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Columbus, Texas

Everything Columbus is known for

10 songs mention this city 3 artists from here

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Music in Columbus

Songs About Columbus

Columbus, TX
The Skandalous Allstars
83%
"Columbus, TX"
Columbus Stockade Blues
Bill Monroe And His Blue Grass Boys
77%
"Columbus Stockade Blues"
Mighty Oak Tree
Hank Williams, Jr.
62%
"(nickname theme) oak trees vs the town nickname"
Beneath Oak Trees
Dylan Gossett
55%
"(nickname theme) oak trees vs the town nickname"
Live Oak
Jason Isbell
52%
"(nickname theme) oak trees vs the town nickname"
Columbus, TX
SKAndalous All-Stars
52%
"(title) "Columbus, TX" — title is the place signal"
Oak Tree
J. Killen
50%
"(nickname theme) oak trees vs the town nickname"
Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree
Johnny Carver
48%
"(nickname theme) oak trees vs the town nickname"
Tie A Yellow Ribbon 'Round The Ole Oak Tree
Tony Orlando
45%
"(nickname theme) oak trees vs the town nickname"
The Oak Tree
Morris Day
40%
"(nickname theme) oak trees vs the town nickname"

Artists From Columbus

M
Morgan Ashley
country
W
Wyatt Aleman
country
D
Darrel Appelt
country

Rivers & Roads in Song near Columbus

Songs written about the waterways and highways that run near Columbus.

Texas Colorado River 6 songs Interstate 10 36 songs Texas State Highway 71 2 songs US Route 90 9 songs Brazos River 43 songs U.S. Route 59 9 songs

Musical Heritage

Stafford Opera House RoadyGoat

The Stafford Opera House has stood in Columbus since 1886. In its day it sat a thousand people and booked the big touring names — Harry Houdini worked that stage. Then time did what time does, and the place fell apart: eight hundred thousand dollars' worth of structure, roof, plumbing, and flooring all gone soft. Enter Missy Parker. Late in 2023 she signed on as volunteer executive director — a forty-to-sixty-hour week, for free. She wrote a business plan, stood up six committees, and put the town to work. Six hundred thousand dollars came in the first five months. The rest followed close behind. A hundred-and-forty-year-old room, left for dead, and one volunteer who refused to let it go. The grand reopening's set for the fall.

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History of Columbus

The Battle of Columbus Almost Happened Right Here RoadyGoat

For one week in March of 1836 this river was the front line of the Texas Revolution, and everybody camped on it expected the war to end here. Sam Houston brought his army to the east bank of the Colorado at Beason's Crossing on March 19 and stayed until the 26th. Across the water, on the west side, General Joaquin Ramirez y Sesma pulled up with around eight hundred Mexican troops out of San Antonio and made camp in plain view. Two armies, one river between them, in sight of each other for a week. Houston's ranks kept swelling with men riding in to fight, up to something like fifteen hundred, which means he had Sesma outnumbered close to two to one. His officers wanted the fight. It was while he sat here that word came in about Fannin's men being killed at Goliad, which is the kind of news that makes an army want blood immediately. Houston looked at it and said no. On March 27 he broke camp and kept retreating east toward San Felipe, and a lot of his own men thought he was a coward for it. Twenty-six days later he turned around at San Jacinto and won Texas in eighteen minutes. If he had crossed here instead, Texas schoolchildren would be memorizing the Battle of Columbus. Sesma's campsite is still marked, just west of the city limits out on Highway 90.

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A Scottish Castle With a Moat, and George Washington's Kin Preaching In It RoadyGoat

In 1839 a Scotsman from Dumfries named Robert Robson looked at the south bank of the Colorado River, in a republic that was three years old and mostly log cabins, and built a castle. Not a big house that people nicknamed a castle. A castle, with a moat around it and a drawbridge over the moat. He poured it out of concrete he made from local lime and gravel, ran it up three stories, put a ballroom in it and a garden on the roof, and set a cistern up top so that piped running water came out inside the building. There were people within a day's ride of this thing who had never seen glass in a window. Robson threw parties in that ballroom. And here is the detail that tips the whole scene over: Sunday services in the castle were led by Dr. Lawrence Washington, an Episcopal minister who happened to be a grand-nephew of President George Washington. Picture it honestly. A Scottish drawbridge, a Texas river bottom, and a Washington reading the Book of Common Prayer over a room of frontier cotton farmers. The river took it back. A flood in 1869 undermined the foundations, the ruin stood another fourteen years, and in 1883 it came down. They built a beef packing plant on the spot.

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No Electricity, a One-Teacher School, and Then He Rewired Engineering RoadyGoat

James Truchard grew up on a farm outside Columbus in a house with no electricity and no indoor plumbing. He did his first schooling at Mentz, up the road, in a school with one teacher in it. He graduated from Columbus High School in 1960 as valedictorian, went to the University of Texas, and came out the other side with a bachelor's and a master's in physics and a doctorate in electrical engineering. In 1976, working out of his garage with two colleagues named Jeff Kodosky and Bill Nowlin, he started a company. Their first paying work was building interface boards so Navy researchers could get data off their instruments and into a computer. That turned out to be the whole idea. Before this, if you wanted to measure something you bought a machine built to measure that one thing, with its own dials and its own needle. Truchard and Kodosky's bet was that you could replace the machine with software, and in 1986 they shipped LabVIEW, where an engineer wires up an instrument by drawing it on a screen instead of writing code. It is now in laboratories, factories and classrooms everywhere, and it is part of how the Large Hadron Collider gets read. In 2019 both men went into the National Inventors Hall of Fame. From a one-teacher school at Mentz to that, in one lifetime.

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William Menefee

1812

William L. Menefee, born ca. 1796 in Knox County, Tennessee, served in the Tennessee Militia in the War of 1812. He studied law and was admitted to the bar sometime prior to when he moved to Alabama. In 1830 he and his wife Agnes (Sutherland) and their seven children moved to Jackson County, Texas. Menefee became involved in Texas' affairs with Mexico and represented Lavaca County as a delegate to the conventions of 1832 and 1833. In 1835 he represented Austin municipality at the consultation at San Felipe and later served as a member of the general council of the provisional government of Texas. Menefee was elected Colorado municipality's first chief justice in 1836. On March 2, 1836, he was among the signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence. In late 1836 Menefee was appointed Colorado County's first county judge by Republic of Texas President Sam Houston. Elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1837, he was one of five congressmen chosen to select the site for the Texas Capitol. An unsuccessful candidate for the Republic of Texas vice-presidency in 1841, he later served as Fayette County's state representative from 1853 to 1857. He died on October 29, 1875, and is buried in the Texas State Cemetery in Austin.

Historical Marker →

Columbus Oak

1837

Beneath this tree the first Court of the Third Judicial District of The Republic of Texas was held April, 1837 by Judge Robert M. Williamson ("Three Legged Willie").

Historical Marker →

Colorado County, City of Columbus

1823

Site of projected capitol of Stephen F. Austin's colony, 1823. First settlement at this point shown on Stephen F. Austin's map of 1835 as Montezuma. The municipality of Colorado was created by the provisional government of Texas January 11, 1836 and the town of Columbus ordered laid out as the seat of government. On March 17, 1836 the county of Colorado was created; in 1837, it was organized. Columbus, the county seat, was incorporated June 5, 1837. As railroad terminal, from 1869 to 1873, Columbus was an important trading center for a large territory to the west. In memory of: The pioneer families of Burnam, Gilleland, Cummins, Fisher DeWees, Kuykendall and Tumlinson. J. W. E. Wallace and his company who defended Gonzales October 2, 1835. William D. Lacey, Will Menefee signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Leander Beason, John P. Borden, David Cole, Stephen T. Foley, George W. Gardner, S. Joseph Garwood, Basil G. Ijams, Dr. James D. Jennings, Alfred Kelso, Amos D. Kenyon, Daniel Miller, James Nelson, Mitchell Putnam, Dempsey Pace, William Pace, Washington H. Secrest, Maxwell Steel, Robert Stevenson, Spencer B. Townsend, William Waters, Leroy Wilkinson; San Jacinto veterans who lived in this county prior to or after the Texas Revolution. Col. John C. Upton, Major John S. Shropshire, Major J. S. West, Capt. P. J. Oakes, Capt. James D. Roberdeau, Capt. R. V. Cook; Confederate officers. The following citizens of distinction have resided in Colorado County: Jones Rivers, jurist; Dr. Lawrence Washington, Gail Borden, Matthew Stanley Quay, Senator for Pennsylvania; Chas. Nagel, cabinet minister under Taft; Wells Thompson, Lieutenant Governor of Texas; George McCormick, State Attorney General and co-writer of the present State Constitution; Geo. W. Smith, member of Supreme Court of Texas.

Historical Marker →

Colorado County Feud

1898

The Colorado County Feud, a series of gun battles between members of the Townsend family of Columbus, started during the 1898 Colorado County sheriff's race. The election pitted incumbent sheriff Sam Reese against his one time deputy, Larkin Hope. Former state senator Mark Townsend, who directed a political machine that had backed the winning candidate in each of the last nine sheriff's elections, dropped his backing of Reese and endorsed Hope. The move seemingly assured Hope of victory. But on August 3, 1898, Hope was killed by an unknown assailant in downtown Columbus. Immediately, suspicion centered on Jim Coleman, a close friend of Sam Reese's sons, Walter and Herbert. Townsend picked a new candidate, Will Burford, and, with feeling running high against the Reeses, Burford won the election. Less than a year later, on March 16, 1899, Sam Reese was killed in a gun battle on the street near where Hope died. Will Clements, Marion Hope, and Mark Townsend were among those shooting. Stray bullets killed Charles Boehme, a bystander, and wounded a boy named Johnny Williams. Even though the best evidence suggests that Reese had provoked the fight in which he was killed, his sons vowed to get revenge. In five more gunfights-on May 17, 1899, January 15, 1900, July 31, 1900, June 30, 1906, and May 17, 1907-five more men were killed and several others wounded. The dead included Reese's brother Dick, Burford's son Arthur, Will Clements's brother Hiram, and Jim Coleman. Also dead was another innocent bystander, Dick Gant. No one was ever convicted of any of the murders. Those accused included Mark Townsend, Jim Townsend, Step Yates, Will Clements, Walter Reese, Joe Lessing, Frank Burford, and Marion Hope. The Townsends, Reeses, Burfords, Clementses, Hopes, and Lessings were all related to each other, either directly or through marriage. The feud had a direct effect on the economic wellbeing of Columbus. Boehme, a farmer, had been in town buying supplies when shooting erupted and he was killed. His death persuaded many area farmers to buy their supplies elsewhere. The peaceful citizens of Columbus, trying to end the feuding, asked the city council to reestablish the office of city marshal, which had been abolished some years earlier. For financial reasons, they refused. On August 7, 1906, the citizenry voted to abolish the corporation of the city of Columbus and turn the administration of the town over to the county. The town remained unincorporated for twenty years. Many of the other participants in the feud died violent, early deaths. Marion Hope was killed in an accident in Gonzales County in 1911. That same year, Will Clements was shot from ambush in Matagorda County by a man with whom he had had an altercation a few days earlier. Jim Townsend was also killed in 1911, in a gun battle with a saloon keeper in Louise. Herbert Reese was killed in 1912, when a gun he was cleaning in his Columbus home accidentally discharged. Walter Reese died as the result of injuries received in an automobile accident in El Paso in 1919.

Tsha Handbook →

Glenn, George

1870

George Glenn, black traildriver, son of Wash Glenn, was born into slavery on March 8, 1850, probably in Colorado County, Texas. He was raised on the ranch of Robert B. Johnson of Columbus and trained in ranching activities and as a trail cook. After the Civil War and emancipation, Glenn evidently continued at the Johnson ranch as a cowhand. In the spring of 1870 he accompanied Johnson on a cattle drive to Abilene, Kansas. At the Red River, when a fresh group of cowhands displaced the original ones, Johnson and Glenn continued with the new group to Abilene, where they sold the herd. Johnson fell ill and died at age thirty-six in Abilene in July 1870. Glenn had his employer embalmed and buried in a metal casket in the area. The following September he decided to bring Johnson's body back to Texas for burial and had the casket disinterred and placed in a wagon. Reportedly, Glenn traveled alone with Johnson's body for forty-two days across three states, to arrive in Columbus in November 1871. He did not continue as a cowhand but maintained a lifelong friendship with his former employer's nephew, Texas Ranger and cattleman John Edwards Folts. Glenn's death certificate lists his occupation as "laborer." He was honored as one of the handful of black members of the Old Trail Drivers Association at the 1924 and 1926 annual meetings. He married Lucy Conner on December 25, 1872, and they had at least one child. Apparently Glenn resided the rest of his life in Glidden, where he owned a homestead. He died there of pneumonia on November 28, 1931, and was buried in Columbus.

Tsha Handbook →

Williamson, Robert McAlpin [Three Legged Willie]

1837

Robert McAlpin Williamson, son of Peter B. and Ann (McAlpin) Williamson, was born in Georgia in 1804 or 1806. When he was fifteen years old, his school career was terminated by an illness which confined him to his home for two years and left him disabled for life. His right leg was drawn back at the knee; the wooden leg which he wore from the knee to the ground resulted in his widely-known title of "Three Legged Willie." Williamson read much during his illness, was admitted to the bar around the age of nineteen, and may have practiced law in Georgia for over a year. In the late 1820s he migrated to Texas and settled at San Felipe de Austin. In 1829, in association with Godwin B. Cotten , he established a newspaper called the Cotton Plant , which he edited from 1829 to 1831. For a short time Williamson edited the Texas Gazette and the Mexican Citizen . He made an early appeal for the Texas colonists to resist Mexican tyranny. He was sent as a delegate from Mina (Bastrop) to the Consultation , and the provisional government established there commissioned him major on November 29, 1835, and ordered him to organize a corps of rangers. He participated in the battle of San Jacinto in William H. Smith's cavalry company, his name appearing on the original muster roll, through error, as W. W. Williamson. He received 640 acres for participating in the battle of San Jacinto. On December 16, 1836, the First Congress of the republic elected Williamson judge of the Third Judicial District, automatically making him a member of the Supreme Court. The town of Columbus had been burned during the Runaway Scrape , and as there was no suitable structure to hold court proceedings, the first term of District Court, Republic of Texas , was convened by the Honorable R. M. Williamson, under a large oak tree next to the lot where the Colorado County Courthouse was later built in April 1837. In 1840 he was elected to represent Washington County in Congress. He served in the House in the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Congress, in the Senate in the Eighth Congress, and in the House again in the Ninth Congress. His Senate seat in the Eighth Congress was contested, and he eventually lost the seat. After annexation, which he had advocated so strongly that he even named one of his sons Annexus, he served in the Senate of the first two legislatures, retiring in March 1850. As judge and lawmaker Williamson became the subject of numerous legends inspired by his personal characteristics, his unique decisions, his adroitness as a campaigner, his amusing legislative manipulations, and the succinctness of his oratory. Williamson married Mary Jane Edwards, daughter of Gustavus E. Edwards of Austin County, on April 21, 1837. They were parents of seven children. After his defeat in the race for Congress in 1850, he retired to his farm near Independence and devoted himself to the education of his children and preparations of materials for writing a history of events in Texas leading up to the Texas Revolution . He was an unsuccessful candidate for lieutenant governor in 1851. In 1857 an attack of illness affected his mental brilliance, which was further impaired by the death of his wife in 1858. From these combined shocks his mind never entirely recovered. He died at the home of his father-in-law in Wharton on December 22, 1859. Williamson County, established in 1848, was named for R. M. Williamson. In 1930, when his body was reinterred in the State Cemetery , the state of Texas erected a monument at his grave. The Texas Centennial Commission, in 1936, marked the site where he died.

Tsha Handbook →

Things to Do in Columbus

quirky 24.2 mi away
The Chicken Ranch

A brothel outside La Grange operated continuously from the 1840s until Houston television reporter Marvin Zindler exposed it in 1973 -- one of the…
food 13.5 mi away
Hruska's Bakery & Store

Family-run Czech bakery on Highway 71 in Ellinger since 1912. Kolaches, klobasniky, and a roadside-store side hustle for travelers between Houston and Austin.

Sports in Columbus

🏈 High School Football

ROADYGOAT SPORTS

Tap a team for its schedule, results, history and notable alumni.

Columbus Cardinals →
🏆 STATE CHAMPIONS Class 3A · Football · 2024

Columbus Cardinals — 2024 UIL 3A Division 1 Football State Champions

Most recent: 48-14 over Malakoff · 2024 3A Division 1 final

Columbus High School, a Class 3A presence in Texas football, consistently brings spirited competition to the field. Located in the heart of Texas, the Cardinals have established a reputation for dedicated play and community involvement, reflecting the pride of their hometown.

The school's athletic program is a significant part of local life, drawing support from across the area. The commitment seen on the football field is a source of local enthusiasm, year after year.

State titles
2024
Most recent
2024, 48-14
Class
3A
The moment

The 2024 3A Division 1 State Championship saw Columbus High School defeat Malakoff with a score of 48-14.

Sources: Wikipedia · UIL State Championship Archives · SI High School (ScoreBook Live)

Everything Near Columbus

470 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the nearest 200 are listed here — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.

  • The Battle of Columbus Almost Happened Right Here

    For one week in March of 1836 this river was the front line of the Texas Revolution, and everybody camped on it expected the war to end here. Sam Houston brought his army to the east bank of the Colorado at Beason's…

  • A Scottish Castle With a Moat, and George Washington's Kin Preaching In It

    In 1839 a Scotsman from Dumfries named Robert Robson looked at the south bank of the Colorado River, in a republic that was three years old and mostly log cabins, and built a castle. Not a big house that people…

  • No Electricity, a One-Teacher School, and Then He Rewired Engineering

    James Truchard grew up on a farm outside Columbus in a house with no electricity and no indoor plumbing. He did his first schooling at Mentz, up the road, in a school with one teacher in it. He graduated from Columbus…

  • William Menefee · Historical Marker

    William L. Menefee, born ca. 1796 in Knox County, Tennessee, served in the Tennessee Militia in the War of 1812. He studied law and was admitted to the bar sometime prior to when he moved to Alabama. In 1830 he and his…

  • From Montezuma to Beason's Crossing to Columbus

    You're rolling into one of the oldest Anglo settlements in Texas, a town that has worn three names. The high west bank of the Colorado River here was long known by the legend of an Indian village called Montezuma when…

  • The Week Sam Houston's Army Camped at the Crossing

    In the spring of 1836, the riverbank you're near became a staging ground for Texas independence. After the Alamo fell on March 6, Sam Houston retreated eastward from Gonzales and pitched camp on the east bank of the…

  • The Courthouse, Its Lost Tower, and the Green Glass Dome

    The grand courthouse on the square at 400 Spring Street was completed in 1891, designed by noted Houston architect Eugene T. Heiner. It didn't always look like this. The original design rose to a tall central clock…

  • The Cattleman's Opera House Where Houdini Played

    At 425 Spring Street stands the showiest building a frontier cattle fortune could buy. Cattleman and banker Robert E. Stafford put up the R. E. Stafford Bank and Opera House in 1886, with a bank on the ground floor and…

  • The Scotsman Who Built a Concrete Castle With a Moat

    On the northern edge of old Columbus, a Scottish immigrant once lived inside an honest-to-goodness castle. Robert Robson came to the Republic of Texas in 1839, and in 1848 he bought a block of riverside land and built a…

  • Refrigerated Beef From Columbus to Queen Victoria's Table

    On the old Robson's Castle site by the river, Columbus pulled off something genuinely cutting-edge for 1884: it built a mechanically refrigerated meat-packing plant, one of only three packing houses in all of Texas at…

  • The Courtroom Ceiling Came Down on a Day Court Was Supposed to Be in Session

    In 2006 a section of the ornamental plaster ceiling in the district courtroom of the Colorado County Courthouse let go and came down into the room. Court was supposed to be sitting that day. There was a trial on the…

  • The Grudge That Put an Opera House Curtain Over a Hog Pen

    The Stafford Opera House gave its last performance of the old era in 1916. Afterward the widow Stafford sold the building to a man named Guilmartin, who ran the Ford dealership in town, and Guilmartin moved his cars…

Show all 200 nearby places
  • They Floated a Courthouse Down the River and Watched It Keep Going

    Colorado County needed a courthouse and the county had a problem: no pine. The nearest good building timber stood in the pine forest up around where Bastrop is now, which is a long way to haul lumber by ox wagon over…

  • Twentieth Round Out of Columbus High, Seventh Overall Three Years Later

    Doug Rau was born in Columbus in December of 1948 and came up through Columbus High School, and the first time a big league club wanted him it was not much of a want. Baltimore took him in 1967 in the twentieth round.…

  • The Summer the Shooting Started Again on This Square

    Stand on this square and you are standing in the middle of the Colorado County Feud. It had already been running for years by the summer of 1906, and everybody in town assumed it had burned itself out. It had not. On…

  • Columbus Oak · Historical Marker

    Beneath this tree the first Court of the Third Judicial District of The Republic of Texas was held April, 1837 by Judge Robert M. Williamson ("Three Legged Willie").

  • Colorado County, City of Columbus · Historical Marker

    Site of projected capitol of Stephen F. Austin's colony, 1823. First settlement at this point shown on Stephen F. Austin's map of 1835 as Montezuma. The municipality of Colorado was created by the provisional government…

  • The Brick Tower Dynamite Couldn't Bring Down

    On the public square stands a squat brick tower that simply refused to die. Built in 1883 from some 400,000 locally made bricks, it once held a big water tank up high so the town could fight downtown fires by…

  • The Five-Hundred-Year-Old Oak on Walnut Street

    Columbus calls itself the City of Live Oaks and Live Folks, and the patriarch of all those trees stands at 1218 Walnut Street, across from the post office. The Columbus Oak is estimated at more than 500 years old,…

  • Live Oaks and Dead Folks

    After dark, the old city cemetery in Columbus is the kind of place that invites a ghost story, and the town leans right into it. Every year on the first Saturday in November, the Nesbitt Memorial Library stages the Live…

  • Before Texas Joined the Union, Columbus Was Rolling Cigars

    Ask what the first real industry in Columbus was and the answer is not a gin or a mill or a foundry. Apart from the blacksmith shops, the first major industry here was a German cigar factory, started around 1840. Sit…

  • Columbus - Stafford Opera House · Historical Marker

    Columbus is one of the oldest Anglo-American settlements in Texas, planted on the Colorado River by Stephen F. Austin's original colonists in the 1820s. The Stafford Opera House, built in 1886, is a Victorian gem that…

  • District Court Tree · Historical Marker

    This marker sits in the middle of Travis Street near Walnut, and the tree it was written for is dead. Texas set it in nineteen sixty-nine. It says that in eighteen thirty-seven this oak sheltered Texas jurors, that the…

  • 1890 Cornerstone Ceremony · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Columbus, where the Colorado County Courthouse got its start with a huge public celebration on July 7, 1890. Three thousand people showed up for a barbecue and a procession led by a marching band.…

  • Stafford Opera House · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of the Stafford Opera House, built in 1886 by millionaire cattleman R.E. Stafford. This grand theater could seat a thousand people and featured gas chandeliers and a hand-painted curtain.…

  • Tumlinson Family · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through the heart of the Colorado District, the very area where John Tumlinson, a leader among Austin's Old Three Hundred, served as the first alcalde. He was tasked with justice and organizing the local…

  • Early Site of Dr. Logue's Drugstore · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Early Site of Dr. Logue's Drugstore. Known as first drugstore in Republic of Texas. Founded 1844 by Dr. John G. Logue (1815-1861), who came here after graduation (1842) from Jefferson Medical…

  • The Rangers of Austin's Colony · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through the early days of Stephen F. Austin's colony, right where protection was a major concern. Back in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1823</say-as>, after a string of Indian attacks, Captain…

  • Townsend-Koliba House · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Townsend-Koliba House, built in the mid-1800s. Its first owner, Stephen Townsend, was a veteran of the Battle of San Jacinto and served as the county's first sheriff in 1837. His descendants…

  • Stafford-Miller House · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Stafford-Miller House, a stunning Victorian built in 1886 by Robert E. Stafford, a wealthy cattleman and banker. He was a key organizer of the Columbus Meat & Ice Co. What's wild is that Stafford…

  • Colorado County Courthouse · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Colorado County Courthouse. This classic revival building--erected in 1890-1891 in form of a Greek cross--is now one of 28 oldest existing courthouses in Texas' 254 counties. Contractors Martin,…

  • Ilse-Rau House · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're cruising past the Ilse-Rau House, a real-time capsule of Victorian Texas architecture. Built in 1887 by Henry Ilse, this farmer and saloon owner clearly had an eye for style. Check out that symmetrical Victorian…

  • Joseph V. Frnka · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Columbus, Texas, where Joseph V. Frnka built his home back in 1906. He was a self-taught lawyer who became a business leader, helped found the Columbus Lions club, and served in the Texas House of…

  • Columbus Waterworks · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Columbus, where water has been a story for nearly two centuries. Back in 1824, the Mexican government granted land and water rights here, laying the groundwork for this frontier town. But it…

  • Stage Lines Through Columbus · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Columbus, a town that was a vital crossroads for Texas stagecoach lines back in the 19th century. From mail delivery to passengers and freight, lines like Brown and Tarbox, and Sawyer and Risher,…

  • Brunson Building · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Columbus, where Charles Brunson, a German immigrant who arrived in America in 1845, made his mark. Around 1867, he opened a saloon here that did so well, he built this very building in 1891,…

  • Brick Store House · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of the Brick Store House, a building that served as a vital mercantile hub for decades. From 1840 to 1867, it was owned by Thomas W. Harris, a physician who also ran the store. After Harris,…

  • Columbus State Bank · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Columbus State Bank, a building with a long financial history. When it was built in 1919, they kept a wall from the 1857 Boedecker Building, which had housed the city's very first bank back in…

  • Rosenfield Building · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Rosenfield Building in Columbus, a structure with roots going way back to 1837. It wasn't always this building, though. John Rosenfield bought the property in 1872 and around 1896, he put up this…

  • Ehrenwerth-Ramsey-Untermeyer Building · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Ehrenwerth-Ramsey-Untermeyer Building. Henry M. Ehrenwerth built this two-story commercial structure in 1873-75 of bricks from a local kiln. Designed for his mercantile store, it housed L.G. Smith's…

  • Confederate Memorial Museum · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Confederate Memorial Museum. Built 1883 by town of Columbus, using over 400,000 handmade bricks. Has 32-inch walls. Served as water tower and fire house until 1912. Since 1926 owned by…

  • Caledonia Lodge No. 68, A. F. & A. M. · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Columbus, and right here, you're passing the site of Caledonia Lodge No. 68. Organized way back in 1850, this Masonic lodge was chartered in 1851. But they didn't just meet and greet. On February…

  • The Colorado County Citizen · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past The Colorado County Citizen. Established 1857 by Ben, James, and Hicks Baker, the "Citizens" was named by the Rev. J. J. Scherer, minister-educator.

  • City of Columbus · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Columbus, Texas, which holds the distinction of being the oldest surveyed and platted Anglo-American town in the entire state! It all started around Christmas of 1821, when settlers like the…

  • The Girl Who Made Bullets for the Alamo Wrote It All Down · 0.2 mi

    The house at 602 Washington Street belonged to the most valuable civilian eyewitness early Texas produced. Dilue Rose came here as a child in 1833, and when the Revolution came she helped mold bullets for the men…

  • Five Thousand Santa Clauses in a House on Washington Street · 0.2 mi

    A block off the courthouse square, in a small house at 604 Washington with a hand-painted mural on the outside, live more than five thousand Santa Clauses. Mary Elizabeth Youens Hopkins was handed a Santa in 1913, when…

  • Dilue Rose Harris · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a remarkable Texas writer's home. Dilue Rose Harris, born in 1825, arrived in Texas in 1833. She married young, at almost 14, and later moved to Columbus with her husband Ira in 1845.…

  • Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration of the American Declaration of Independence · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Columbus, Colorado County, where settlers in Stephen F. Austin's first colony were trying to celebrate American Independence, even though Mexican authorities didn't like it. On July 4th, 1826, folks…

  • The Columbus Tap Railway · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Columbus, and right here, history was almost rerouted! The Buffalo Bayou, Brazos & Colorado Railway was the first in Texas, built in the 1850s. But it bypassed Columbus, heading to Alleyton…

  • William B. DeWees · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Columbus, and right here is the story of William B. DeWees, an early Texas settler who arrived way back in 1822, when Texas was still part of Mexico. He was one of Stephen F. Austin's original 300…

  • Dilue Rose and Ira Albert Harris House · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Dilue Rose and Ira Albert Harris House, built in 1858 right here in Columbus. The Harris family moved here in 1845, and Ira served as both county sheriff and city marshall. But Dilue was a…

  • Mansfield, Joseph Jefferson · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the birthplace of Joseph Jefferson Mansfield, a man whose life spanned West Virginia, Eagle Lake, and eventually the halls of Congress. Born Beauregard Mansfield in 1861, his name was changed to…

  • Abram Alley Log Cabin · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a historic log cabin, built in late 1836 by Abram Alley. Alley arrived in Texas in the 1820s, joining Stephen F. Austin's original colony. During the Texas War for Independence, he joined…

  • Bartels-Wirtz House · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Bartels-Wirtz House in Columbus, a beautiful Victorian cottage built around 1886. Look for its unique star-tracery gable window and delicate bargeboard trim. Anton Bartels, a German immigrant…

  • Homesite of Fannie Baker Darden · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're cruising past the homesite of Fannie Baker Darden, the self-proclaimed 'Poet Laureate of Columbus.' Born in 1829, she was the daughter of a hero from the Texas War for Independence. After marrying an attorney and…

  • Harrison, Robert Henry, M.D. · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a remarkable Texas doctor and civic leader, Robert Henry Harrison. Born in Georgia in 1826, he earned his medical degree in Ohio and served as a colonel in the Confederate Army. After the…

  • Harrison-Hastedt House · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Harrison-Hastedt House in Columbus. What you're seeing started as a humble two-room house back in 1861. Fast forward to the 1880s, and Jesse Joyner Harrison decided it was time for an upgrade. He…

  • Site of Railway Hospital · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Columbus, and right here is the site of an early railway hospital. Dr. Robert Henry Harrison, a graduate of two medical colleges, moved here in the 1870s as the Galveston, Harrisburg & San Antonio…

  • Saint John's Episcopal Church · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're cruising through Columbus, and right here is the site of Saint John's Episcopal Church. Episcopal services first flickered to life in this town way back in 1848, with traveling clergy holding services when they…

  • Toliver-Cone House · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Toliver-Cone House, a beautiful example of Texas vernacular architecture. Local leader James Toliver, a Civil War veteran, built this home around 1870 using the best pine and cypress from his own…

  • Townsend-West House · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're passing the Townsend-West House, a real Victorian jewel right here in Columbus. Built in 1890, it's a stunning example of Eastlake style architecture. This house has seen some Texas history! It was home to Marcus…

  • Site of Columbus Female Seminary · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Columbus, and right here stands the site of the first organized school in town. Back on February 3rd, 1851, the Caledonia Lodge founded this Female Seminary. It operated for many years, teaching…

  • First United Methodist Church of Columbus · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of the First United Methodist Church of Columbus, one of the very first Protestant congregations in all of Texas, founded way back in Austin's original colony. Imagine, this community was…

  • Hahn House · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of the Hahn House, built around 1868. In 1890, Peter Hahn, who bought the place in 1885, moved the original cottage and built this impressive two-story Victorian home, complete with a…

  • Stein-Girndt House · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Stein-Girndt House, built in 1897 by local merchant Edward Stein. After his death, the house passed to his sister-in-law, Annie Girndt. Her husband, H.H., sold honey from his downtown store and…

  • Asa Townsend · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Colorado County, passing the site of where Asa Townsend lived. Born in South Carolina in 1795, Townsend moved his large family to this area in 1838. He was a civic leader, serving on the committee…

  • Tate-Senftenberg-Brandon Home · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Tate-Senftenberg-Brandon Home, a house that's seen some serious Texas history. It started as a simple cottage in 1867, built by Phocian Tate. Then, in 1887, merchant A. Senftenberg bought it,…

  • Beason's (Beeson's) Crossing · 0.3 mi

    You're driving past Columbus, Texas, where a pioneer named Benjamin Beason set up shop way back in 1822. One of Stephen F. Austin's original colonists, he built a home, an inn, and businesses right here by the Colorado…

  • Benjamin Beason's Crossing of the Colorado River · 0.3 mi

    You're driving through history right now, near where General Sam Houston and the Texas Army made camp back in March of 1836. Houston was leading his troops on a strategic retreat, moving from Gonzales all the way toward…

  • Ben Marshall Baker · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the former home of Ben Marshall Baker, a man who shaped Texas news for half a century. He and his brothers founded the 'Colorado Citizens' newspaper right here in Columbus back in 1857. When the…

  • General Store, Old · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of what was once a bustling, spicy-smelling general store in Columbus. This building went up in 1892, built by H. S. Williams, who was both a merchant and the city mayor. For over thirty…

  • Hancock-Heller Home · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past a piece of Colorado County history right now, the Hancock-Heller Home. The original cypress-walled structure went up in 1865, built by John S. Hancock, the county tax collector. Notice the classic…

  • Hunt-Cassell House · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Hunt-Cassell House, the oldest home still standing in Columbus. <break time="400ms"/> It was built around 1858. <break time="400ms"/> Captain William G. Hunt bought it in 1859 and lived here…

  • Keith-Traylor House · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Keith-Traylor House in Columbus. Civil War veteran John Wilbur Keith and his wife moved here in 1870 and built this house about 1871. They sold it in 1875 to Charles W. Traylor, a local merchant.…

  • Tait, Charles William, Home · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the former home of Charles William Tait, a man who wore many hats in early Texas. He served as a military surgeon with the 4th Texas Cavalry during the Civil War. After returning home, he finished…

  • Delaney, William Shelby · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Columbus, and right here is the site of the Delaney family homestead. William S. Delaney arrived here in 1860, already a lawyer who'd taught college in Kentucky and practiced law in Tennessee. He…

  • Maigne-Walther House · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Maigne-Walther House, built in 1869 by Charles Mainge. Notice the raised cottage style with its parapeted balustrade. The house, constructed with pine siding and floors, cypress interior walls,…

  • Columbus Church of Christ · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Columbus Church of Christ, a building that's seen a lot of history. It began life as St. John's Episcopal Church, built by a local parish organized back in the 1850s. After years of meeting in…

  • The Montgomery House · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Montgomery House, a classic example of post-Civil War Texas architecture. Built around 1867 by land agent A. J. Gallilee, its L-shape design features a handmade brick foundation and native oak…

  • Papenberg, William Christian, Home of · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the former home of William Christian Papenberg, a man who served Colorado County faithfully for decades. Born in Illinois in 1870, Papenberg came to Texas in 1899 as a teacher. He settled in Columbus…

  • Carriage Step on Prairie Street · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a carriage step on Prairie Street in Columbus. These stone blocks were a courtesy for guests stepping out of carriages and a symbol of prominent families. The step here, at the former…

  • Johnson, Jesse H. · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the resting place of Jesse H. Johnson, a man who wore many hats across Texas and the world. Born in West Virginia, Johnson arrived in Columbus in 1868. By 1869, he was the Sheriff of Colorado County.…

  • William Demetris Lacey · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site where William Demetris Lacey first set up shop in what is now Columbus. He arrived here from Kentucky back in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1831</say-as>, opening a tanyard and…

  • McCormick, George, Home of Texas Attorney General · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the home of George McCormick, a man who wore many hats in early Texas. This cottage, built way back in 1868, was his family home for over a century. McCormick arrived in Texas in 1858, served in the…

  • Dick-Gillette House · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Dick-Gillette House in Columbus, a beautiful example of Classical Revival architecture. After a fire in 1907 wiped out his home, Leon Dick built this one in 1908. He was a generous host, even…

  • Simpson-Williamson House · 0.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Simpson-Williamson House in Columbus. This home was built in 1882 for Friench Simpson, a man who wore many hats: farmer, banker, mayor of Columbus, state Senator, and even a poet. After the…

  • Youens-Hopkins House · 0.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Youens-Hopkins House, a real piece of 1860s Texas frontier architecture. Built from local cypress, pine, and handmade bricks, this cottage has seen a lot of history. It started with James Hodges,…

  • The Isgrig House · 0.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Isgrig House, a beautiful example of late Victorian architecture built in 1898. Notice the art glass windows, shingled gables, and ornate gingerbread trim. The owner, John H. Luck, hand-picked…

  • George Glenn · 0.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a remarkable act of loyalty and bravery. George Glenn, born into slavery in 1850, became a skilled ranch hand and trail cook. In 1870, he accompanied his employer, Bob Johnson, on a…

  • Site of Robson's Castle and Columbus, Texas, Meat and Ice Company · 0.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a Texas original: Robson's Castle! Robert Robson, a Scottish immigrant, built this incredible concrete castle right here in 1839. Imagine running water, a roof garden, and even a moat…

  • Columbus' Old City Cemetery · 0.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Columbus' Old City Cemetery, a resting place for some of the earliest Texans. The oldest headstone here dates back to 1853, but the city acquired this seven-acre site as an existing graveyard in…

  • Whitfield, Exum Philip · 0.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Columbus area, home of Exum Philip Whitfield, a man who wore many hats from 1858 to 1887. He was a business leader, merchant, physician, and farmer. Whitfield also served as president of the…

  • The Town That Voted Itself Out of Existence · 0.8 mi

    Columbus got so violent that the town gave up on governing itself. It started with a sheriff's race. On August 3rd, 1898, Larkin Hope — a constable, and the favorite to win — was shot dead in downtown Columbus by an…

  • The Columbus Shootout · 0.8 mi

    Imagine the town square, not quiet like today, but filled with gunfire. In the late 1800s, Columbus was the scene of a bloody feud between the Staffords and the Townsends, two prominent cattle families. The violence…

  • Burning the Town to Save Texas · 0.8 mi

    In the spring of 1836, Columbus was a scene of terror and resolve. Sam Houston’s Texan army was retreating eastward from General Santa Anna’s forces, and the families of Columbus were right in their path. This was the…

  • The Congressman Shot Outside Brunson's Saloon · 0.8 mi

    In July of 1867 Caleb Claiborne Herbert took a room at the Bonds Hotel on the south side of the courthouse square. He was a planter, a former state senator, and he had just spent the war representing Texas in the…

  • Stafford Opera House · 0.8 mi

    The Stafford Opera House has stood in Columbus since 1886. In its day it sat a thousand people and booked the big touring names — Harry Houdini worked that stage. Then time did what time does, and the place fell apart:…

  • Columbus, TX · 0.8 mi

    A notable event in Columbus's history occurred during the fight for Texas independence when Sam Houston and his men camped along the banks of the Colorado River near Beason's Crossing. Following the Battle of the Alamo,…

  • The Opera House on the Prairie · 0.8 mi

    As you pass through Columbus, it's hard to miss the big brick building on the courthouse square, the one with the fancy two-tone brickwork and arched windows. That's the Stafford Opera House, and it's a survivor.…

  • The River of Gravel · 0.8 mi

    As you drive along I-10 near Columbus, look out your window. You'll see huge ponds and massive piles of sand and rock. This isn't just dirt; it's the foundation of modern Texas, and it's a story of geology and…

  • Ninety Years of Pointing at the Wrong Tree · 0.8 mi

    By the Colorado County courthouse in Columbus stands a marker to a tree. Every guidebook will tell you this is where the Republic of Texas opened its first district court in this county, in April of eighteen…

  • Three Entries From the Colorado County Ledger · 0.8 mi

    The county keeps a running list of its killings, and reading three of them in a row tells you more than any one of them does. The eighteenth of August, 1879: James Hitchfeldt stands inside a butcher shop in Columbus and…

  • Cookin' With Love Since 1979 · 0.8 mi

    If you want a meal rooted in real Columbus rather than the highway chains, Schobel's Restaurant at 2020 Milam Street is the family table. Brothers Bob and Andy Schobel, along with their wives Mary Jane and Donna, opened…

  • He Made the Moon Disappear to Get Dinner · 0.8 mi

    A surveyor named this town for Christopher Columbus back in eighteen thirty-seven, so the man's voyages are fair game — and this is the best story in them. It is not the first voyage. It is the fourth, and it went…

  • He Wasn’t Wrong About the Shape. He Was Wrong About the Size. · 0.8 mi

    This town carries Christopher Columbus's name, courtesy of a surveyor in eighteen thirty-seven, so let's clear up the thing most people get backwards about him. The old story says everyone thought the world was flat and…

  • The Flagship Became a Fort · 0.8 mi

    Since this town was named for Christopher Columbus, here is what happened to the ship everybody can name. The Santa María did not come home. On Christmas Eve of fourteen ninety-two, off the north coast of Hispaniola,…

  • They Brought Him Home in Chains · 0.8 mi

    The name of this town honors Christopher Columbus, so here is the part of his life that does not make the school pageant. Finding the islands was the easy half. Spain also made him governor of them, and at governing he…

  • He Never Once Set Foot in the Future United States · 0.8 mi

    Here is a tangent worth having in a Texas town named Columbus. In four voyages across twelve years, Christopher Columbus never set foot on the mainland of what would become the United States. Not once. Trace where he…

  • Colorado County Feud · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    The Colorado County Feud, a series of gun battles between members of the Townsend family of Columbus, started during the 1898 Colorado County sheriff's race. The election pitted incumbent sheriff Sam Reese against his…

  • Glenn, George · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    George Glenn, black traildriver, son of Wash Glenn, was born into slavery on March 8, 1850, probably in Colorado County, Texas. He was raised on the ranch of Robert B. Johnson of Columbus and trained in ranching…

  • Williamson, Robert McAlpin [Three Legged Willie] · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Robert McAlpin Williamson, son of Peter B. and Ann (McAlpin) Williamson, was born in Georgia in 1804 or 1806. When he was fifteen years old, his school career was terminated by an illness which confined him to his home…

  • All in the Family · 1.1 mi

    In Columbus, the Schobel name hangs over a restaurant on Milam Street and runs through the Cardinals' football history. In nineteen seventy nine, brothers Bob and Andy Schobel and their wives, Mary Jane and Donna,…

  • Alley, Rawson · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what is now Colorado County, near Columbus. Back in the 1820s, this was the edge of the frontier. Rawson Alley, one of Stephen F. Austin's original colonists, arrived here from Missouri in 1821.…

  • Bostick, Sion Record · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what was once the heart of the Texas Revolution, and right here, a young man named Sion Record Bostick was making history. Born in Alabama in 1819, he arrived in Texas as a boy and was barely 17…

  • Bowers, John Henry · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what was once the Republic of Texas, and right here, in Columbus, you're passing through the stomping grounds of Dr. John Henry Bowers. Arriving in Texas in 1836, Bowers was on his way to join the…

  • Cummins, James · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving near Columbus, Texas, right on the Colorado River. Back in the 1820s, this was the frontier, and James Cummins was one of Stephen F. Austin's first settlers, the Old Three Hundred. He was granted land…

  • Gilleland, Daniel · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what was once the wild Texas frontier, and right here, near Columbus, is where Daniel Gilleland and his family made their stand. In 1821, Gilleland was part of the vanguard of Austin's Colony,…

  • Herbert, Claiborne C. · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving near Columbus, Texas, a place that saw a dramatic end for one of its prominent citizens. Claiborne C. Herbert was a wealthy planter and a Texas state senator just before the Civil War, even voting to…

  • Nelson, James · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what is now Colorado County, near Columbus. Back in November 1821, a man named James Nelson arrived on the schooner Lively, ready to build cabins and farm for Stephen F. Austin's new colony. He…

  • Nelson, Julia Bullard · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Columbus right now, a town that became a beacon of hope thanks to Julia Bullard Nelson. After losing her husband and son in Minnesota, Julia, a teacher, felt called to help newly freed Black…

  • Secrest, Washington Hampton · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, and right here, Washington Hampton Secrest was granted land back in 1838. But Secrest wasn't just a settler; he was a scout and a ranger during the Texas Revolution, often working…

  • Shropshire, John Samuel · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, Texas, where John Samuel Shropshire once lived. He was a lawyer and a Confederate officer who moved to Columbus in 1854. Though he owned slaves and a large plantation, he…

  • Smith, George Washington · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, and right here is Columbus, where George Washington Smith made his home. He was a prominent lawyer and judge, even serving on the Texas Supreme Court. But his career took a sharp…

  • Wallace, Joseph Worthington Elliot · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Columbus, a town whose history is tied to Joseph Worthington Elliot Wallace. After serving in the Seminole War and Mississippi militia, Wallace came to Texas in 1830. He joined Stephen F. Austin's…

  • Wirtz, Alvin Jacob · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, the birthplace of Alvin Jacob Wirtz. Born right here in Columbus back in 1888, Wirtz became a lawyer and a state senator. But his biggest impact? He was the driving force behind…

  • Columbus, TX · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Columbus, Texas, a town with roots stretching back to 1821. It started as Beeson's Ferry, named after Benjamin Beeson who ran a ferry across the Colorado River. Stephen F. Austin himself…

  • DeWees, William Bluford · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    William Bluford DeWees, pioneer settler and public official, was born in Virginia on September 8, 1799. He first visited Texas on a keelboat excursion up the Red River in 1819. In late 1821 he accompanied a group of…

  • Davidson, Alexander Hamilton · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, Texas, not far from Columbus, where Alexander Hamilton Davidson made his home. He was a wealthy lawyer and landowner, but when Texas debated secession in 1861, Davidson initially…

  • Gay, Bettie Munn · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what is now Colorado County, and right here is where Bettie Munn Gay managed a 1,700-acre farm after her husband died in 1880. But she wasn't just a rancher. She was a fierce advocate for farmers…

  • Harrison, Robert Henry · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Columbus, Texas, a town that owes much of its medical history to Dr. Robert Henry Harrison. He arrived here in 1869, but after some additional training in Alabama, he returned to Columbus and…

  • McCormick, George · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, Texas, where George McCormick built a life after serving the Confederacy. He enlisted in 1861, fighting in Waul's Legion. During the Battle of Harrisburg in July 1864, McCormick…

  • McLeary, James Harvey · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, the heart of Texas cattle country, but did you know this area was also home to a man who shaped education policy across the state? James Harvey McLeary settled here in the late…

  • Nettles, Timothy Dargan · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Freestone County, near Columbus, where Timothy Dargan Nettles answered the call to arms. On August 17, 1861, he enlisted as a private in a cavalry unit that would soon head west for the…

  • Rivers, Robert Jones · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, and right here is where Robert Jones Rivers, a renowned Texas attorney and judge, settled in the late 1840s. He was famous for his incredible speaking ability, though sadly, most…

  • Tait, Charles William · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, not far from Columbus, where Dr. Charles William Tait made his home. He wasn't just any planter; Tait was a physician, a civil engineer, and even served in the Navy and the…

  • Townsend, Asa · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, and right here is where Asa Townsend decided to put down roots. He arrived in 1838 with his wife and nine children, traveling all the way from Florida by oxcart. Townsend became a…

  • Colorado County Citizen · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Columbus, the home of the Colorado County Citizen newspaper. It was founded way back in 1857 by James Davis Baker. This paper wasn't just local news; it was a player in history. It supported Sam…

  • Delaney, William Shelby · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Columbus, Texas, a town that became home to William Shelby Delaney in 1860. He'd already served as a lawyer and teacher back in Kentucky and Tennessee, but here in Texas, his career took a turn.…

  • Fleming, James Richard · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, and right here in Columbus is where James Richard Fleming landed after the Civil War. He fought under Nathan Bedford Forrest before coming to Texas in 1867. He bought the Columbus…

  • Foard, Robert Levi · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what is now Colorado County, near Columbus, where Robert Levi Foard made his home. Foard was a lawyer who answered the call to defend Texas during the Civil War. He enlisted as a first lieutenant…

  • McCormick, George, Jr. · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Columbus, Texas, the birthplace of George McCormick, Jr., a name you might not know, but his work kept Texas rolling. Born in 1872, McCormick became a railroad engineer and inventor, graduating…

  • Pinchback, John H. · 1.1 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what is now Colorado County, and right here is where John H. Pinchback carved out his life in Texas. Arriving in 1836, he and his brother James quickly got land grants. By 1840, John was already a…

  • The Rev. Jacob Scherer · 1.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Columbus, and right here, you're passing the final resting place of the Reverend Jacob Scherer. Born in North Carolina in 1785, Scherer moved to Texas in 1851. He's credited with founding the first…

  • Colorado County · 1.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Colorado County, a place that's been on the map since the very beginning of Texas. This land was part of Stephen F. Austin's First Colony, and the county itself was officially created on March 17,…

  • Columbus Odd Fellows Rest Cemetery · 1.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Columbus Odd Fellows Rest Cemetery, a place with a history as turbulent as the Colorado River nearby. In July 1871, land was deeded for this cemetery, and it quickly became the final resting…

  • Site of the Camp (Ramirez y Sesma) · 1.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Columbus, Texas, right where history happened during the Texas Revolution. Look around – you're passing the site where a division of General Santa Anna's army, led by General Joaquín Ramírez y…

  • 2024 UIL 3A Division 1 Football State Champions · 1.4 mi

    Columbus High School (Columbus, TX): Most recent: 48-14 over Malakoff · 2024 3A Division 1 final.

  • The Small-Town Cardinals and the Schobel Football Dynasty · 1.4 mi

    For a town of a few thousand people, Columbus has thrown a remarkable number of players into the NFL, and most of them share a last name. Aaron, Matt and Bo Schobel all came up through Columbus High School as Cardinals…

  • The Night Columbus Stormed the Field Two Minutes Early · 1.4 mi

    On October 17, 1952, Columbus met Giddings, the defending Class A state champion. Giddings had gone 15-0 in 1951, beaten Columbus 40-0 along the way, and had not lost a game in about two years — a winning streak of 21…

  • The Playoff Win Sealed by a Touchdown the Other Team Allowed · 1.4 mi

    In the 1993 Class 3A state quarterfinals, Columbus and Waco Robinson were tied 12-12 with under six minutes to play. Texas high school football had no overtime until the 1996 rules change; a playoff tie was broken on…

  • Scoreless Beginnings: Columbus Football's First Two Seasons · 1.4 mi

    Columbus High School fielded its first official football team in 1926, coached by school superintendent James Harbert Wooten. With no field to play or practice on and a roster new to the game, the team cancelled its…

  • The 1946 Regional Champions Won the Last Game There Was to Win · 1.4 mi

    In 1946 Columbus went 10-1-1 behind the passing combination of back Ernest Baumgart Jr. and end Johnny Mach, all-district three straight years. Needing to stay ahead of Schulenburg in District 33-B's south zone,…

  • 33 Wins, Six Losses, and Not One Playoff Game · 1.4 mi

    From 1976 through 1979, Carl Andress's Columbus teams went a combined 33-6-1 and never played a playoff game, because until 1982 only the district champion advanced. 1976: 9-1, ranked eighth in the state, the lone loss…

  • Wallace, Colonel Joseph Worthington Elliott · 1.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're passing the site of a man who wore many hats in early Texas. Colonel Joseph Worthington Elliott Wallace, originally from Philadelphia, first served as the U.S. Consul to the colonies here. Then, he joined Stephen…

  • Hebrew Benevolence Society Cemetery · 1.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Hebrew Benevolence Society Cemetery in Columbus. It might surprise you to learn that despite its name, this cemetery was never actually affiliated with any specific Hebrew Benevolent Society. It…

  • Glidden, TX · 2.8 mi

    Once a bustling hub along the Southern Pacific Railroad, Glidden, Texas, has witnessed significant changes over the years. Established in 1885 by the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway, the town thrived as a…

  • A Railroad Bought a Hundred and Sixty Acres and Built a Town on It · 2.8 mi

    Most towns grow and then get a railroad. Glidden was the other way around. In 1885 the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway bought a hundred and fifty-nine and a half acres here from a man named T. J. Oaks, and…

  • Glidden · 2.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Glidden, a town born from the railroad boom. Before the tracks arrived, this area was a launching point for cattle drives north. Then, in 1882, T. J. Oakes sold land to the Galveston, Harrisburg &…

  • Glidden Baptist Church · 2.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Glidden, Colorado County, where a church has been a cornerstone of the community since the late 1800s. It started as a community church meeting in this railroad town as early as 1895. Then, in…

  • What Happens to a Railroad Town When the Railroad Stops Needing It · 2.9 mi

    Glidden did not grow up around a courthouse or a river crossing. It was built to service locomotives, and for sixty years that was enough. The shops here were the major railroad maintenance stop between Houston and El…

  • Glidden, TX · 2.9 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, just west of Columbus, and you're passing through Glidden. This town owes its existence to the railroad. It was founded in 1885 by the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio…

  • Western Swing Has a Founder, and He Was Born Right Here · 3.2 mi

    Shelly Lee Alley was born in Alleyton on July 6, 1894, to John Ross and Eliza Alley, which is to say he was born into the family the town is named for. He learned music as a child. During the First World War the Army…

  • The Fever Came In On the Daily Train · 3.2 mi

    On September 4, 1867, an Alleyton doctor reported yellow fever in town. July and August had been unusually wet across Colorado County, which gave the mosquitoes everything they needed, but mosquitoes alone do not start…

  • He Survived the Valley Campaign and a Union Prison. Then He Came Here. · 3.2 mi

    Henry Clay Everett had already used up more luck than most men get. Born in 1830 in Guyandotte, Virginia, he was running a general store when the war came, went home to Cabell County in 1861, and came out a captain of…

  • One of the Deadliest Marshals in the West Is Buried Here, and Nobody Knows Where · 3.2 mi

    Before El Paso, Dallas Stoudenmire lived in Alleyton and worked as a carpenter and a wheelwright. He was born in Alabama in 1845, went into the Confederate Army at sixteen and came out of the war with a long list of…

  • The Biggest Town in the County Was Partly an Army Camp · 3.2 mi

    Alleyton did not grow. It was manufactured, in a hurry, by one landowner and one railroad. In 1859 William Alley handed the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos and Colorado Railway a right of way across his land and set aside two…

  • Two Young Men and One Table of Books in the Back of a Drug Store · 3.2 mi

    In 1881 a twenty year old named Joseph Jefferson Mansfield got off at Alleyton with essentially nothing and took work as a farm laborer. He had been born in Wayne, Virginia, in 1861, the same year his father was killed…

  • Alleyton · 3.2 mi · Historical Marker

    Hey road-trippers! You're cruising through Alleyton, Colorado County, and you're passing through the oldest permanent settlement in this area. This town owes its start to the pioneering Alley family, who were among…

  • Alleyton · 3.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Alleyton, a town that played a vital role for the Confederacy during the Civil War. By 1860, this was the end of the line for the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos and Colorado Railroad, making it a crucial hub.…

  • Alleyton Cemetery · 3.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the historic Alleyton Cemetery, a resting place that's been part of this community since the 1850s. The oldest marked grave here belongs to T.S.M. Robinson, who died in 1852 at just 22 years old.…

  • Olive Branch Baptist Church and Rocky Chapel School · 3.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Glidden, near the site of the Olive Branch Baptist Church and Rocky Chapel School. The church was established in the 1860s and moved here in 1896. The following year, the Rocky Chapel School…

  • Alley Cemetery · 5.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Alley Cemetery. The Alley Cemetery, also known as the Glaiser Cemetery and Alley Family Cemetery, is the final resting place for some of the first Anglo settlers of Texas. The cemetery was not…

  • Mentz-Bernardo Community · 6.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through the Mentz-Bernardo Community, a place shaped by German immigrants starting as early as the 1830s. They bypassed formal colonization efforts, choosing this region for its agricultural potential. By…

  • Riesing Cemetery · 6.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Riesing Cemetery, established way back in 1872. It's recognized today as a Historic Texas Cemetery, with that designation given in 2005.

  • Zimmerscheidt-Leyendecker Cemetery · 7.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Zimmerscheidt-Leyendecker Cemetery, a final resting place for a German immigrant family who shaped this part of Texas. Frederick Zimmerscheidt arrived in 1832, and his daughter Josephine and her…

  • Tait Compound · 7.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Tait Compound, a place built by the hands of enslaved people. Charles William Tait, a doctor and former naval officer, arrived in Texas in 1844. He surveyed land and started the massive Sylvania…

  • Borden, Gail, Jr. · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, and right here is Borden, named for Gail Borden Jr. You might know his name from the milk carton, but his invention of condensed milk started right here in Texas. After years of…

  • Menefee, William · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what is now Colorado County, and right here is where William Menefee settled his family in 1830. This lawyer and public official was a key player in early Texas. He represented his district at the…

  • Nagel, Charles · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, and right here in Bernardo, Texas, Charles Nagel was born on August 9, 1849. He grew up in a family that opposed slavery and secession, even moving to Mexico during the Civil War.…

  • Slave Insurrections · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Texas, and you might not realize it, but this land has a history of fear and suspicion. During the years leading up to the Civil War, and even after, Texans lived with a constant dread of slave…

  • Zimmerscheidt, Margaretha Bastian [Margaret] · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, near the community that still bears her name. Right here, Margaret Zimmerscheidt made a courageous choice in 1848. In a time when Texas law gave husbands the right to physically…

  • Breeding, Benjamin Wilkens · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what was once the heart of the Texas Revolution, and right here, Benjamin Wilkens Breeding was part of the action. In 1836, he fought Santa Anna's troops at the San Felipe ferry. Later, he and a…

  • Brotherton, Robert · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what was once the Colorado District, a frontier land where settlers like Robert Brotherton arrived in 1822. Just weeks after arriving from Missouri, Brotherton was wounded in the back during a…

  • Caney Creek (Wharton County) · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, near where Caney Creek flows. This waterway, originally choked with dense cane, was once a strategic point during the Civil War. In early 1864, Confederate commander John Bankhead…

  • Heard, William Jones Elliott · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through the heart of Texas history, and right here, you're passing through the area where William J. E. Heard first settled. He arrived in Texana back in December of 1830, part of an Alabama colony…

  • Alleyton, TX · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Alleyton is on the east bank of the Colorado River and Farm Road 102 between Interstate Highway 10 and the main line of the Southern Pacific Railroad, three miles east of Columbus in central Colorado County. The area,…

  • Borden, TX · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Borden is between Interstate Highway 10/U.S. Highway 90 and the Southern Pacific Railroad, four miles northeast of Weimar in southwestern Colorado County. Before the Civil War the area was known as Harvey's Creek…

  • Colorado County · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, a place that's seen human history for about 12,000 years! Imagine French explorers, lost and looking for Fort St. Louis, camping right here on Skull Creek back in 1687. Later,…

  • Cook, James · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what is now Colorado County, near the site of future Matagorda. Right here, James Cook, one of Stephen F. Austin's original colonists, was granted land in 1824. He was a farmer and stock raiser,…

  • Farmers' Home Improvement Society · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, and right here, in Oakland, a powerful organization was born. In 1890, Robert Lloyd Smith founded the Farmers' Home Improvement Society. This wasn't just about farming; it was a…

  • Ijams, Basil Gaither · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, and right here is where Basil Gaither Ijams made his mark. He arrived in Texas in 1835, just in time to join Stephen F. Austin's army and fight in the Texas Revolution. He even…

  • Leyendecker, Johann Friedrich · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Colorado County, and right here in Frelsburg is where Johann Friedrich Leyendecker made his mark. Born in Germany, he came to Texas as a boy and eventually served in the Civil War. But after the…

  • Matthews, John · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what was once Matthews Prairie, in Colorado County. Right here, John Matthews built a plantation that became a small community. Arriving in Texas around the Revolution, he settled on the east side…

  • Buescher, TX · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Buescher was on the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway from Alleyton to Smith Point, four miles north of Columbus in Colorado County. The area surrounding Buescher included lands originally granted to James…

  • Frelsburg, TX · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Frelsburg (Frelsburgh) is at the intersection of Farm roads 109 and 1291 in the northern corner of Colorado County. The community was founded around 1837 by Capt. William Frels and his brother John, who immigrated to…

  • Osage, TX (Colorado County) · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Osage is on the north and middle forks of Harvey Creek, four miles northeast of Weimar in northwest Colorado County. Much of the land was originally included in grants to Henry Austin , a cousin of Stephen F. Austin .…

  • Pieper, Peter · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Peter Pieper, an early land promoter in Frelsburg, Colorado County, Texas, son of Casper Pieper, was born about 1793, probably in Münster, Westphalia. He was a brickmason by trade and immigrated to Texas in 1833. He was…

  • Provident City, TX · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Provident City was a land promotional endeavor located between Goldenrod and Sandy creeks near the southern tip of Colorado County. It was founded in 1909 on lands owned by the Provident Land Company of Kansas City and…

  • Shaws Bend, TX · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Shaws Bend is on Farm Road 1890 in a bend of the Colorado River five miles northwest of Columbus in north central Colorado County. The settlement was named for Josiah Shaw, who, with his wife, Delinda Fitzgerald Shaw,…

  • Boggy Creek (Colorado County) · 7.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving near Boggy Creek in Colorado County. This spot got its name in 1887 when the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad built a turntable here. The area was so swampy, they called it Boggy Tank, and the name…

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