Locklin Bartholomew Murray

Sanco, where Murray settled, was named for the Comanche (Numunuu) chief Sanaco, who regularly camped there, the Handbook of Texas says. Ranchers came in the early 1880s; J. L. Durham opened the first post office in his rock home in 1888, with a meetinghouse serving as school and church. In 1907 the town moved to flatter ground nearer water. Sanco had a cotton gin from 1905 until boll weevils, drought and low prices ended cotton farming there in the 1920s. Better roads in the 1940s and 1950s finished its trade; the last store closed in the early 1970s.

What the plaque says

(June 17, 1849-April 29, 1923) Born in Jackson, Miss. Came to Texas with family in early 1860's. Married Susan Lucinda McSpadden (1855-1917), and had 7 children who lived to adulthood. Settled near Sanco, in Yellow Wolf Valley, about 1888, and began ranching. In 1894 he was elected sheriff and tax collector by Coke county citizens. He held the position for 4 consecutive terms, until 1902, earning a reputation as an honest and efficient lawman. Recorded - 1973

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Fort Chadbourne — 16 mi
  An 1852 infantry post and Butterfield stage station on a Coke County ranch, its fallen stone buildings rebuilt since 1999 by the descendant of the family that has ranched the land since 1877.

More markers nearby

• Robert Lee Cemetery — steps away
• Fence-Cutting War — 0.8 mi
• Richard Coke — 0.8 mi
• Coke County — 1.4 mi