Texas Historical Marker #13814
Crenshaw Family Cemetery. Virginia native and Civil War veteran James A. Crenshaw wed Henrietta Barker Elliott in Kentucky in 1870. Two years later, with their first child, they moved to Bolivar Peninsula and constructed a two-story house in this vicinity. James, a successful farmer, transported his produce across the water to Galveston markets using his fleet of nine sailboats. The couple eventually had ten children; two young daughters died, one in 1875, the other in 1882, and the family buried them here in a grove of oak trees close to the house. The family's home survived the 1900 Galveston Hurricane; after the storm, the J.A. Crenshaws left the peninsula. Two sons remained, and daughter Helen Crenshaw wed Dr. Newell W. Atkinson in Edna, Texas, in 1907. The land containing the burial ground remained in family hands, but the iron fencing around the cemetery gradually disappeared except for a portion imbedded in a tree. In 2003, two descendants of Helen and Newell Atkinson donated land, including the burial ground, to the Galveston Independent School District, which maintains the historic cemetery as a link to early Bolivar settlers. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2004 #13814
?, Port Bolivar, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #07544
Point Bolivar. Headquarters for Long's Expedition which attempted to free Texas from Spanish rule in 1819. Named in honor of Simon Bolivar (1783-1830), leader in the Spanish-American War for independence. Here Mrs. Long and a small group remained until news of her husband's death came in 1822. A light house was erected here by the Republic of Texas. #7544
?, Port Bolivar, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #07452
Fort Travis. In early 1836, soon after Texas declared independence from Mexico, Republic of Texas President David Burnet dispatched Colonel Ed Harcourt to Galveston Island to erect a fort. Using army recruits and slave labor Harcourt built an octagonal earth and timber fortification armed with six and twelve-pound gun mounts appropriated from the Texas Navy vessel CAYUGA. Named Fort Travis in honor of William B. Travis, famous defender of the Alamo, it was located at the east end of the island. After high winds damaged the fort in 1837 the site was converted into a gun battery called Fort point, its present name. In 1898-99, with the beginning of Federal development of the Port of Galveston, a second Fort Travis was established across Galveston Bay at Bolivar Point near the former site of a Civil War Confederate fortification called Fort Green. Two batteries, named Davis and Ernst, were completed in 1899 and a third, named Kimble, completed in 1922. Coastal defense facilities were added to the fort during World Wars I and II. Fort Travis was decommissioned and sold as war surplus in 1949. Besides its obvious military uses, Fort Travis also served as a refuge from hurricanes and as a Civil Defense shelter for area residents. Incise on back: Funding for this replacement marker was provided through a generous grant from the Hoblitzelle Foundation and the Texas Historical Foundation. #7452
?, Port Bolivar, TX, United States