Texas Historical Marker #03807

Old Schmidt Home. Built 1850s of adobe, hand-hewn cedar, pine, oak. Has pitched roof, outside stair. Story and half. "Fachwerk" style. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark--1968 #3807

354 W. Bridge Street, New Braunfels, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03808

Old Scholl House. Fachwerk (adobe brick and hewn cedar) section was built about 1847 by Heinrich Scholl, Jr. The newer part is Victorian. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1967. #3808

550 Comal Street, New Braunfels, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03809

Old Settlers and Veterans Association of Falls County. Some 75 years after pioneers opened this region, the "Old Settlers Association of Falls County" was organized on July 4, 1908. In 1909, the Willis L. Lang Camp of Confederate veterans and the settlers held a joint reunion. Merging later, they chartered the "Old Settlers and Confederate Veterans Association of Falls County" in 1911. Goals were to memorialize deceased comrades, honor the pioneers, and preserve southern history. Signing the charter where John M. Jolly, Edmund Pierson, and J. H. Robertson of Marlin; R. B. Bratton of Kosse; N. R. Watkins and F. O. Porter of Lott. This 17.9-acre permanent reunion ground was acquired in 1912 from the family of J. K. Tomlinson, an 1858 settler from Georgia who, along with a son William, enlisted and died in the Civil War. In 1936, an historic log cabin was relocated here--to exhibit pioneer memorabilia. A new charter in 1946 renamed the organization the "Old Settlers and Veterans Association," signifying its opening to the soldiers of later wars. Patriotism, education and historical preservation are still stressed. Falls Countians in state and national life reflect ideals which have been instilled by this association. #3809

?, Lott, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03810

Old Shinoak Springs. Named for dwarf oaks. Before fencing began in 1880's, springs attracted cattle, horses, deer. Settlers hauled water for home and stock use. Town of Shinoak Springs thrived until M.K.&T. Railroad bypassed it in 1880. Schoolhouse of rawhide lumber was built in 1882. Had seats of split logs. Pupils numbered 55. School grounds drew crowds of 8,000 for political rallies and camp meetings. A lake was formed 1911 by a rock dam. "Frank Gray Memorial Park," given to city of Gorman, is now recreation and reunion ground, at site of old springs. (1966) #3810

?, Gorman vicinity, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03811

Texas Christian University. A hundred people--faculty and students of Add-Ran Christian University (situated 1876-1895 at Thorp Spring)--reached Waco by train and marched 3 miles to this site on Christmas Eve 1895. By invitation, Add-Ran began to operate that day in unfinished building of Waco Female College, which had given up its charter after functioning since 1857. Add-Ran in 1902 became Texas Christian University. The "Horned Frog" began publication. School spirit was high, but on March 22, 1910, fire destroyed the school. Financial inducements caused T.C.U. to rebuild in Fort Worth. #3811

?, Waco, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03812

Old Smiley Lake and Townsite. Attracted by abundant water from a natural lake, settlers began moving to this area in the late 1840s. Ranching provided the earliest commerce. In addition to cattle and sheep, ranchers raised racing horses for sale in the southern states. Cattlemen brought their herds to the lake area until they were ready for transfer to Belmont (20 miles north), where a branch of the Chisholm cattle trail was located. George W. Colley, considered to be the founder of Smiley Lake community, moved here in 1879. Near his home he built a steam-powered cotton gin and sawmill. He was joined later by Major W. M. Phillips who opened a mercantile establishment here in 1883. The settlement of Smiley Lake, named for early pioneer Jim Smiley, was located on the Cuero-Rancho trade route between San Antonio and the Gulf port of Indianola. The village once had a saddle factory, blacksmith shop, wire fence plant, newspaper, general stores, drugstore, school, baptist church, an I. O. O. F. Lodge and a post office established in 1884. When the Galveston, Harrisburg & San Antonio Railroad completed lines nearby in 1906, the town of Smiley was moved to the present location (one mile north). #3812

?, Smiley, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03813

Old Snyder Graveyard. Formerly state land until common usage established it as a cemetery in 1880's. Legend says first burial was an Indian. Early-day transients were often buried in unmarked graves. Tract closed to further burials, 1902. Many bodies have been moved elsewhere. Only 14 graves are now identified. (1969) #3813

Ave E & 26th St., Snyder, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03814

Old Somervell County Jail. N/A #3814

Cedar & Vernon, Glen Rose, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03815

Old Spanish Trail Highway. N/A #3815

?, San Antonio, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03816

Old Springfield. Named for the large spring on townsite donated Jan. 6, 1838, by Moses Herrin, who gave 4 lots to any person agreeing to settle in the town. 12 families later in 1838 were forced out by Indian hostility. Post office was established in 1846. When Limestone County was created April 11, 1846, Springfield-- its only town of any size-- became county seat. First courthouse was built 1848 near Navasota River; new 2-story brick courthouse in 1856 on the hill. Home of Springfield District of Methodist Church from which stemmed the Northwest Texas Conference. Also had active Baptist and Disciples of Christ churches. Springfield College was established, but closed during the Civil War. The Navasota Stock Raisers Association was organized here. When Houston & Texas Central Railroad was built some miles to the East in 1870, population dwindled. In 1873 there were 2 great fires in the town-- one burning the courthouse. Surviving buildings were moved away. Groesbeck became the county seat. The old cemetery and Springfield Lake, both in Fort Parker State Park, retain the historic name of the once important town. Lake Springfield provides recreation, irrigation and municipal water. 1966 #3816

SH 14, S of Mexia, Mexia, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03817

Old Springfield Cemetery. Established as a 10-acre community burial ground in town plat dedicated Jan. 6, 1838, by Moses Herrin. Earliest graves probably never had stone markers because of primitive frontier living conditions. It is recorded that 12 families were driven out of Springfield late in 1838 by Indian hostilities; the town's growth was halted materially until 1846. Oldest tombstone is for an infant who died Oct. 3, 1849. Another early marker is for a native of New York State "Slain in 1854 violence for his gold". This burial ground was open to use by surrounding areas, and many strangers found a final resting place here alongside veterans of the Texas War for Independence, the Mexican War and other conflicts. Since Springfield was county seat of Limestone County (1846-1878), home of Springfield College (closed in the 1860's) and a center for church and business affairs, it attracted persons of distinction. Some of them were buried here. Although the town lost its means of growth after it was bypassed by Houston & Texas Central Railroad in 1870 and then suffered a devastating fire in 1873, families of old residents often have returned to bury their dead in their established lots, beside pioneer forefathers. 1969 #3817

Off SH 14, S of Mexia in Fort Parker Historical Park, Mexia, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03818

Old St. Mary's College. After the Texas War for Independence, numerous immigrants, notably from Ireland, German, and the Eastern United States, arrived in San Antonio. The need to minister to these non-Hispanic Catholics prompted the Rt. Rev. John M. Odin, First Bishop of Galveston, to establish a separate church for them. In 1852 land at this site was purchased fromt he heirs of Ambrocio Rodriguez, a veteran of the Battle of San Jacinto. In 1855 Bishop Odin autorized a building project, undertaken by the Rev. J.M. Dubuis, who became first pastor of St. Mary's Parish and later second Bishop of Galveston. A stately Gothic church building was constructed and opene for worship in mid-1857, serving both English and German-speaking congregations. (In 1869 St.Joseph's Church assumed the ministry for the German Catholics.) On July 1, 1884, the oblates of Mary Immaculate accepted responsiblity for St. Mary's, with the Rev. Richard J. Maloney as first oblate Pastor. The old church building was also the site of a seminary, an eary free Parochial School, the publication of a major Catholic newspaper, and the founding of the St. Vincent De Paul Society. The 1921 flood irreparable damaged the church building. This Neo-Romanesque structure was dedicated in 1924. #3818

115 St. Mary's, San Antonio, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03819

Old St. Mary's College. Established in 1852 in frontier San Antonio by 4 members of the Society of Mary: Brothers Andrew Edel, John Baptist Laignous, Nicholas Koening, and Xavier Mauclerc--all natives of France. Construction of this building began in fall, 1852, and its doors opened March 1, 1853, to more than 100 students of all creeds. Structure then had 4 rooms. Late in 1854 brothers Eligius Beyerer and Charles Francis joined the faculty. Francis, known as "The great builder", devoted 54 years of his life to San Antonio and finished the building of the college. By 1870 it was a well-proportioned structure of rough limestone, typically Eropean in Style. Once the largest building complex in San Antonio, St. Mary's College educated many prominent south Texans, including 8 mayors of San Antonio. From 1934 to 1966 the buildings housed St. Mary's University School of law, which,under Dean Ernest A. Raba, became a leading legal institution of the southwest. St. Mary's is the only college to have served the city for 113 consecutive years. After 1966, when the building was acquired by La Posada Motor Motels, a 6-story addition was built at the rear and the exterior made Spanish in style. #3819

112 College Street, San Antonio, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03820

Old Stanard Home. On land owned by John James, surveyor of Bandera and Castroville townsites, and by Confederate general John Bell Hood. Hostile Indians prevented construction until 1878, two years prior to founding of Medina. Owned by Standard family since 1889. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1965. #3820

?, Medina, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03821

Old Stone Prison. First stone house in Decatur. Erected by prison labor about 1859. Main house was residence of sheriff or deputy. Basement was used as jail. Meals were sent down a dumb-waiter located outside the east end of the house. County sold property in 1888 to A. H. Whitehead. Used as city water works until 1938. Kept as private residence until 1967 when purchased by Wise County Historical Society as museum. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1968. #3821

201 E. Pecan, Decatur, TX, United States

Subjects

Texas Historical Marker #03822

Old Tascosa. Old Tascosa, cowboy capital of the plains, lay one-half mile northeast. In its brief span it became the center of the open-range world. Stomping ground for some of the West's most notorious bad men and focal point for cattle thieves and ranchmen. Because of the easy crossing of the Canadian River at the site, it early became a meeting place where Indians and Mexican traders (Comancheros) exchanged contraband goods, including women and children. With the passing of the buffalo came the first permanent settlement, made by Mexican sheepherders in 1876. Charles Goodnight and Thomas S. Bugbee brought the first cattle to the free-grass empire the same year. Smaller ranchmen and nesters followed and the boom was on. Hundreds of miles from the general line of settlement, Tascosa lured the lawless and the lawmen: Billy the Kids and Pat Garretts. To accommodate those who died with their boots on in growing gunfights, a cemetery was set aside in 1879. It was named for the famed 'Boot Hill' in Dodge City, Kansas, to which Tascosa was tied by cattle and freight trail. Heaviest toll in a single shoot out occurred March 21, 1886, when three cowboys and a restaurant owner died in a five-minute duel. All went to Boot Hill. The cattle trails, Tascosa's lifeblood, began to be pinched off with the coming of barbed wire, first commercial use of which was drawn still tighter when the vast XIT spread fenced its 3 million acres. By 1887 Tascosa was completely closed in. When the railroad bypassed it the same year, its fate was sealed. By the time the Oldham County seat was moved to Vega in 1915, only 15 residents remained. Sole remnants of the old town today are Boot Hill and the stone courthouse. The site, however, is occupied by Cal Farley's Boys Ranch. #3822

US 385, N. of Vega at Canadian River, Vega, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03823

Old Texas Ranger Trail. This winding, 100-mile trail from San Antonio to Kerrville was, during the 19th century, a strategic patrol road traveled by Texas Rangers to protect the surrounding area from hostile Indian attacks. During uneasy pioneer days roads such as this, regularly scouted by Rangers, helped promote early white settlement by strengthening frontier defense. Because Bandera was located midway on the trail and because Bandera Pass, 10 miles north, frequently harbored Indian ambushers, the town became a focal point for Ranger activities along the road. Perhaps the best-known battle to occur on the old route happened in Bandera Pass in the spring of 1841. At that time a company of 40 Texas Rangers, under intrepid Indian fighter Capt. "Jack" Hays, was on a scouting mission in the Guadalupe Mountains. Halfway through the pass, they were suddenly attacked by several hundred wild Comanches who lay hidden in the brush and behind boulders in the narrow gorge. A bloody fight ensued, much of it hand-to-hand combat with Bowie knives; but after their chief was slain, the Indians withdrew and finally escaped. Thus the Rangers and this trail helped remove the Indian menace and open the frontier across Texas. (1968) #3823

?, Bandera, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03824

Old Throckmorton Jail. #3824

?, Throckmorton, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03825

Old Town Cemetery. Located on the elevated ridge at Indianola Beach, this cemetery is one of three that served the port of Indianola during the 19th century. The oldest existing grave marker, that of James Chilton Allan, bears a date of 1851. Also buried here are some of Calhoun County's earliest settlers, who came in the first wave of German immigration to Texas in the 1840s. Many of the original tombstones, including that of Angelina Eberly (d. 1860), heroine of the Texas Archives War, have disappeared over time because of storms and vandalism. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836- 1986. #3825

?, Indianola, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03826

Camp Springs. Named for W. H. Camp, an early settler who built a dugout in 1878 at springs, one-half mile northwest of here. Petrified trees--one 300 feet tall--and bones of prehistoric animals have been found in area. Tools, pictographs in nearby cave indicate Indians camped here. Emigrant trail to California, blazed in 1849 by Army Captain R. B. Marcy, came through region. General Robert E. Lee followed part of same trail searching for hostile Comanches in 1856. Both men made camp at Green Springs, six miles southwest. Post office was established, 1891. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1967. #3826

FM 1673 & 1614, Snyder, TX, United States