TOMBSTONE TUESDAY: JACOB HAMPSHIRE GARNER (1841-1914)

TOMBSTONE TUESDAY: JACOB HAMPSHIRE GARNER (1841-1914) 

Just a short walk from the harbor in Port Lavaca lies Ranger Cemetery, a quiet and often overlooked resting place that holds the stories of some of Calhoun County’s earliest families. Among the weathered stones, one name appears again and again—Garner—hinting at a family whose roots run deep in the region’s history. While earlier research has explored the life of patriarch David Hess Garner, the story of his eldest son, Jacob Hampshire Garner, reveals a life shaped by war, family devotion, public service, and profound personal loss. From his beginnings in early Texas to his years as a cattleman and county official, Jacob’s life offers a window into the challenges and resilience of Gulf Coast settlers in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Jacob was born on December 19, 1841 in Jefferson County, Texas. His parents were David Hess and Matilda Hampshire Garner. He was the second child and first boy of his parents eleven children. In the 1850 census, Jacob was 9 years old and living in Jefferson County not far from the home of his future in-laws, the Booths. By 1860, he was in Indianola with family and the Booths were in Lavaca. Both families worked in farming and ranching.

When Jacob was 19, he enlisted in the Confederate Army. He was a member of Company I, 12th Texas Cavalry, Parson’s Mounted Volunteers, Fourth Dragoons stationed at Camp Herbert in Hempstead. His service record shows he enlisted October 28, 1861 for 12 months. He had brought his horse valued at $150 and $30 worth of equipment. He was hospitalized from Feb 4-24 in 1862 at the General Hospital in Houston for fever during his enlistment. Despite signing up for a year, his record shows he was present for the August 31, 1863 muster. He returned to Indianola after the war. 

His father David died in Indianola in 1864 and was buried in Old Town Cemetery. The 1870 census shows Jacob living in Indianola in the home of his widowed mother and eight of his siblings. He was 28 years old and listed his occupation as stockraiser.

On December 12, 1871, Jacob married Ezimila Clara Booth. She was known as Emily. They went on to have five children: Jacob Edgar in 1872, Emily in 1874, Emma in 1876, David Harmon in 1878 and Arcadia “Katie” in 1881. Emily died on June 26, 1884 at 31 years old and was buried in Ranger Cemetery. She shares a headstone with her mother Mrs. Sarah W. Booth who had died in 1878. On January 1, 1886, Jacob married Emily's older sister Sarah. Sarah was 37 at the time and had never been married. There is no evidence that Jacob and Sarah had any biological children, but together they raised his and Emily’s five kids.

Jacob continued to build his business and involvement in the community. He was elected Calhoun County Treasurer in 1892. He sold 700 head of cattle to J. J. Welder of Victoria in 1897. Records show he leased land for cattle from the Exchange National Bank of Dallas at Powder Horn in 1898. The newspaper also mentioned that he was looking for land for a ranch in the Wharton area in 1899. He sold two cars of cattle that were put on the railroad bound for Algiers, LA. In 1900, he sold cattle to Ingram & Warburton of Victoria. By all accounts, business was booming.

Often in the newspaper were the comings and goings of the Garners and their family. Mentions of stays at the Carter House Hotel in Victoria appear in December 1879. Mrs. Garner visited Victoria in February 1886 and mentioned her husband’s frozen feet. In April 1899, Jacob was doing business in Victoria while his children Eddie and Katie visited the city. The Garners passed through Victoria several times on their way to the Wharton ranch where they spent some time. Grandchildren and children came to visit the Garner home often while they also traveled to visit other family homes.

Tragedy struck the family in 1901 when Katie, newly married and living in Luling, Texas died on a train trip down to Port Lavaca. She was accompanied by her husband, Mr. McGaffey, and her mother, Mrs. Garner. Katie had taken ill at her home and was being brought to Port Lavaca for recuperation. She died on September 17, 1901 at the age of 20 and was buried in Ranger Cemetery under a tombstone marked Mrs. Katie McGaffey.

By the early 1900s, the Honorable Jacob Garner was mentioned in the newspaper as a visitor to Victoria in April 1903. He attended the Cattle Raiser’s Convention in Fort Worth in March  of 1904 and was invited to the Indianola and Old Coast Settler’s Convention in August 1905. These positive mentions were mixed with negative ones. The First National Bank sold Jacob Garner’s horse stock in September of 1904 to clear debts caused by a bad business year. They had already sold his cattle stock for debts a few months earlier. Jacob sued Western Union Telegraph for damages in a case that lasted most of 1904, but was dismissed in appeals. He lost his seat as County Treasurer in the November 1906 election.

Another tragedy occurred in 1905 with the death of daughter Emma. She was married to Wilson Cunningham Sterne of Victoria on December 28, 1898. Their wedding was written about in the newspapers. They were married in Port Lavaca by Rev. A. W. Burroughs. Emma was referred to as a “charming young woman” After traveling by train to Houston for a few day honeymoon, the couple was to return to Port Lavaca where Wilson was known as a “leading young business man.” Emma Garner Sterne died on September 19, 1905 at age 29 after a sudden illness and was buried in Ranger Cemetery.

Reports in The Houston Post in July 1908 bragged about the 18 year old century plant owned by Mrs. Jacob Garner in Port Lavaca that had bloomed for the first time. The family was still coming to visit the Garners at their home. In 1911, Jacob Garner sold nine acres of land to his brother John Abner Garner. That same year, he sold 27 acres of his homestead to Randle and Seabrook to be developed into town lots.

In 1914, the Garner family lost three members in less than three weeks. It began with the death of son Jacob Edgar on June 11, 1914. He was 41 and had never married. His death certificate likely explained the reason, as he died from an epileptic seizure. With limited health care for chronic issues like epilepsy, it was likely that he needed care which remaining single and at home with parents would provide. He was followed in death by his father Jacob Hampshire Garner on June 14, 1914. On June 27, 1914, Jacob’s second wife Sarah would die. Each were buried in Ranger Cemetery. The remaining children, David Harmon and Emily, died in 1940 and 1936 respectively, both at age 61. Neither are buried at Ranger Cemetery.

The life of Jacob Hampshire Garner is etched not only in records and newspapers, but in the stones of Ranger Cemetery itself. His story is one of perseverance—through illness during wartime, the demands of ranching life, financial hardship, and the devastating loss of children and loved ones. Yet it is also a story of continuity: of a family that remained rooted in Calhoun County through generations, leaving a lasting imprint on the community. Today, as visitors pause among the Garner headstones, they are not just observing names and dates—they are standing in the presence of a family narrative marked by endurance, tragedy, and an enduring connection to the Texas coast.

Written by Jennifer Shafer Wyatt

The Houston Post, April 8, 1899

The Houston Post, December 10, 1906

The Houston Post, March 21, 1904

The Houston Post, July 2, 1908

The Houston Post, January 23, 1911

San Antonio Express-News, October 27, 1893

San Antonio Express-News, September 6, 1897

San Antonio Express-News, December 4, 1898

San Antonio Express-News, April 3, 1899

San Antonio Express-News, September 17, 1900

San Antonio Express-News, October 22, 1902

San Antonio Express-News, May 25, 1903

San Antonio Express-News, November 10, 1904

San Antonio Express-News, July 31, 1910

San Antonio Express-News, September 18, 1910

The Victoria Advocate, December 6, 1879

The Victoria Advocate, February 5, 1886

The Victoria Advocate, May 27, 1899

The Victoria Advocate, July 28, 1900

The Victoria Advocate, September 21, 1901

The Victoria Advocate, August 10, 1905

The Victoria Advocate, April 20, 1911

The Weekly Advocate, April 18, 1903

The Weekly Advocate, September 24, 1904

San Antonio Light August 19, 1900

The Galveston Daily News, November 15, 1892