02/13/2026
I found this on an East Texas history page...
📜 Ellen Payne — From Slavery to Landowner in East Texas
Marshall, Texas • Born c. 1842 – Died 1947
Ellen Evans Lewis Payne was born into slavery around 1849 in Marshall, Texas, where she was known in her early years as Ellen Evans and was owned by Dr. William F. Evans, a physician whose family operated a large farm east of town. At the time, Evans was listed as having nearly forty enslaved people working his land — and young Ellen tended calves, chickens, and turkeys while helping her mother with household tasks.
In 1865, after the Civil War and emancipation, Ellen stayed with her mother on the Evans place for a short while before they both hired out their labor elsewhere. Her father, Isom Lewis, later registered to vote during Reconstruction — a powerful testament to the changes sweeping the country after slavery ended.
On February 21, 1878, Ellen married Nelson Payne, a local farmer. The blue worsted dress she wore that day was a gift from the Evans family — a connection that shows how complex and personal relationships could be during and after enslavement. Together the Paynes rented a farm and eventually acquired their own land on Lower Port Caddo Road outside Marshall. Over the decades they owned anywhere from 16 to 100 acres, building a life rooted in land and community.
Ellen outlived her husband and all four of her children, staying active on her farm well into old age — tending crops, gardening, and participating in church and community life. She passed away on January 30, 1947, over 100 years old, leaving behind a remarkable life story of resilience, transition, and legacy.
