Several settlements dotted the area south of Denton in the 1870's and 1880's - Graham, Argyle, Prairie Mound, Litsey, Shiloh, Pilot Knob, Beulah, Lane and Stoney Ridge. These settlements usually consisted of homes of several families and a building used to provide both the schooling and religious needs for the settlers. This section will deal with the establishment of the churches in the area surrounding the present day Argyle. Some of these churches and communities are no longer in existence in 1998, but their heritage is interlocked with that of the Argyle community.

Graham was located 1/2 miles south of the city of Denton and this settlement was apparently named for Spencer Graham to whom 160 acres of land were originally patented on January 26, 1865. The settlement of Graham, Denton County, Texas and the man Spencer Graham apparently have no connection with the town of Graham, Young County, Texas.

In 1876, the Graham Baptist Church was organized in a little box schoolhouse, known as the Graham Schoolhouse. Because of the school and church, an area located adjacent to the building soon came to serve as a cemetery for the community. The cemetery is on a sloping hillside overlooking a small stream of water, later known as the Graveyard Branch. Early settlers once entered the cemetery from the west after crossing the branch.

The family that played a predominant role in the formation of the Graham School, Graham Baptist Church and the Graham Cemetery was that of Dr. Edward William Jarrell (January 7, 1832 - June 3, 1885) and his wife, Lettitia E. Moser Jarrell (October21, 1838 in Tennessee - January 19, 1914). The family lived approximately two miles west of the Graham settlement, near what is now known as the Crawford Road and 1-35W Intersection. Dr. Jarrell listed his occupation as physician and farmer at the time of birth of his tenth child, Barnett Newton Jarrell on December 31, 1881. According to Denton County Birth Records, four Jarrell men settled in Denton County in the last three decades of the 1800's. Three gravitated to the Graham area, (E.W., Caskey, and Joseph Alfred) and one lived in Denton. Each man married and sired a number of children. William Fountain Jarrell, Sr., lived on Sycamore Street in Denton and was a drygoods merchant in 1889. Caskey Jarrell came from Kentucky and married Cara Lindsey of Lewisville, Texas. He listed his occupation as a farmer, carpenter, and a Santa Fe Railroad employee by 1898. Joseph Alfred Jarrell came from Lebon (Wilson County) Tennessee and listed his occupation as a farmer in 1892. His wife, Sarah Alma Strader, came from Marshfield, Missouri.

Charter members of the Graham Baptist Church were Dr. & Mrs. E.W. Jarrell and their three daughters - Mrs. Turner (Mattie) Faught, Mrs. John W. (Margarett) Faught and Mrs. Will Y. (Tollie) Fincher; Mr. and Mrs. Dick Lane and their two daughters; and Mr. and Mrs. R. Till Lane. Nellie D. Lane, wife of W.L. Lane, is buried in the Graham Cemetery. She was born August 26, 1867 and died February 19, 1893. 11 The presbytery organizing the Graham Baptist Church was composed of the Reverends A.T. Thompson, J.O. Daniels and R.G.M. Elland. The Sunday School was organized soon after the church and Dr. E.W. Jarrell served as superintendent until his death. In 1887, two years after Dr. Jarrell's death, the Graham School house burned and was never rebuilt. Consequently, the church transferred its services to the Lane Schoolhouse, three miles east of Graham. A part of the Church moved to Argyle in 1891, a station on the railroad, which was 1/2 mile south of where the church was originally organized. Those remaining at the Lane Schoolhouse organized another church, which they called Smyrna Baptist Church. Those moving to Argyle established the Argyle Missionary Baptist Church which later became known as the First Baptist Church of Argyle, Texas. In 1899, the Church reorganized and services were held in the Presbyterian Church, Masonic Hall and the Methodist Church.

The Argyle Baptist Church, like most of the early churches in Texas, used the "Mourner's Bench" (a bench or seat at the front of the church or room, set apart for mourners or penitent sinners seeking salvation) in revival services. In the early days of this and other churches in Texas - people came on foot, on horseback, and in oxen and horse-drawn wagons, frequently coming ten to fifteen miles to attend church on Sunday morning, remaining over for the night services, and reaching home at midnight or later.

In 1909, the Argyle Baptist Church built its first sanctuary on land donated by Dr. M.D. Fullingham, on one of the highest hills in town. Then The First Baptist Church was established in 1876 at the Graham-Argyle Cemetery and Now... The building is currently owned by David Bell. The building served as the headquarters of the Argyle Volunteer Fire Department until 1976 when the new fire station was built on Hwy. 377. The building is now owned by David Bell who is restoring the structure to be used as his home. The First Baptist Church then built a new building in the 100 block of Dallas Street, in 1963.  It is the present home of Veracity Research Company and the First Baptist Church in located on US 377.

It was not until 1888 that the Graham Cemetery became official, when the land being used for that purpose was deeded by C.N. Jarrell and his wife, M.T. Jarrell, to H.R. Fehlison, G.W. Blair and D.C. McReynolds as trustees for the Graham Cemetery. To quote from the deed as found in Volume 33, page 400, in the Denton County Clerk's Records: "The described land is deeded to said Trustees and their successors a cemetery for the whites of the surrounding community." The document is dated May 9, 1888. In 1981, this location is described as 1/2 mile north of the town of Argyle on the Fort Worth Highway (No.10) which is now called the Country Club Road between Argyle and Denton. U.S. Highway 377 runs north and south on the west side of the cemetery.

We can only assume that C.N. and M.T. Jarrell were descendants or other relatives of Dr. E.W. Jarrell. Records are not available to verify the identity of C.N. Jarrell. Again assumption plays a role in trying to fill in the gaps of history. Both Dr. and Mrs. E.W. Jarrell are buried in the Prairie Mound Cemetery. Is it because the Graham Cemetery was not officially deeded for that purpose until three years after Dr. Jarrell's death or was it because the Prairie Mound Cemetery was closer to the Jarrell home?

The name, Graham-Argyle Cemetery, was found in records of Denton County Funeral Homes. Funeral directors used the term "Graham-Argyle Cemetery" to identify the cemetery location after the establishment of Argyle, Texas in 1881. The first person known to have been buried in the Graham Cemetery is George Isbell, an infant boy who was born October 1, 1865 and died December 10, 1865. No other information is available. The grave marker is in two parts; the lower part is native sandstone, while the upper part, where the inscription is carved, is granite. Other very early graves are those of two children of J.L. and A.F. Woods. A son was born September 9, 1874, and died on September 21, 1874. A daughter, Pearl, was born June 8, 1876, and died December 14, 1876. The children are buried side by side with the gravesite enclosed with a decorative metal fence. Both the Woods children and the Isbell child were buried in the area prior to the land being officially deeded for the purpose of a cemetery. Only one of the trustees, H.R. Fehlison, is known to be buried in the Graham-Argyle Cemetery. Mr. Fehlison, a local shopkeeper, was born August 12, 1857, and died April 20, 1902. He is buried in the only above-ground vault in the cemetery. Beside him is an infant son, Randolph, who was born January 13, 1885 and died January 24, 1885.

The Graham-Argyle Cemetery was definitely a community cemetery. There are numerous family plots - Paine, Boyles, Matthews, Scott-Hollihan, Freeman, Hardee, Fincher, Bullard, Cogdell, Horton, Jeter, Woods, Carpenter, Johnson and Davis - just to name a few. There are approximately 238 graves in the cemetery. Many of the family plots indicate that children died at very early age. There were epidemics of small pox, cholera and influenza during the early settler's time. There are 164 graves that are properly marked with identification. Some 74 graves are marked only by native sandstone. If any lettering was ever carved on these stones, it has long since disappeared from weathering. Some of the sandstones have been laboriously shaped with lettering and designs painstakingly carved upon them. Another interesting facet was the discovery of the use of seashells to decorate the graves. There are three plots enclosed by native sandstone fences but there are no marks identifying who is buried within these closures. Research of the Denton funeral home records has shown the names of 49 additional people buried in the Graham-Argyle Cemetery, but the establishment of their location in the cemetery has been difficult as there is no record that a plat was ever drawn and very few descendants are available to furnish the needed information.

Burials were fairly regular at the Graham-Argyle Cemetery until the late 1940's. The cemetery includes graves of veterans of the Civil War, World War I and World War II. The last burial at the cemetery was Sena Boyles (May 19, 1889 - June 3, 1970) in a family plot. Prairie Mound Cemetery, located three miles west of Argyle at the start of the "Prairie", has been better maintained than the Graham-Argyle Cemetery, and many of the Argyle residents preferred to utilize those facilities. The Graham-Argyle Cemetery is not currently in use, having been abandoned and neglected for years until the restoration project was begun in 1974.

Restoration and maintenance have been progressing since July of 1974 under the guidance of the Argyle Bicentennial Cemetery Association and a group of dedicated volunteers including: W.T. "Bill" Meadows, John Thompson, Gus Cogdell, Wilton Newborn, Ralph Ayers, C.R. "Happy" Salmon, and members of the Argyle Volunteer Fire Department and Boy Scouts. Restoration projects have included mowing, tree trimming, general clean-up, resetting stones, installing a flagpole and building a curved driveway at the entrance.

A Decoration Day was held on July 13, 1975, with over 100 in attendance to view the once abandoned cemetery. The main project of a workday held August 16, 1975, in which twenty-four volunteers participated, was the resetting of twenty grave markers that were down. Through personal contacts with descendants, research, mailings and organizing workdays, more than $2500.00 has been raised for the maintenance of the cemetery. Yvonne A. Jenkins of Argyle and Mrs. W.H. (Hattie) Matthews of Denton organized the restoration and financial campaign.

The Denton County and the Texas Historical Commissions approved the application for a Texas Historical Landmark, which was unveiled at the second annual Decoration Day on May 16, 1976. Those attending, some 175 strong, voted to form the Graham-Argyle Cemetery Association. Those elected to serve on the Board of Directors are: Alton Boyles - President; Wilton Newborn-Vice President; Yvonne A. Jenkins - Secretary-Treasurer; Charles Horton, Roy Stewart and Penn Heath. Others who have served on the Board of Directors include: Jimmy Boyles, Lewis Boyles, Lee Judy, Carolyn Hudson and Grover Wallace. Decoration Day is held on the third Sunday of May each year with a spring and a fall workday held to insure the continued maintenance of the cemetery. As a Centennial Horizons '81 Project, a tabernacle is being constructed at the Cemetery.

The tabernacle was completed in 1983, and a list was compiled of all buried in the cemetery.  The Association now sells lots in the cemetery, under the direction of Yvonne Jenkins.

The Methodist Church of Argyle was organized in 1894 as a part of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South Circuit with Blueford Henry Webster serving as the first pastor. Reverend Webster was born in Lafayette County, Mississippi on September 15, 1849 and was married to Miss M.E. Patterson on October 6, 1870 in Mississippi. Prior to serving as pastor of the Argyle Church Circuit, he had served the Gordonville, Collinsville, Detroit, New Boston and Sunset Circuits.

Charter members of the Argyle Methodist Church were: Thomas and Mary Austin, W.B. Brown, Mr. and Mrs. George Clayton and children, Josie, Mollie, Rebecca and Florence, Mr. and Mrs. J.A. Davis, Mollie Fehlison, Bryon Horton, Lottie Horton, Mrs. D.C. Horton, Lewis and Rachel Johnson, Mr. and Mrs. C.C. Lacy, J.L. and I.C. McReynolds, Reverend J.C. Smith, Lucy Smith, Jessie Smith, Mrs. Sharp and Nora Sharp.

Worship services were first held in the Argyle Schoolhouse until the pastorate of Reverend J.R. Atchley in 1898-1899. The first church building was built at the cost of $1300.00. A Mr. Roads and Reverend Atchley were the carpenters, and church members contributed their labor to assist. Church pews were the next major project for the congregation. Six men with wagons went to Dallas and hauled back the lumber from the Dallas Planing Mill to assemble the pews.16 Several of the pews are still in existence today at the Argyle Volunteer Fire Department.

During the years, the Argyle Methodist Church has been a part of various Circuits including: Garza, Chinn Chapel, Roanoke, Prairie Mound, Cooper Creek, Lake Dallas, Lynchburg, Oak Grove, Brown School House, Little Elm, Green Valley and Ponder. Since 1972, the church has not been grouped with another community.

In writing the history of the Argyle Methodist Episcopal Church, South in 1939, Laura Johnson Crawford described the Johns Well Camp Ground as one of the "noted places in North Texas." Every year a ten-day camp meeting was held with people coming for twenty-five miles to the meeting, and many were converted there. Mrs. Crawford further stated that during the pastorate of Reverend J.R. Atchley, 300 were added to the Circuit, at least one of who became a preacher. A statement by Brother Atchley concluded, "May the present membership carry on until He calls us Home."

These gatherings at Johns Well Camp Ground fulfilled both the religious and social needs of the early settlers. The services were held in a brush arbor on the hickory ridge of the Camp Grounds and the families literally "camped around" the arbor. Leona Jones Mclean Hicks (Clara Fay Wallace's mother) was born in 1890 just west of Johns Well. Her parents were W. Henry and Pinckney Jones. At age twelve in 1902, Mrs. Hicks was the organist of the Argyle Methodist Church and Dr. M.D. Fullingham was the singer. Mrs. Hicks recalls attending the protracted religious meetings at the Camp Grounds with her parents and ten brothers and sisters. The family traveled by wagon and slept in a two-room tent at the Camp Grounds. Her father would build a brush arbor to serve as a kitchen and dining room. The cookstove was placed at the outer edge of the arbor to prevent fires.

Usually held in the fall of the year, following harvest, the gatherings featured preaching, visiting, family reunions, recreation and even pranks. Such pranks included putting "high-life" (a chemical which had a strong burning sensation that was used to kill weevils in the feed granary bins for the next year's seed crop of wheat or corn) on the Mourner's Bench and switching babies in the family wagons. The latter proved most dismaying to families from Krum, Chinn Chapel, Shiloh or Roanoke when on their arrival back home, they discovered they had the wrong baby with them.

When the established churches of the area - Argyle Methodist and Baptist, Prairie Mound Methodist, Smyrna Baptist, Shiloh Baptist and Beulah Baptist built church buildings, the need for the Camp Grounds diminished. Some groups used the facilities for summer revivals. It has been suggested that the circuit rider preachers scheduled their brush arbor meetings according to the growing seasons. For instance, meetings were held in the Cross Timbers in June and July when the peaches, plums, berries, vegetables, cantaloupes and watermelons were being harvested. The second revival, held during the fall of the year, found sweet potatoes, black-eyed peas, pumpkins and sorghum syrup readily available. Meetings held in the prairie communities were during the winter months at "hog killing" time. This type of scheduling is not so difficult to understand when one realizes that food for himself and his horse was all the remuneration that the circuit rider preacher ever received.

On April 19, 1913, the trustees for the Methodist Episcopal Church, South sold the ten acre Camp Grounds on the south side of the road to Frank and Naomi Fincher Cope. The trustees were H.A. Nowlin, Ish L. Crawford (County Commissioner, Pct. 3, (1918-1922) and W.H. Hardee.19 Owners of the property were the Cope heirs: Mrs. W.O. (Ann) Rayburn of Denton, W.E. (Bill) Cope of Leaburg, Oregon, Mrs. Bunk (Marietta) Brown of Warren, Oregon and Mrs. Lloyd (Tena) Wilson of Portland, Oregon.

As communities grow, so do their churches. Today, in 1981, the Methodists continue to worship on the same ground, as did their forefathers nearly a century ago. A number of land transactions, building projects, hard work and pure devotion on the part of the membership have resulted in the present day sanctuary, education building and parsonage.

In the Denton County Deed Records, Volume V., page 213, a deed is found that originally conveys six acres of land to the trustees of the Prairie Mound Methodist Episcopal Church, South and their successors which is dated April 10, 1882. W.T. Clark, agent and attorney in fact for L.C. Carrington, signed the document. W.H. Alexander and R.B. Anderson paid a sum of $18.00 in full, in cash to Mr. Clark. There are actually two tracts of land pertinent to the Prairie Mound activities, the original six acre tract for the church and the tract for the cemetery. The Prairie Mound Cemetery was already in existence when John Wesley Faught bought farmland just west of the cemetery in 1883. The oldest known grave is that of a child who died in 1882. Approximately four and one-half acres are fenced as a cemetery. Mrs. Miller Faught and Mr. and Mrs. John Donald Faught deeded an additional two acres to the cemetery in 1973. The cemetery is plotted, but not on record in the Denton County Courthouse. The Prairie Mound Methodist Church had a substantial membership and was active until the turn of the century. In 1901, the Justin Methodist Church was established and many of the families moved their church membership there. In the following twenty years, efforts were made to rejuvenate it, but to no avail. The church had been elaborately furnished for its day, with an organ, songbooks, handsomely carved pews, and hanging-swinging brass lamps. The church building featured two diamond-shaped windows behind the pulpit. Outside was a hitching rail made of bois d' arc with rings for tying the horse reins. In 1960, the Prairie Mound Cemetery Association was formed, and the Argyle Methodist Church, in behalf of the Prairie Mound Church deeded the six acres to the Association and their trustees: Miller Faught, Kirk Taylor and J. Wes Hall. The church building was sold to Doug W. Coin for $350.00, and he moved it to his dairy farm approximately two miles south (old Litsey community) where it is now utilized as a haybarn - still a very durable and well kept structure. About this same time, Mrs. Lark Heath of Roanoke built a Memorial Chapel on the church grounds, in memory of her husband. Mrs. Heath also provided cyclone fencing and built two cattle guards at the entrances. The original podium from the Prairie Mound Methodist Church is in the beautiful and modern Chapel. Mrs. Heath's gracious donation has inspired generosity from others and has given an "alive and cared-for look" to the Prairie Mound area.

On September 1, 1947, the Argyle Methodist Church traded lots with Olga Hacker on the east side of the church to insure the room for future growth. The brick parsonage was built in 1960. The original parsonage, at the corner of Denton and Cypress streets was sold to John H. Gibbons on March 28, 1960 for $2250.00. Trustees for the church at that time were Ray Crawford, Alton Boyles and Roy Wallace. On January 11, 1960, the Denton County Commissioner's Court passed a resolution to close the alley by the church grounds and deeded the land to the Argyle Methodist Church. The present sanctuary was built in 1969 at a cost of $25,000.00, and the Education Building was constructed in 1972 for $35,000.00.

The Argyle Church was established as a part of the Methodist Episcopal Church South Circuit being served by itinerant preachers because settled ministries were not feasible at this time. These preachers sought out the scattered homes, followed the tide of migration as it moved west, preached the gospel, organized societies, established "preaching places," and formed these into "circuits." On May 10, 1939, The Methodist Episcopal Church, The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and The Methodist Protestant Church united to form The Methodist Church. The Argyle Church was then called the Argyle Methodist Church until the 1968 General Conference took action to create The United Methodist Church.

According to the 1975 North Texas Conference Journal, the Argyle United Methodist Church had a membership of 168 with a value of $95,500.00 on the church, land, buildings and equipment.22 Although the Prairie Mound Methodist Church is no longer in existence, the Argyle United Methodist Church has played an important role in retaining the heritage of that area, and some of the membership participate in the Decoration Day at the Prairie Mound Cemetery that is held annually on the first Sunday in May.

The Argyle United Methodist Church received a Texas Historical Marker which was dedicated on May 24, 1981. A Marker for the Prairie Mound Cemetery was dedicated on May 3, 1981.

Little is known about the Presbyterian Church, but it was believed to have been the first church in Argyle. After services were discontinued at its location (where the First Baptist Church is in 1981), the church building was bought by Lundy Chambers. Mr. Chambers tore down the building and used the lumber to build his home on a hillside just north of Argyle and across the road from the Graham-Argyle Cemetery. The house still stands in 1981 and after recent remodeling serves as the home of Mr. and Mrs. Frank C. Harrison on Country Club Road.

The late 1960's and early 1970's saw a migration of many new citizens to the Argyle community. Among theses new citizens were many who wanted to establish a Church of Christ. Attending worship services in nearby towns was not completely satisfactory, and a solution to this problem was to establish a Church of Christ in Argyle. The Dan Owens family, who had been attending services in Justin, contacted several other Argyle families, and they agreed to "give it a try." The families contacted were the Clyde Gentrys, the Jim McMahans, the Jim Coffeys, the Sam Rountrees, the Tim Wagners and the James Masons. The Argyle Church of Christ met for the first time on March 7, 1971 in the Argyle Community Center with Dick Kerr, minister of the Justin Church of Christ, as the preacher. Jim McMahan was the song leader. The Justin Church of Christ provided guidance and financial support to the Argyle group during the early period of establishment. Charter members of the Argyle Church of Christ were: Mrs. M.H. Arnold, Mrs. Jimmy Clark, Mr. and Mrs. Jim Coffey and Jimmy, C.V Dunning, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Gentry and David and Elaine, Mrs. Carolyn Hudson, Mr. and Mrs. Malcolm Lanier, and Donna, and Rhonda, Miss Naomi Lynch, Mrs. James Mason and Glen, J.D McKeown, Mrs. Mike Needham and Phillip and Monty, Mrs. Dan Owens and Joan and Leesa, Mr. and Mrs. Jim McMahan and Scotty, Brenda and Christy, Mrs. Minnie Lawrence, Kathy Clayton, Kim Wharton, Kelly and Rickey Crider, Mr. and Mrs. Sam Rountree and Sammy and Judy, Mr. and Mrs. Tim Wagner and Shelly and Cindy, Mrs. Perry Wood and Mrs. Cora Wright.

The church congregation conducts Wednesday Night Prayer Meetings and is active in benevolent work. The church purchased 6.6 acres, one block east of Highway 377 and on FM 407. The property was cleared, and the old house was remodeled and furnished with new carpeting, paneling and was painted to serve as the first church building. The Justin Church of Christ provided hymnals, communion set and offering plates. Many individuals contributed to the furnishings of the church. A new brick church building was constructed through the efforts of the members. The old house was torn down and a mobile home was purchased to be used for classrooms for the young people's classes. 1981 added a new educational building to the church property.

A brief history of churches surrounding the Argyle area is included because of the influence they had on the growth of Argyle. With the coming of the automobile, the construction of good roads, and the death of older members, it became difficult for these churches to maintain services. This was a trend among many of the rural churches; it was almost impossible for them to compete with urban churches for members. As these churches diminished, many of the members transferred their memberships to the Argyle churches.

After the Graham Schoolhouse burned in 1887, the Graham Baptist Church moved east to the Lane Schoolhouse where it continued to function until 1891. Those members who expressed a desire to move the church to Argyle (after the railroad was built in 1881) found that these suggestions met with strong opposition. At a Saturday evening conference, the men of the church withdrew from the building and met under the shade of a large tree to discuss the matter. After a thorough discussion they decided to move the church to Argyle. In the meantime, "the sisters" of the church had not been idle; they had held discussions among themselves, and when the men made their decision known, the women notified them that the church would not be moved. As a compromise, a motion was passed allowing all who so desired to move and the others to organize a church at the Lane Schoolhouse. Those remaining immediately organized a new church, calling it Smyrna. Charter members were Uncle Dick Lane and wife and two daughters; R. Till Lane and wife; Mrs. E.J. Nimmo; Mrs. James Hughes; Mr. Emmit and wife; Mr. and Mrs. A.D Burch and Mr. and Mrs. Frank Foster. The first report of the Smyrna Church to the Denton County Baptist Association was made in 1891. Pastors serving the Smyrna Baptist Church have included the Reverends: B.S. Gay, J.F Amos, B.F Sizemore, D.O. House, C.P. Lumpkins, R.W Roe, Theo. Estell, F.A. Throp, Silas Carr and Dee Carpenter through 1932.

Approximately five miles southeast of Argyle and the Smyrna Baptist Church, the Shiloh Baptist Church was organized in a log schoolhouse in which worship services were conducted from 1868 to 1883, when a new church was built. In 1981, the Shiloh Baptist Church is located on FM 1171 and is still functioning.

The Beulah Baptist Church was organized October 25, 1908, in the Beulah Schoolhouse, five miles south of Argyle, near what is now the intersection of Highway 377 and FM 1171. The church joined the Denton County Association in 1910. Charter members included: Mr. and Mrs. B.W. Meadows, Mr. and Mrs. J.W. Lindsey, Sarah L. Dickens, Thaer Henderson, Ed Garrison, Jodie Burk and Hulen Dunham. 26 After this church ceased to function, a number of families moved their memberships to the Argyle Baptist Church. Included in this group were Fred and Nada McKinney and Mr. and Mrs. Leonard Robbins.

Southwest of Argyle, the Litsey Baptist Church was organized in 1921 at the Litsey Schoolhouse. Charter members included: Mr. and Mrs. T.W. Knowles, W.H. Schooling, Earl Lumpkins, K. Carlton and Claud Carlton. The church stopped making reports to the Association after 1926. 27 The Litsey Schoolhouse was sold to W.H. Schooling in 1946, when the Litsey School District was divided between Justin and Argyle. Mr. Schooling moved the building to his farm in Wise County. This settlement had been named for R.R. Litsey (Jackie McMakin Brooks' grandfather) who had large holdings and was a prominent rancher in the 1880's. Mrs. Brooks recalls that her father, G.A. McMakin, acquired a machine that would make net wire, and with that machine he fenced the 1,058 1/2 acres he owned on what is now FM 407. The ranchers in the Argyle area were beginning to fence the cattle grazing land by the latter part of the 1880's.

The availability of water and a place to hold worship services were two determining factors that influenced the pattern of settlement and the way of life for early pioneers of this community. One such area that served both purposes was the old camp meeting grounds and Johns' Well located two miles west of Argyle, at what now is described as the Old Justin Road and I-35W intersection. The history of the Argyle community would not be complete without including Johns' Well and the Campgrounds.

The Johns' Well site is located in the Patrick Rock survey, and the history of land ownership can be traced back to February 12, 1856, as a patent to Patrick Rock by Governor E.M. Pease. On November 16, 1856, the widow of Patrick Rock, Margaret, and three children, Mary Rock Chrisner, Jane Rock Dunlap and Elizabeth Rock sold one-half of the original League and Labor to William Little for $1.00 for consideration and service rendered. 29 This action, plus the fact that this is a large tract of land that has been sub-divided to a variety of owners, made the tracing of ownership more difficult. While searching the deed records, a mystery as to how the well was named was solved when the name of Hardin W. Johns appeared. Most citizens had not known nor could they remember that the well had been named for the Johns family. They had assumed that the well had been named for John "somebody."

On October 1, 1868, Edmond and Elizabeth Lee deeded 375.62 acres of this property to B.S. Parr. Hardin W. and Charlotte Johns bought the tract for $2500.00 on April 7, 1875. Other owners include N.M. Stone, E.B. Peter, Charles B. Wood, R.T. and M.D. Yerby, D.R. Davis, J.O. and Mattie Cunningham, Emma Reynolds, Rose L. Collins, E.W. Hawkins and the present owners, Mr. and Mrs. C.R. 'Happy" Salmon (County Commissioner, Pct. 3, 1972-1980).

Long time residents relate that the original Johns' Well was located on the north side of the Old Justin Road and the camp meeting grounds were on the south side of the road. At some unknown time and for unknown reasons, a second Johns' Well was hand dug on the campgrounds. Both wells served the early settlers by providing a never-ending supply of water for their families, livestock, thrashing crews, for travelers and for cattle drives from the feeder trails of the Chisolm Trail.

The land on the south side of Old Justin Road, which is the site of the current Johns' Well and Campgrounds is presently owned by Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Wright. Tracing the past ownership of this ten acre tract was much like trying to complete a crossword puzzle.

As a part of the original league and labor patented to Patrick Rock on February 12, 1856, the first reference to be found in the Denton County Deed Records is on February 4, 1876, "intended to supply a chain of title that has been lost by the burning of the Records at the Town of Denton, Denton County that the premises having been conveyed to J.S. and M.A. Riley by James Sullivan, attorney in fact for F.G. Mason and wife, Jane Mason, heirs of Patrick Rock and conveyed by said J.S. and M.A. Riley to J.W. Carrington and by said J.W. Carrington to J.C. Huton and said Huton to said W.E. and E.S. Mayes". 30a Volume G, page 220 of the Denton County Deed Records shows that R.R. Mayes paid $1800.00 to E.S. Mayes and W.E. Mayes and wife, Annie, for the tract on January 26, 1878. Volume T, page 579 of the Denton County Deed Records shows that R.R. Mayes sold the tract for $900.00 to H.C. Ferguson on February 10,1883. H.C. Ferguson received $1000.00 for the tract (Volume V, page 244) from J.A. Mayes on March 31,1883.

This tract of land became known as the "campgrounds" on December 1, 1884, when J.A. Mayes of the state of Missouri, sold the tract for $60.00 ($40.00 in cash and a $20.00 note due on February 1, 1885) to the Trustees of the Prairie Mound Campgrounds of the M.E. Church South. The trustees were: M.H. Alexander, J.O. McDowell, Joseph P. Hampton, R.B. Anderson and J.R. Stone. 30b In the Denton County Deed Records, Volume V., page 213, a deed is found that originally conveyed six acres of land to the trustees of the Prairie Mound Methodist Episcopal Church, South and their successors which is dated April 10, 1882. W.T. Clark, agent and attorney in fact for L.C. Carrington, signed the document. A sum of $18.00 was paid in full in cash by W.H. Alexander and R.B. Anderson to Mr. Clark. Prairie Mound is located approximately two miles southwest of Johns' Well and the Campgrounds. As the name would indicate, it is located on the "bald" prairie with not a tree on the property. The trustees must have been looking for a wooded area with a source of water to serve as their campgrounds for the summer and fall revivals; hence the purchase of the Johns' Well and Campgrounds site.

J.C. "Beans" Horton, whose family in 1921 moved to a house within 300 yards of Johns Well, describes the second well as being fed by a natural spring. The water flowed in a circle to a depth of twenty-five to thirty feet to the bottom of the well which was native white stone. The side walls were lined with sandrock and Mr. Horton recalls that the well's shape reminded him of an ice cream cone. As a result of heavy rains, silt would wash in and settle to the bottom of the well, and each year, the neighboring families would toil eight or ten hours to "draw the well dry" and then dip Out the mud to insure a better and continuous supply of water. The Horton family lived in the area for fourteen years, and one of Mr. Horton's chores was to provide a water supply for his family. He would draw two barrels of water a day for family use and of course much more on wash day. He, along with neighboring children, drove his cattle twice each day to the watering barrel. The barrel was about four feet in diameter and held approximately forty gallons of water. At that time, neighbors included the Tom Hamptons, the Joe Finchers, the Alvin Ervins and the Reynolds family. When other wells would "dry up," settlers would come from miles around to haul water back home for their use. Ingenuity provided an easier method of drawing water from the well. A bucket was tied on each end of the well rope and each time it was pulled up, a bucket of water was drawn. Various types of rigging with ropes, wheels, pulleys, wagons and sleds were utilized by the settlers to use "horse" power rather than "man" power to draw water from the well.

Johns' Well is no longer in use, having been abandoned in 1963. Until that time, the well was still used as a source of water for household purposes for three families (W.W. Dyer's, C.R. Salmon's and E.W. Hawkins').16 The well is now covered by wooden boards, but still has water in it. The Campgrounds is now the site of the new home constructed by the Eugene Wright's in 1980. Both the Campgrounds and Johns' Well are inter-twined in the settlement of the Argyle community; the establishment of the churches of the area-particularly the Prairie Mound and Argyle M.E. Churches, South; and providing that necessary ingredient for survival, a good supply of water for the settlers and their livestock. That settlement just would not have taken place without a supply of water and a place to nourish the religious needs of the early settlers.

Interest in Johns' Well and the Campgrounds was rekindled in 1976 during the Bicentennial. As we approach the 100th birthday of the Argyle community (1881-1981), the Argyle Centennial Committee is most anxious to restore the well and obtain a Texas Historical Marker for the site. The new owners, the Eugene Wright's, are most supportive of these plans.. .a perfect tribute to our heritage.