ELDER T. F. LOCKETT, a native of Prince Edwards [sic] county, Va., was born July 30, 1826. He still lives at Morgan, Texas. In youth he attended a Methodist Sunday school and also a Presbyterian Sunday school. He was baptized in 1842. He was four years a student at Richmond College. In 1848 he went to Cole county, Mo., joined the Osage church, and was by that church ordained. The names of James Suggett, Levy Roark, Noah Flood, Elias George and Snelling Johnson appear on his credentials, which document bears date of September 18, 1848. He established an academy in 1848, and in that academy a Bible school, which resulted in the conversion and baptism of about 60 of his pupils. When William Jewell College was founded, Elder Lockett was elected professor of natural sciences, January, 1850. To enable the church at Liberty to pay off a distressing debt Elders Lockett and E. S. Dulin, professors in William Jewell, filled the pulpit for one year without charge. Overwork undermined Bro. Lockett’s health, and he was compelled to resign his chair in the college. He afterward did grand work as pastor of churches. He was for a time pastor at Jefferson City, during which God enabled him to infuse new life into the church. At the commencement of the war he was pastor at Jefferson City and chaplain of the state penitentiary. The last year of the war he came to Washington, Texas, and in 1866 to Bosqueville, near Waco. He was immediately elected to take charge of the Bosqueville College, then a flourishing school. He soon afterward became pastor of Bosqueville and Bold Springs churches. Later he was financial agent of Waco University, and raised and paid off $10,000 of the floating debt. He has preached much over Texas, held many important pastorates, and has baptized large numbers. Much preaching in the open air brought on bronchial troubles, and he cannot now preach regularly. He was missionary pastor at Laredo, Texas, in 1893 and 1894, which was his last regular work. He is waiting for the bid to come up higher.
Source: J. L. Walker and C. P. Lumpkin, History of the Waco Baptist Association of Texas (Waco: Byrne-Hill Printing House, 1897), pp. 339-340.