John Wesley Kenney

Kenney's mother had been converted to Methodism by John Wesley himself. Born in Pennsylvania to Irish immigrants and raised in Ohio, he studied Latin, Greek and Hebrew under the influence of Martin Ruter and rode circuits in Ohio and Kentucky through the 1820s. In Illinois he captained a militia company in the Black Hawk War. Landing on the west bank of the Brazos on December 17, 1833, he built the first cabin in what became the town of Washington, then took up a league in Austin's colony and worked as a surveyor.

What the plaque says

John Wesley Kenney (1799-1865) One of great pioneer Methodist ministers of Texas. Pennsylvania-born, he began preaching at age 19. In 1833 he came to Texas and soon settled in this county. Unkempt in appearance, Kenney redeemed his eccentricity with an eloquent style of preaching. In Texas -- then part of Mexico and Catholic by law -- he helped found Methodist societies and, in 1834, served a vast circuit covering all of present state west of Trinity River. In 1836 he took part in Texas War for Independence. His lifetime saw Methodism become one of the major denominations in state. (1972)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Independence and Old Baylor Park — 19 mi
  A crossroads north of Brenham that was the richest town in Texas when it won Baylor University in 1845, refused the railroad, and lost the college to Waco and Belton in 1886.
• Star of the Republic Museum — 22 mi
  A star-shaped museum of the Republic of Texas years, 1836 to 1846, built at Washington-on-the-Brazos after a Brenham campaign and opened on March 1, 1970.
• Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site — 22 mi
  The townsite on the Brazos where delegates met in a cold, unfinished hall in March 1836 to declare Texas independent, with Independence Hall rebuilt and Anson Jones's Barrington farm worked as in 1850.
• Navasota — 27 mi
  A railroad and cotton town where the La Bahia Road crossed the Navasota River, scarred by an 1865 explosion and yellow fever, and the home ground of the songster Mance Lipscomb.

More markers nearby

• James Bradford Pier — 2.5 mi
• First Czech Immigrants in Texas — 6.6 mi
• Austin County — 7.3 mi
• Original Site of St. Mary's Episcopal Church — 7.9 mi