bought 320 acres of the Matthew Goliher Survey near Fincastle (25 mi. SE). He built a house, using hand-hewn logs, handmade bricks and, perhaps, an existing cabin structure. His first son, George M. Wofford, was born in February; Martha died a few months later. Wofford remarried to Frances Eliza Ayres of Tippah County in 1855, bringing her to his Fincastle home. It is believed she initiated additions to the cabin, including a long, front gallery porch, two log rooms and a dog run, and clapboard siding. Between 1855 and 1878, Bush and Eliza had nine children, many of whom lived to become successful residents of Henderson County. During his long life, Wofford worked as a farmer and owned a Fincastle mercantile business, called Wofford & Son. He also served as a lieutenant in a reserve unit from Fincastle during the Civil War. Eliza and Bush moved to Athens in 1890. He died in 1891, and he is buried with Eliza at the Athens City Cemetery. The house remained in Fincastle until 2001, when the family donated it for relocation to this site. Wofford descendants provided funds for the restoration of the house and its use as a museum. (2002)

Bushrod W. J. Wofford is a historical marker in Athens, Henderson County, dedicated in 2002. It is one of 65 historical markers documented in Henderson County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 155 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.2112, -95.8760 near Athens. The nearest cataloged historic site is Courts Under the Oaks (historical marker), about 1.1 miles away. Others within a short drive include Faulk-Gauntt Building, Joseph Thomas La Rue_Stella E. Parsons La Rue, and Henderson County Courthouse.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5213012760. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.