The roots of the Patrick Community in southeastern Dallas County reach back to Ireland. Isaac Patrick and his wife came from Ireland and parented John Patrick. John married Elizabeth Calloway and had a son named Alexander, November 14, 1794, in Virginia. Alexander moved to Madison County, Kentucky, and married Catherine White in 1818. From their union Calloway H. Patrick was born October 20, 1822 in Perry County, Kentucky. Calloway was the third of twelve children. His siblings in order were: Alexander B., William W., (Calloway H.), John Davis, Elizabeth, Henry D., Amelia, Mary H., George C., Richard W., James I. and Thomas D. Calloway Patrick bore his grandmother’s maiden name, a link to the colorful Calloway family of Kentucky and Virginia. Elizabeth Calloway, born in Bedford County, Virginia, in 1771, was the daughter of George and Amelia Calloway. Her grandfather was Col. Richard Calloway.
Col. Richard Calloway, Daniel Boone and eleven other men established a settlement at Fort Boonesborough, Kentucky, in 1775. That group of white men was the first to establish a settlement in Kentucky. They encountered many hardships, including disagreements with the Indians over sharing the land. On July 14, 1776, the Indians kidnapped Jemima Boone and two Calloway daughters, Elizabeth and Frances. The girls were recovered unharmed the next day.
Richard Calloway disagreed with Boone over issues concerning the settling of the region, which created a deep rift between the men. In spite of their differences, Calloway established the first ferry in the state of Kentucky in October 1779. The ferry crossed the Kentucky River at Ft. Boonesborough. The Indians killed Richard Calloway on March 8, 1780.
In 1841, Alexander Patrick (son of Elizabeth and John) and his family moved to Texas and settled in Leon County. In 1846, his son, Calloway, moved to the far southeastern part of Dallas County. Patrick was 25 when he married Rhoda I. Smith in 1847 and gave the settlement the name Patrick.
Patrick was adventurous and loved the excitement at pioneer living. In July 1843, Calloway Patrick joined President Sam Houston on a trip to make a treaty with the Indians at Grapevine Springs. The trip was unsuccessful, but on the return trip they went by Cedar Springs, then larger than the village of Dallas, to stock up on supplies from John Neely Bryan’s store. (From Patrick’s journal as quoted in a newspaper clipping dated February 3, 1955 by Florrie E. Wade)
Calloway’s patriotism and civic involvement was also reflected by his service to the Texas Rangers in 1845, the Mexican War in 1846, the Texas Cavalry, Company I in 1862 (Civil War) and the office of District and Deputy Clerk of Robertson County. He was a Royal Arch Mason, a Democrat and a Baptist. Calloway and Rhoda were among the one hundred twelve people who organized the Pioneers of Dallas County, July 13, 1875.
Calloway and Rhoda Patrick had nine children. Three of them—George C., Mary A. and John—died as children. The others were Abraham A., Susan E., Nancy A., William Jordan, Elsie C., and Emma Amelia.
William Jordan Patrick assisted in forming the county school system. Jordan’s son, Fred, was born near the old Patrick schoolhouse in the Ferris-Wilmer community. Fred served as clerk of the Probate Court in Dallas County for thirty-four years. Other descendants still living in parts of Dallas County and beyond exhibit Calloway’s enthusiasm for service to community and their fellow men. They continue to contribute to their communities through their careers, civic involvement, churches and family lives.
Calloway and Rhoda’s daughter, Emma Amelia, was my great-grandmother. Emma’s first marriage was to S. B. Ashley. After her first husband died, Emma married Samuel Henry Birkhead and bore his four daughters: Sarah Frances, Ethel, Ruth, and Ruby. Emma Birkhead married William Witt after Samuel’s untimely death and bore one more daughter, Edith. Emma Witt died in 1958 and was buried in Trinity Cemetery in Wilmer near my grandparents, Sarah F. and Guy Patterson. Samuel H. Birkhead is buried in Patrick-Pruitt Cemetery near his parents, Martha A. and George Birkhead.
Sarah Frances and Guy Patterson had seven children: William Birkhead, Loma Amelia, Katherine Inez, Meda Frances, Samuel Murray, Patsy Ruth and Guy Parks. This generation produced ten grandchildren, 26 great-grandchildren and 16 great-great-grandchildren.
Today, just north of Ferris, the Malloy Bridge Road exit on I-45 points the way to the trace of the Patrick community that remains. Patrick Pike Road and the Patrick Baptist Church are there. Headstones in the well maintained Patrick-Pruitt Cemetery include Calloway and Rhoda Patrick, their small children and a few others with the Patrick surname. The cemetery is just a quarter mile down a gravel path off Nokes Road, which is one-half mile south of the Patrick Baptist Church on Parkinson Road.