Area Information
In December 1845, Texas was annexed into the Union. The first State Legislature organized several new counties, one of which was Grayson County.
Sherman was founded in 1846 by the Grayson County commissioners. Because of a lack of wood and water, the town was moved in 1848 to its present site. Sherman, the county seat of Grayson County, was named after General Sidney Sherman, a hero of the Texas Revolution. Sherman and his family moved to Texas permanently in 1837 and settled in Houston. In 1842, he served as a representative in the Congress of the New Republic of Texas. In 1852 and 1853, after Texas joined the Union, he served in the State Legislature. Sidney Sherman is also remembered for building the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos and Colorado Railway, which was the first railroad in the state.
Sherman’s first cemetery was established the same year. It was located in the southwest part of town at what is now South Austin Street.

As the Civil War came, Sherman and the State of Texas were in turmoil. In 1861, Texas seceded from the United States and a strife-ridden, bloody time ensued.
A period of lawlessness opened; and Sherman’s streets were filled with outlaws who were known by the names of Quantrill, James and Younger, along with their men. The community was having border troubles; and the downtown streets were nothing but vacant stores. The farms in the area were run-down; and there was little money and no industry. Business was at a standstill due to the unrest in the area. The war ended; and reconstruction came.
Resources: Town of Sherman

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