Dr. Carroll M. Peak

Contributed By: Ruth H. Karbach

I am a local historian in Fort Worth, Texas, researching the Peak family who founded First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the oldest church in Fort Worth which is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year.  According to local resources, Dr. Carroll M. Peak was born on November 13, 1828, in Warsaw, Gallatin County, Kentucky.  He attended medical school at the University of Louisville in 1850-51 (verified: university records).  Carroll M. Peak and
Florence Chalfant were married on 4-26-1853 in Jefferson County, Indiana (verified on line: marriage records).  The couple moved to Texas, first Dallas, and then Fort Worth.  Local tax records list them in Fort Worth by 1854. Florence Chalfant Peak is the main focus of my research although I am interested in information on her husband and his family as well.  In 1855 Mrs. Peak founded the first church in Fort Worth which met in the parlor of their home, and she taught Sunday School for 45 years.  According to the book Texas Disciples, she had a background as a Campbellite, hence her adherence to the Christian Church.  As I gain more information such as her date and place of birth, I will send it.  I have found no record of Chalfant family in Jefferson County, Indiana, and wondered if both Ms. Peak and her husband might be from your area. I should add that the Peaks were one for the first pioneer families in Fort Worth.  The fort was established in 1849 but the soldiers had moved out by the time the Peaks settled here.

If you have information on the Peak family in Gallatin Co., please contact ARKARBACH@cs.com