John Wedin was born in Agunnaryd, Kronoberg, Sweden on February 23, 1862. He was the first born son of Peter and Charlotta Wedin and spent his early years in Sweden. He came to America as a young boy with his parents in 1870 and settled in Princeton, Illinois.
As John grew up, he was advised by his doctor to go south to a warmer climate. He ended up in Galveston, Texas, where he met the Dilley’s from Palestine, Texas, who were in Galveston buying furniture for their new home in Palestine. Mr. Dilley hired John Wedin to come to Palestine and landscape his new home, since he had had some schooling and training in landscaping and gardening. John Wedin arrived in Palestine around 1880.
While John Wedin was busy in Palestine, another family was preparing to come to Texas and would eventually end up in Palestine. This family would soon play a big part in John Wedin’s life.
John Wedin became very popular with his landscaping and gardening knowledge. He soon became the Cemetery Sexton for all the Palestine City Cemeteries. In 1893, during the Spanish-American War, John Wedin was appointed to the rank of Second Lieutenant in the Palestine Calvary by Texas Governor J. S. Hogg.
During the 1890’s, Elizabeth Agnes Fitch grew up in Palestine and caught the attention of John Wedin. They were married on December 24, 1895 at the bride’s house that was 1 ½ miles southeast of Palestine by the Reverend R.S. Stuart of the Episcopal Church. John and Elizabeth Wedin made their home mostly in Palestine. They also lived in Elkhart, Texas for a number of years.
John Wedin died suddenly on February 21, 1923 soon after filling a grave in the East Hill Addition of the Palestine City Cemetery. He had been the Cemetery sexton for a long number of years and he was responsible for keeping the Palestine City Cemeteries in good condition. He is buried in the Wedin Family Plot in the Palestine City Cemetery, East Hill Addition. Elizabeth Wedin died on April 17, 1943 and is buried in the Wedin Family Plot in the Palestine City Cemetery, East Hill Addition.
John and Elizabeth Wedin had a total of eleven children born to their marriage.
1. John Phillip born November 2, 1896 in Palestine, Texas. He died January 3, 1897 of pneumonia. He is buried at Pleasant Springs Cemetery located on Highway 322 just west of Palestine, Texas.
2. Clarence Dewey born January 14, 1898 in Palestine, Texas.
He was baptized and confirmed in the Episcopal Church, but later in life he became a member of the Baptist Church. He was a Charter Member of the Southside Baptist Church in South Palestine. On May 4, 1929, he married Ada Lee Rogers at her parent’s home on Alta Vista Street in Palestine. C.D., as he was called, served his country in both World War I and II. He also worked as a postman for the U.S. Post Office. Some of that time he rode on the mail cars and helped to sort the mail.
Clarence died on April 16, 1951 from complications from a previous stroke. He is buried in the Wedin Family Plot in the Palestine City Cemetery, East Hill Addition.
Ada Lee died on September 3, 2002 and is buried in the Palestine City Cemetery next to her husband. Clarence and Ada Lee had one daughter, Frances Elizabeth.
3. Ida Mae born March 16, 1900 in Palestine, Texas.
She was baptized and confirmed at an early age in the Episcopal Church, but later in life she became a member of the Baptist Church. She married George Washington (G.W.) Noel, born December 11, 1900 in Mississippi, on October 2, 1926, in Waxahachie, Texas. They lived all their married life in Dallas, Texas. Ida Mae was a noted Speech teacher, Art teacher and Piano teacher in Dallas for many years. She published three books of poetry. She and G.W. had no children, but they helped to raise a lot of children who needed a little bit of extra love and attention. G.W. died on September 1, 1967, in Dallas, Texas. Ida Mae died on December 30, 1979 in Dallas, Texas. They are both buried in the Grove Hill Cemetery in Dallas, Texas.
4. Willie Pearl born March 14, 1902 in Palestine, Texas.
She was baptized and confirmed in the Episcopal Church at an early age, but later in life became a member of the Baptist Church. She married Revis Kelley (born April 24, 1898) of the Concord Community on June 25, 1926. They made their home in South Palestine for a few years before buying a home on North Sycamore and moving there to raise their growing family. Revis and Pearl had four boys, Revis Marvin, Clarence Monroe, Bobby Earl, and Donald Glen. After Revis passed away, Pearl remarried Edwin Delaney and had a son, Ray Edwin.
5. Janette (Jimmie) born May 15, 1904 in Elkhart, Texas. She was baptized in the Swedish Lutheran Church on November 13, 1904 by her grandfather, Reverend Peter Wedin. Later in life she became a member of the Baptist Church. She married Bryant Keathley (July 16, 1894) of Dallas, Texas on November 16, 1926. They lived in Dallas, Texas all of their married life with no children. Bryant died April 23, 1969 and is buried at Grove Hill Cemetery in Dallas. Jimmie died on July 7, 1981 and is buried at Grove Hill Cemetery in Dallas.
6. Louisa Violet born July 6, 1906 in Palestine. She died on January 3, 1908 and is buried in the Palestine City Cemetery, East Hill Addition with her mother and father.
7. Edwina Agnes born December 1, 1908 in Palestine, Texas. She was confirmed in the Episcopal Church in 1909, but in 1922 she was baptized at the First Baptist Church in Palestine. She married Clarence Harrison (January 19, 1895) of Palestine on February 29, 1936 at the First Baptist Church in Jacksonville. They made their home in the Swanson Hill Community. They had one son, Thomas Noel.
Clarence Harrison died September 1, 1969 in Dallas, Texas at the VA Hospital. He is buried in at Chambers Cemetery in South Anderson County. Edwina lived in the Swanson Hill Community in the house she and Clarence built many years ago. Edwina passed away on March 21, 1999 in DeLeon, Texas, and she is buried at the Chambers Cemetery in Anderson County, Texas next to her husband.
8. Charles Dixon born January 4, 1913 in Palestine, Texas. He was baptized in the Episcopal Church, but later in life he became a member of the Presbyterian Church. He married Margaret Woody of Dallas. They had no children and were later divorced. Charlie died October 31, 1960 in Dallas, Texas. He is buried in the Wedin Family Plot in the Palestine City Cemetery’s East Hill Addition.
9. John Henre was born August 11, 1916 in Palestine, Texas. He was baptized in the Episcopal Church, but later he became a member of the Presbyterian Church. Henre served in the Army Air Corp during World War II and was stationed in Texas, Florida and Illinois. He was also stationed overseas on various Pacific Islands. Henre never married and spent many years in Huntsville, Texas running his own business called “Henre’s Beauty Salon”. He also raised orchids. He moved to Trinity, Texas in the 1970’s and closed his shop to retire. He spent his retirement years gardening, canning and fishing. He died November 10, 1996 in the VA Hospital in Temple, Texas. He is buried in the Kelley Family Plot in the Palestine City Cemetery’s New Addition.
10 & 11 Twin Boys were born premature in early 1917 and are buried in a cigar box in the Wedin Family Plot in the Palestine City Cemetery’s East Hill Addition.