The John C. Box Family

By John C. Box, Jr.

John C. Box was born March 26, 1871, and was educated at Alexander Collegiate Institute, Kilgore, before that school was moved to Jacksonville. He came here at age 18 as a Methodist minister and served the Jacksonville circuit, later being assigned to Wells and subsequently to Lufkin, where he met and married El Mina Hill.

He left the ministry shortly thereafter and studied law in the offices of E. J. Mantooth, and admitted to the Bar by examination of a three-judge court, moved to Jacksonville in 1896. Elected County Judge in 1899, he served through 1903, when he returned to Jacksonville and opened a law office, practicing until 1918. At that time, he was elected to Congress, serving for twelve years. Upon returning to Jacksonville at the conclusion of his tenure in Washington, he again practiced law until his death in 1941.

Judge Box, as he was affectionately known, served as chairman of the board of Alexander College (now Lon Morris), was a delegate on several occasions to the Texas Conference of the Methodist church and was one of the original trustees and a member of the locating committee of Southern Methodist University.

Two children were born to John C. and Mina Hill Box. A daughter, Mary, married Dr. Charles E. Bish. She died in Washington, D.C., leaving a daughter, Mary Ann, and a son, Dr. John C. Bish. A son, John C. Box, Jr., with whom Mr. Box practiced law from 1931 until his death in 1941. John C. Box, Jr., continues to practice law in Jacksonville, being the senior member of the firm of Box & Adamson. He lives here with his wife, Mary.

Mr. Box was mayor of Jacksonville when the first sanitary sewer system was installed and the first street paving was put down. He was an orator of note, a Democrat and an avid churchman. Mrs. Box was a church woman and member of the B. F. and Elmina Lang Hill family, Angelina County pioneers, who came to Texas about 1834. Mr. Box's family came to Texas in 1832 with Burnet's colony and settled in Houston County.

John C. Box, about 1936

Mrs. Mina Hill Box