A small burial ground that holds perhaps a dozen graves, located a short distance south of Ward Mountain, 5 miles south of Palo Pinto, probably contains the graves of the first white settlers in this county.

On one of the stones is the inscription: "James J. Ward, born April 18, 1808, died March 2, 1870."  Beside this grave is another reading, "Luvena Ward, born December 15, 1811, died July 24, 1875."

No authentic records are available to ascertain just when the cou0le settled here, but it seems safe to assume it might have been very early as Ward claimed all the land between Palo Pinto and Santo.  he built a huge two-story residence of native sandstone, which his cowhands gathered nearby and which stonemasons from New York City came here to carve to build the house.  The old house is still standing, although in dilapidated condition.  A family made their home there until a few years ago.  The walls are 18 inches thick and there are four fireplaces, one of which is in excellent state of preservation.  Mantles over the fireplaces and banisters of the stairway are of hand-carved wood.

The Wards had only one child, a daughter, Martha, for whom they hired a tutor from New York City, as there were no schools available.  Martha was also instructed in music by the tutor and she later taught music at her home.

A tragic occurrence after Mr. Ward's death, was the death of his wife five years later.  She was dragged to her death when her hair became entangled in the spokes of a buggy wheel when the team ran away, down the side of a mountain.  Thereafter, the mountain was known as Ward Mountain.

Martha Ward was married at the age of 25, to Tom Humphries, one of the cowboys employed by her father.  They were the parents of eight children:  Jim, Nat, Hannah (Meredith), George, Kate (Turner), Lucy (Brannon), Saddie (Jones), and Ida (Thomas).  All are deceased.

Jim, the oldest of the Humphries' children, died two years ago at Lubbock at the age of 94.  At one time, prior to 1900, he operated a hotel in Mineral Wells, which is said to have been called the Crazy Hotel.  In the 1920s he was in charge of the old Mineral Wells Lake as caretaker.

There are many descendants of the Humphries, some of whom are now residents of Palo Pinto County.