History
Ben Milam
Benjamin Rush Milam, born in Kentucky 1788. Soldier in the War of 1812. Trader with the Texas Comanche Indians, 1818. Colonel in the Long Expedition in 1820. Empresario from 1826 to 1835. Benjamin Rush Milam participated in the capture of Goliad, October 9, 1835; was killed in San Antonio December 7, 1835 while commanding the Texas forces which later captured the town.
History
Bryant Station
Pioneer village of Milam County established as an Indian trading post by Major Benjamin F. Bryant, frontiersman who had commanded a company in the Battle of San Jacinto. Appointed Indian Agent in 1842 by Sam Houston, President of the Republic of Texas. Little River Crossing on trail and stage routes. U. S. Post Office, 1848-1874
History
Buckholts Brethren Church
As early as 1848, Bohemian and Moravian immigrants of the Unity of the Brethren faith arrived in Texas. The Protestant denomination began with Czech reformer John (Jan) Hus, and when Buckholts residents held their first Brethren services in 1894, they used the Czech language. The Rev. Adolph Chlumsky led the first services for the group, which in 1907 formally organized the Czech Moravian Church.
History
Buckholts SPJST Lodge Hall
In 1879, Central Texas Czechs organized Slovanska Podporujici Jednota Statu Texas (SPJST), a fraternal society that promoted social activities and insurance benefits for its members. SPJST members from Cameron, Marak and Buckholts established Lodge No. 15 in October 1907.
History
Burlington Cemetery
Members of the German Evangelical Lutheran Church of Burlington established this cemetery in 1917. Land for the cemetery once belonged to Michael and John Jones, founders of the town of Burlington. The church purchased the cemetery property from John Helpert, who acquired it from the Jones family. Neighboring St.
History
Bushdale Community
The community of Bushdale was founded in this area of Milam County by German immigrants in the 1870s. Within ten years the population of the county doubled and the Bushdale area developed into a thriving farming community. A community cemetery was established on land owned by John and Johanna Broeckl. In 1878, school trustees Herman Henniger, John Timmerman, Sr.
History
City of Rockdale
Rockdale began as a railroad town in 1874 along a new line of the International & Great Northern. It grew quickly as a shipping point and soon boasted churches, schools, cotton gins, grist mills, an opera house, a bank and newspaper. The City of Rockdale formally organized in 1875. Work on a city hall began at this site in 1895 on the design of Austin architect A.O. Watson.
Architecture
Coffield House
Beginning in the late 1920s, the use of petrified wood in construction became popular in Texas and throughout the American Southwest. This was due in part to the design of National Park Service buildings in the West which utilized natural materials and style which came to be known as "NPS Rustic." Residences built or clad with petrified wood were sometimes called "stone tree houses.
History
Daniel and Precilla Gilleland
Among the first Anglo American settlers to come to Texas with colonizer Stephen F. Austin, Daniel (b. 1795) and Precilla Boatwright (b. 1803) Gilleland were members of Austin's Old Three Hundred colony. The couple and their infant daughter, along with relatives in the Kuykendall and Boatwright families, left their homes in Arkansas Territory and arrived in Texas in December 1821.
Architecture
Dr. Nathan Cass House ("Ne Plus Ultra")
Constructed in 1895 as the residence of noted Cameron physician and community leader Dr. Nathan Cass (1849-1906), this house is an outstanding example of Victorian architectural testes. Exhibiting rich Queen Anne and Eastlake style elements, the house features two-story gallery porches with elegant woodwork details, projecting bays and decorative gable ends.
History
First Girl's Tomato Club in Texas
The first Girl's Tomato Clubs in Texas were organized in 1912 in Milam County to acquaint young women in rural areas with tomato production and canning techniques. At the request of the United States Department of Agriculture, Mrs. Edna Westbrook Trigg, a local high school principal, agreed to undertake the project.
History
First National Bank of Cameron
Two banks operated in Cameron prior to the establishment of the First National Bank. The Buckholts Exchange Commission, a small frontier deposit office, faltered during the Civil War, and the Milam County Bank closed during the panic of 1895.
History
First Presbyterian Church of Maysfield
Organized in August 1873 by the Rev. Levi Tenney (1823-1907), with nine members. One of two original ruling elders was early settler T. N. Mayes (1812-1891), donor of townsite of Maysfield, which was named for him. The congregation erected this building, its first, in 1883; it was dedicated in 1884 by Dr. S. A. King of Waco. The first resident pastor (1886) was the Rev. J. K. P.
History
George Green
(Star and Wreath) San Jacinto veteran, Texas War for Independence. Ranger, surveyor, honored citizen of Milam County. Erected by the State of Texas, 1962.
History
George Sessions Perry
The son of Andrew and Laura Perry, George Sessions Perry was born May 5, 1910, in Rockdale. In 1933, he married Claire Hodges of Beaumont. Four years later, he published the first in a long line of fiction and non-fiction stories and novels, many of which were based on people and events from his growing-up years in Rockdale.
History
Hope Lutheran Church
Founded in 1890, this congregation began with twelve charter members led by German missionary Julius Schroeder. Early worship services were held in homes and in a local school building. The Rev. H. F. Daude was called to serve the church in 1891, and in 1901 the first sanctuary was erected. It was replaced by a second structure in 1925.
Transport
International & Great Northern Railroad Passenger Depot
Three rail lines largely contributed to Rockdale's early commercial development, and of the three, the International & Great Northern (I&GN) made the biggest impact. This former I&GN passenger depot opened in 1906. It survived various changes to the rail company, including its transition to the Missouri Pacific line in 1956.
History
Jewish Cemetery
The International & Great Northern Railroad reached the new town of Rockdale in January 1874. Among the early residents were brothers Benjamin and Joseph Lowenstein, who opened a mercantile from a tent before the railroad arrived. They and their families were part of a larger contingent of Jewish settlers in the area.
History
John Garner
Texas War for Independence veteran. He helped destroy Vince's Bridge, April 21, 1836. Erected by the State of Texas 1962.
History
La Recluta and La Escuelita
La Recluta and La Escuelita Jose Leal received six leagues of land in this area in 1833. In 1867, coal was discovered, and the railroad reached Rockdale in 1874. Not until 1890 did the first coal mine, owned by Herman Vogel, begin operation. Others opened, and more settlers came looking for work. Many workers came from Mexico, leaving behind a revolution.
History
Lewis Family Cemetery
This family burial ground has roots in Sterling C. Robertston's colonies of the 1830s. Thomas Curry, born in 1771 in South Carolina, married Satsay (Satsa) Vann, a member of the Cherokee Indian tribe and daughter of a tribal leader.
History
Lilac
Primarily a farming and stockraising settlement, Lilac was originally known as Oak Point. Dr. John H. Graves, a dentist and planter, brought his family to Milam County in 1858. The community which developed around his farm was named Lilac in 1883 when a U. S. post office was established.
History
Little River Baptist Church and Cemetery
Organized in 1849 with eight members. Met in local homes for worship. First building was a small log cabin. Church grew as settlers entered area. In 1855 70 members joined congregation following a three-day revival. Church was center of social life here, as throughout rural Texas. Important members sat in front, in "Amen Pews." Had separate sides for men, women.
History
Locklin Cemetery
Abigale McLennan Fokes acquired a Mexican land grant here in 1835. Peter M. Mercer established a blacksmith shop in this area in the early 1840s. His burial in 1844 is the first recorded in this cemetery. Fokes later set aside this site for cemetery purposes. The cemetery is believed to be named for the extended family of early area settler William Lawson Locklin.
History
Massillon Farley
A soldier of the Texas army stationed at the camp at Harrisburg, April 21, 1836. First chief justice (county judge) of Milam County. Died in 1882.
Elsewhere in Texas
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