The following is the obituary of Mary Octavia Harris: The Temple Times October 14, 1898 Died. Mrs. M. O. Harris died at her residence in this city, Monday, the 10th, of cancerous tumor. Deceased was 59 years old and had been a member of the Baptist church since 1876. She lived an exemplary christian life and died a glorious death, conscious almost to the last moment. Se felt the sting of death on Friday and called all her children and near relatives around her and spoke to them such words of comfort and consolation as none but a christian in the full consciousness of a life well spent could utter. All of her children, three sons- Thomas, Madison and Pressley, and three daughters- Mrs Estelle Keach, Mrs George F. Kyle, and Miss Octavia Harris were present, together with a brother and a nephew. In the language of her pastor, "there was nothing in the death of sadness save the brief separation." For this bereavement the whole community join in sympathy with the bereaved. You may put this obituary on the Bell County Obit page, if you wish. This obit was sent to me by the Temple Daily Telegram. The Hewett Funeral Home had nothing on Mary Octavia Harris. I am assuming that the deceased lived in the city of Temple. I have written to the County Clerk to see if any records exist in the nature of a Will or Deed. If these records exist, I may gain further insight from them. I do not know the name of the funeral home, the church, or the burial place. In 1894, Mary Octavia's son, Madison Harris married Hattie Wilkinson. The minister who performed the ceremony was John Furgsan. The spelling of his last name is very difficult to read, it is possible that his middle initial is "F" and the last name something that starts with an "L" or "U." This marriage may be a clue as to what church Mary Octavia attended. I would like the address of the First Baptist Church in Temple. I think that might be a good start. I rather doubt that the year of 1876 is correct in the obit because she was in Williamson Co. TX in 1880, Perhaps that date corresponds with her joining the "Baptists" and not a Temple Baptist church. Any help in locating more information on Mary Octavia Harris would be appreciated. Thanks, Faye