Place of Birth: Ireland
Age at Death: 87
Date of Death: March 9, 1900
Interment source:
Bay View Cemetery Association, Corpus Christi, Texas. Record of Interments
NO HEADSTONE
1. News article and obituary about nephew, William Headen
AN APPRECIATION—WILLIAM HEADEN
H. G. H.
Sitting here lonely in the Santa Rosa Hospital, San Antonio, my eye caught an item in the Express of Sept. 18, announcing the death of William Headen at Cozoacan, Mexico, my dear old friend and early comrade in missionary work.
He has been in the consular service of the United States since 1899, first at Laredo, then at Oaxaca and Pueblo. His remains were interred in the National Cemetery, City of Mexico, under auspices of Toltect Lodge of Masons of which he was a member.
While few of your present readers may know of the fine work wrought by Wm. Headen for Methodism in West Texas in early days, yet his death must not pass without a review of some of the features.
Mr. Headen was a native of Dublin, Ireland, his parents, Matthew and Margaret Haden, moving to America, and to Corpus Christi, Texas in the early 50's. They were the best Irish Methodists I ever met, of the old Wesleyan type, deeply religious and the embodiment of liberality to the poor, the church and every noble cause. Way back under the ministry of Henderson S. Lafferty (who built the first church), O. B. Adams, John L. Harper, Nicholas Boring, O. A. Fisher, Ivey H. Cox and John W. Devilbiss, the Headens were the life of the Church in Corpus Christi, and in 1861 under the ministry of the present writer.
Never shall I forget their kindness and help to me when as a boy preacher fresh from Georgia, I landed in their midst. Their house was my home, their table, their money and their influence at my command.
I first met young Wm. Headen at the San Antonio Conference of 1860, Bishop James O. Andrew presiding. There I was ordained deacon in the old Soledad Street Church (of which I was afterwards pastor three terms) and when the Bishop read out my name for Corpus Christi Church young Wm. Headen stepped up to me and took me in his strong Irish arms. We journeyed together to Corpus Christi, and I have loved the man ever since.
I found him superintendent of the Sunday school, a steward and right-hand man in all good work. Never did a preacher want for a thing while Wm. Headen was about. He taught a large class of Mexican children in our Sunday-school in Corpus Christi, gathered by himself, speaking Spanish as fluently as he did English. He would bring many Mexicans, men and women, to our Church, often interpreting the words of the preacher to them. His zeal for the spread of the Gospel among the Mexicans was active and intelligent, distributing Spanish tracts and holding meetings with them.
Now, I wish to the future historian of Methodism in West Texas to take note of the fact (which has never yet been sufficiently stressed) that under Wm. Headen's influence and zeal the great Mexican work commenced, which has now spread into several annual conferences, and which is attaining proportions which stamp it as one of the most remarkably successful missionary works of the past and present centuries.
Wm. Headen and I went to the war together. Just before I left Corpus Christi for San Antonio station he assisted in initiating me into the Masonic Lodge and some time after the war, when my Masonic demit was sent to me it contained Wm. Headen's name as having paid all of my dues. I have the old musty paper yet.
Some years after the war—and the year before Alijio Hernandez joined the West Texas Conference—I was stationed in Corpus Christi, and had been gone but a few months when Hernandez came to Corpus Christi, joined the Church, and Wm. Headen and I. W. Brown co-operated with him in gathering the Mexicans to the ministry of this eloquent convert from Catholicism. In hundreds of ways Headen assisted in opening the fields for work among the Mexicans, by money, time and personal influence.
By Church appointments my fields of labor after awhile separated me from Wm. Headen and the Headens of Corpus. He married Miss Margaret Moore, of that city, and after awhile entered the consular service of the government at Laredo. The lines of our lives drifted far apart. I well recollect that at the last conference held in Corpus Christi, Wm. Headen took a boat and met the steamer bearing Bishop Wightman to it thirty miles out in the bay.
Wm. Headen was my class-leader in 1861. Great religious times we've had together in the far past, during the war, at conferences, at camp meetings. He was warm-hearted, generous, liberal, one of nature's noblemen. He was near my own age, and as I sit here and go back in memory nearly fifty years, the face and form of this splendid brother come up. His memory and work for Methodism must not be forgotten, must not go unrecorded. Farewell, brother, but not forever!
Source: Unknown, contributed by Larry Rettinger and Deanne Rathke
Transcription by: Geraldine McGloin, Nueces County Historical Commission
2. Biography
Margaret Headen who died in March of 1900 was the widow of William Headen (the elder) and aunt to William Headen (the younger). This younger William Headen died in Cozoacan, Mexico where he had been in the consular service of the United States since 1899. In the probate of Margaret Headen's estate, this nephew William served as executor (see Nueces County Probate Records #661—vol. I, page 313 and other pages). Margaret's husband William (the older William Headen) was an early leading merchant of Corpus Christi. Her husband was an Irish Protestant born in Clonaslie, Queens County, Ireland and came to New York in 1845. The following year he moved to New Orleans and then in 1855 to Corpus Christi. He was active in the early Methodist Church of Corpus Christi and is probably buried next to his wife in Old Bayview Cemetery (see obit in Corpus Christi Caller of March 14, 1886 on page 5, col. 3). William, the husband of Margaret, appears to be listed with his brother in the 1860 federal census of Nueces County (page 286A), but the rest of his family is not with him. It may mean that he brought them over from New Orleans after he had settled more securely into this district. By probate records and census records, Margaret's children are: Thomas (born circa 1847 in Ireland), Elizabeth Frances aka. Mrs. Burgess (born circa 1840 in Ireland), Emma (born circa 1859 in Louisiana), and Anna Maria (born circa 1842 in Ireland and the widow of Wm. H. Maltby).
In a letter from Mr. Evans to Wm. Headen (dated Laredo of March 10, 1900), Mr. Evans seeks to make funeral arrangements and advises Mr. Headen of the condition of Margaret's estate. In the letter he also acknowledges Mrs. Headen's assessment that three of the children of Mrs. Headen have problems and would be "better off in an asylum". In the 1870 census (p. 149) Elizabeth (30 years old and a native of Ireland) is listed as "insane". All of the children except Emma are listed as born in Ireland while Emma is listed as a native of Louisiana (see 1880 Federal census of Nueces County, page 11) so it would seem she was born while the family was in New Orleans. In her will Margaret Headen made provisions for the care of her three more needy children until their deaths. The residual of her estate was to go to her daughter Anna Maria Maltby or Anna's children—Marjorie (Anna M.), Lucy, and Imogen (Probate vol. I, page 317). In the 1880 census records noted above, Margaret says that she is a native of Ireland, born about 1814 (she and her husband William are both listed as 66 years old). Her daughter Anna Maria married William H. Maltby July 22, 1870 and was active in the Corpus Christi community. Along with his brother, William Maltby was an early newspaper man in south Texas (see listing under Old Bayview Cemetery burials). It should be noted that Margaret's grandchildren Lucy and Imogen are also buried in Old Bayview Cemetery and Anna Maria Headen-Maltby is also probably buried there.
Research and transcription: Michael A. Howell (April 2006)