Marcus Hiram CULLUM

  General Notes:

From Short Stories for my Great Grand-Children, by Llora Cullum Pierce:

Born September 24, 1822 ("as recorded in the family bible"), just 46 years after the birth of our nation. When a young man, he moved from Raleigh, North Carolina to Tennessee, where he met and married Elizabeth Jane Davis. To them were born thirteen children, only eight of whom survived to maturity. Two of the thirteen were twins, a girl and a boy, and I was the girl. Of these eight who survived, Jacob Davis was the oldest.

Left Georgia during the post-Cival War reconstruction days. Traveled by boat to Galveston, Texas, then by train to Dallas, Texas in 1872. Stayed in the Crutchfield House for the first 3 months in Dallas. Bought 1000 acres in the eastern part of Dallas County and erected a fence to keep out the free ranging cattle. Cattle ranchers starting cutting the fences, so Marcus and the 3 boys (Jake, Will and Jim (husband of Caroline) stayed up nights walking the fences with shotguns. About 10 o'clock each night a group of ranchers "galloped backwards and forwards in front of our house, shooting their pistols and singing this silly little ditty --
"Cullum town, stove pipe steeple,
Mighty poor place, and damed proud people.'"
(from Short Stories for my Great Grand Children, by Llora Cullum Pierce. This was the basis for a book about the Cullums titled "Damned Proud People".) Things didn't get better, so at the end of the first year, Marcus moved his wife and the four younger children back to Dallas (corner of Cedar Springs and Sale streets, which is now Highland Park) while the others stayed on the farm and planted the crops.

Charter Member and first official pastor of the Oak Lawn Methodist Church (deed was filed on October 3, 1874, granting 2 and 1/3 acres to the Trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Soutn, at Oak Lawn, near Dallas, Texas). In November 1874, Reverend Cullum was admitted to the North Texas Conference and became officially the first pastor of Oak Lawn Methodist Episcopal Church, South (he served as pastor from 1874-77, 78-79). Cochran's Chapel and Caruth Chapel also were on his circuit. He served the three churches for four years. Afterward he served at McKinney and Van Alstyne, as a Trustee of Dallas Female College, and on various committees of the North Texas Conference. He retired in 1882 and died three years later at his home on Cedar Springs Road.

(Source: Gillespie and Work's Dallas City and County Directory, 1881-82) FARMERS AND OTHERS
Whose Postoffice Address is Dallas, and Residence outside City Limits. The figures at the end of names denote the direction and distance from Dallas. FARMERS. Crutchfield, J. O., ne 4 Crutchfield, O. N., ne 4 Cullum, Rev. M. H., nw 2 Cullum, W. H., nw 2

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Dallas Historical Marker:

TITLE: Oaklawn United Methodist Church, ADDRESS: 3014 Oak Lawn Ave., CITY: Dallas, CODE: CH; ME, YEAR: 1974, RTHL: , LOC_DESC: , SIZE: 18" x 28", REPAIRCOM: , MARKER TEXT: An Oak Lawn settler, the Rev. Marcus H. Cullum (1822 - 1885), preached in a grove on Turtle Creek until citizens built a school - church house here on site given by the Dickason - Sale family. At opening of that building, Sept. 20, 1874, the Rev. M. H. Cullum founded the Oak Lawn Methodist Episocpal Church, South. A larger building with spires was erected in 1889. The present structure was built 1911-15, and enlarged in 1928 and 1950. Church name has been altered by changes in national organization. Membership has grown from 20 in 1874 to more than 2,000.

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http://dallaspioneer.org/stories/pioneers.php?ID=301:

In the early 1870's the farming community, two miles north of Dallas, was referred to as "Oak Lawn". It had no schools, no churches, no stores; but did have many beautiful oak trees. Here Rev. Marcus Hiram Cullum owned 10 acres; and on Sundays he preached to a gathering of his neighbors under the oak trees on the hillside overlooking Turtle Creek. He had moved from Tennessee in 1873, with his wife and eight children.

In 1874 the Sale-Dickason family gave two acres of land for a church-schoolhouse, beside the "Old Birdville Road" to the Cedar Springs community to the northwest. The neighbors gathered to erect a wood-frame one-room building, and on the third Sunday in September 1874 Rev. Cullum preached the first sermon here, and the worshipers sang Amazing Grace.

The little building was a church on Sunday, a schoolhouse on weekdays and a community center at all times. Here the modem Oak Lawn community "grew up" around the church which is now a beautiful block-long Gothic-Revival landmark building recognized by the City of Dallas, State of Texas and the National Register of Historic Places.

The little congregation grew slowly and in 1889 built a new wood-frame church with two spires, a small choir loft, and a foot-pump organ. It had central heating (a pot-bellied stove) and air-conditioning (open windows). The ministers preached from a lecturn which is still in use 100 years later.

The church ordered a large "Buckeye Bell" from Ohio, guaranteed for two years against breakage. It is still in use in the church bell tower over 100 years later.

Near the church stood a large Post Oak tree, which was a seedling in 1813. The Indians camped here before the white man came, and later General Sam Houston, President of the Republic of Texas, paused to rest under this great tree. It is now known as the "Genesis Oak" and other trees from its acorns are found throughout the neighborhood.

The community and the church membership continued to grow, and in 1911 the building was moved to make room for a new brick church building, with a bell tower, beautiful art-glass windows, and a lovely organ. This building was finished in 1915, and with additions in 1928 and 1950, is the block-long building of today. The rest of the church block serves as aparking lot and a play area for Oak Lawn's Child Development Center, serving the entire community.

The church confined to grow through the years, and came to have a library, elevator, chapel, kitchen, "Fellowship Hall" and "Upper Room". It has been the home of Boy Scout Troop 22 through 66 years. It hosted a Korean Methodist Church congregation until they got their own building. In 1974 Oak Lawn celebrated its Centennial Anniversary, and many former members returned for its homecoming events.
Through 116 years the strength of this great church has been its people. It has had forty senior ministers and numerous assistants. Of its 50 Church Board Chairmen, two have been women, Lillian C. Tate and Marion C. Griffith.

In earlier years Epps G. Knight, Charles B. Gillespie, Jake D. Cullum, Will H. Cullum and Rev. Will H. Hughes, Postmaster B.M. Burgher, SMU President Dr. Robert S. Hyer, and brothers Ashley W. Cullum and T. Marvin Cullum filled key positions in the church. Jeptha W. Blanton, Will H. Cullum Jr., George F. Pierce and Graham L. Pierce followed. Then came William M. Gilker, Wilson Crook, Felix Harris and George P. Cullum, and many others, both men and women.

In 1989 Charles G. Cullum, Dallas business leader, City Councilman, Church Board Chairman, Trustee Chairman, longtime Sunday School Teacher, wrote a book The Oak Lawn Vision, on the 115-year history of Oak Lawn Methodist. The church continues to fill requests from the public for copies of this 128-page book with its 250 pictures.

By Earl O. Cullum

  Burial Notes:

Greenwood Cemetery

  Noted events in his life were:

• Occupation: Methodist minister.

• Census: US Census, 1850, , Tipton County, Tennessee. M. H. Cullum, 27, M, Farmer, 500 (Value of Real Estate owned), NC (place of birth)
Elizabeth J, 20, F, , Tenn
Jacob D, 3, M, , Tenn
James L, 9/12, M, , Tenn

Marcus married Elizabeth Jane DAVIS, daughter of Jacob P. DAVIS and Martha W. ?, on Jan 28, 1845 in , Tipton County, Tennessee.⁶⁵² (Elizabeth Jane DAVIS was born on May 12, 1829 in , Tipton County, Tennessee,⁶⁵³ died on Mar 14, 1897 in Dallas, Dallas County, Texas ⁶⁵³ and was buried in Mar 1897 in Greenwood Cemetery in Dallas, Dallas County, Texas.)