Layton Ferrell Puckett
(1826-1867)
One of the First Texas Rangers Mexican-American War Veteran Civil War Veteran First Junior Warden of Waco 92 in 1852 Senior Warden of Waco 92, 1853 Waco's First Funeral Director
Layton Puckett was born August 13, 1826 in Warren County, Tennessee. Fortune was on the side of Waco when Puckett came to Texas in the 1840s and he joined the Texas Rangers in 1847 where he developed a friendship with Shapley Ross. That friendship would carry on through life in business and social discourse and in fact, Puckett was among the first twenty-one settlers of Waco in 1849 and it was him that recommended the construction of the first home. That home was for the Rosses. Puckett served as a juror in the first trial of McLennan county in 1851. He also served in Captain Franklin Barnes’ Company of Rangers as well as those of James O Illingworth and A.E. Twadell in 1853. Two years later, in 1855, he served with Captain E.B. Fitzers Ranger Patrol and later that year with Captain Langford’s.
In 1856, Puckett received a license to sell liquor in Waco beginning March 24, 1856. A year later, he was charged in the city court with “assault and battery” after getting into a fist fight at his bar. He also had a furniture/funeral director’s business, perhaps the first in Waco. When the Civil War broke out, Puckett entered as a captain in H Company of Gurley’s regiment.
When Waco Lodge 92 was chartered in 1852, Brother Puckett became our first Junior Warden. He rose to Senior Warden the following year and likely would have been the next Worshipful Master but the legendary Joseph Speight arrived and Puckett humbly stepped aside and supported the lodge in other ways for the rest of his life. Layton’s brother, Jack B. Puckett, was an early doctor in the area and a member of 92.
Layton Ferrell Puckett died December 30, 1867.
Layton’s son, Layton Coke Puckett, was the leading funeral home director for many years in Waco after inheriting his father’s business. The funeral home was called Fall & Puckett; its records are preserved at Oakwood Cemetery today. The son was a member of Waco 92 as were his sons and quite a large number of other men from the Puckett family.