In 1885 German settlers in the community of Redwood founded a cemetery association. They purchased two acres of land located near Cottonwood Creek for a graveyard from A. H. and Sallie Fleming. A church and schools had been established nearby. The . . . — — Map (db m149940) HM
Opened Sept. 1, 1903. First administration building and classrooms of Southwest Texas State College. On site given by City of San Marcos. Here in 1930 Lyndon B. Johnson, a future United States president, earned his B.S. degree.
Recorded . . . — — Map (db m194822) HM
This house was constructed in 1908 by Mead & Eastwood lumber Co. for Augusta Hofheinz (1849-1903), who owned and operated a hotel he constructed in San Marcos in the late 1870s. Their son, Walter (1880-1943), supervised its construction. . . . — — Map (db m155407) HM
This street was named in 1876 for the Rev. R.H. Belvin president of Coronal Institute, 1870-1875. San Marcos, founded in 1845, was acquiring better architecture by the 1870s. This district now (1976) retains historic structures: the Belvin home, . . . — — Map (db m198735) HM
This district was created in 1974 by the city on initiative of the San Marcos Bicentennial Commission as a heritage goal during preparation for the nation's 200th birthday in 1976. — — Map (db m198739) HM
This street was named in 1876 for the Rev. R.H. Belvin, president of Coronal Institute, 1870-1875. San Marcos, founded in 1845, was acquiring better architecture by the 1870s. This district now (1976) retains historic structures: the Belvin Home, . . . — — Map (db m195613) HM
Designed by German architect Charles S. Sinz; built 1896 for the Beverly Hutchison family; later owned by L. Robertson, E.O. Bethke, R.E. Miller and M. Falls, this house in the late 1920's earned its place in history as residence of a student from . . . — — Map (db m198728) HM
This cemetery is located on a ten-acre tract of land sold by Judy and Shadrach Dixon to the San Marcos Cemetery Association in 1876. Built about 1890, this carpenter Gothic chapel has been the scene of many funerals and memorial services over the . . . — — Map (db m183759) HM
The McGehee family came to Texas from Alabama in 1847. In 1859, Charles Lewis McGehee, Jr. (1837-1929) acquired this property along the San Marcos River. He soon built this cabin (1/2 mi. E) for his wife, Sarah Jane (Humphreys), and their children. . . . — — Map (db m69115) HM
Close to the east bank of the Blanco River before its confluence with the San Marcos River, a solitary knoll protrudes from the Blackland Prairie. Its name, Indian Hill, is indicative of its historical significance going back thousands of years. The . . . — — Map (db m149169) HM
In 1813 royalist Lieutenant Colonel Ignacio Elizondo led 500 cavalrymen in pursuit of retreating Mexican and Anglo-American insurrectionists along this road.
A hacienda owner in Coahuila, Elizondo initially joined Father Miguel Hidalgo’s . . . — — Map (db m69109) HM
At the request of Antonio Cordero, interim governor of the Province of Texas, Spanish-born Felipe Roque de la Portilla (1768?-1841) established a colony here on El Camino Real. With his own family of eight, he brought 51 persons from the interior . . . — — Map (db m157441) HM
Private instruction for Black children in San Marcos may have begun as early as 1847, but the first public school was founded in 1877 with 50 pupils. The school was moved to this 7.3 acre site in 1918. Many graduates continued into higher education, . . . — — Map (db m198592) HM
The Texas influence on jazz history, especially through the careers of individual artists, is well documented. The efforts and influences of African American jazz musician Eddie Durham can be seen in many aspects of jazz music and musicians today. . . . — — Map (db m149883) HM
The gulley seen about fifty yards behind this marker originated from ruts in the El Camino Real (the Royal Road) from San Antonio to Nacogdoches. The road actually had two routes through what is now Hays County, and, creating confusion, both had . . . — — Map (db m20273) HM
Local farmers Henry Kellerman, J. H. Barbee, A. H. Fleming, I. B. Rylander, and J. H. Williams purchased this site in 1908. Through their efforts the Farmers Union Gin Company was established here under the leadership of Oscar Calvin Smith. The . . . — — Map (db m149916) HM
City's third oldest congregation. Pioneer in church-related education. Organized Oct. 25, 1857, by the Rev. Milton Caperton, a missionary. Charter members: J. J. Barbee, Mrs. Mary Barbee, Maj. and Mrs. William Barbee, Shadrack Dixon, Jonathon . . . — — Map (db m150956) HM
In 1866 Rev. Moses Johns met with Freedmen to organize the Colored Baptist Church Zion, San Marcos' First African American Congregation. In 1872 the church became a charter member of the Guadalupe Baptist Association. That same year, the Ku Klux . . . — — Map (db m198756) HM
Ed J. L. Green (1841-1924) came to San Marcos in 1859 from Arkansas. He saw the need for a bank, bought the lots on the south side of the Courthouse Square in 1878, and erected a large two-story rock building. "Green's Bank" opened May 6, 1879. He . . . — — Map (db m149840) HM
In 1848, Presbyterian settlers met in log courthouse to hear sermons by the Rev. Nathaniel P. Charlot, teacher of area's first Sunday School. In 1853, circuit rider Humphrey W. Rogers and Mr. Charlot organized this church. The Rev. J.H. Zivley . . . — — Map (db m198731) HM
First church in Hays County. Organized August 5, 1847, with 9 charter members, by circuit rider A.B.F. Kerr in home of John D. Pitts. Growing congregation moved by 1849 to a log house used for church, courthouse, and school; braved wild animals and . . . — — Map (db m198698) HM
On this site, in the log house of John D. Pitts (1797-1861), circuit rider A.B.F. Kerr (1823-81), on Aug. 5, 1847, organized the first church in Hays County. The congregation met here two years, later built a church on west side of the same block. — — Map (db m198695) HM
During the War for Texas Independence, Mexican General Antonio Gaona marched his division up this road. Gaona had received his training in the Royal Spanish Army in his native Cuba. During the Mexican Revolution against Spain, however, he . . . — — Map (db m69111) HM
T.J. Goforth, who founded a town with his name in Hays County, built this house c. 1905. Eight years later, he sold the house to Thomas Green Harris, first president of Texas State University and later president of San Marcos Baptist Academy. Harris . . . — — Map (db m198758) HM
The Tonkawa Tribe inhabited Central Texas long before the settlers of present-day San Marcos arrived in the 1840's. The Tonkawas befriended these early "Texians", making the settlers' lives considerably safer and less harsh. Chief Placido (Hashukana . . . — — Map (db m198584) HM
Local banker Lloyd G. Johnson and his wife Katherine built this house as a residence for their family in 1919-1920. The house, designed by noted architect Atlee B. Ayres, combines informal elements of the Mediterranean style with classical detailing . . . — — Map (db m198738) HM
After famed American explorer Zebulon Montgomery Pike (1779-1813) had encountered the Colorado mountain peak that bears his name, Spanish authorities decided that he had seen enough of their Southwest. Supposedly, Pike and his men had been sent by . . . — — Map (db m157439) HM
Lucious Brown "Luke" Jackson, legendary power forward/center, known for his aggressive rebounding and his penchant for shattering backboards, was born in San Marcos on October 31, 1941 and attended the Colored School on this site. Lucious also . . . — — Map (db m198593) HM
The Camino Real, also known as the Old San Antonio Road and the King's Highway, followed a route from Nacogdoches to the Rio Grande. Louis Juchereau de St. Denis (1676-1744) traveled the route to establish trade between the French in Louisiana and . . . — — Map (db m76901) HM
Situated here in 1846, at call of the United States for volunteers to help establish the Rio Grande as U.S.-Mexican boundary, after the annexation of Texas.
For centuries a campsite for Indians and other travelers of El Camino Real, San Marcos . . . — — Map (db m195615) HM
In 1983 three blocks of Belvin Street were placed on the National Register of Historic Places by the United States Department of the Interior. The concentration of Victorian and early 20th century architecture was criterion for the listing, the . . . — — Map (db m198736) HM
Erected 1867 by Chas. S. Cock (1819-1897), farmer and city mayor (1881-1883). Home is built of limestone, elm, pine, and cedar. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1968
2nd Plaque
Entered in
The National Register . . . — — Map (db m195672) HM
This structure, erected 1894-95, originally served as the office building for the San Marcos National Fish Hatchery, established in 1893 near the head of the San Marcos River. The facility closed in 1965 and the site was given to Southwest Texas . . . — — Map (db m198591) HM
Born in Tennessee, Peter C. Woods was reared by his maternal grandparents. He graduated from the Louisville, Kentucky, Medical Institute in 1842. Woods married Georgia V. Lawshe in 1846. They moved with their children, Pinckney and Sarah Cherokee, . . . — — Map (db m183757) HM
John Drayton Pitts was born at sea on August 26, 1798, during the voyage of his parents, John and Jane Pitts, from England to Charleston, South Carolina. They moved to Georgia during the War of 1812, and John D. married Eliza Permelia Daves in April . . . — — Map (db m150958) HM
The Republic of Texas Congress in Dec. 1838 called for military roads and forts from Red River to the Nueces. A road from Austin, joining El Camino Real near St. Mark's Springs, was designed for rapid communication between San Antonio and the . . . — — Map (db m70967) HM
Welcome to the San Marcos Cemetery parklands. An original 10 acres purchased in 1876 has grown to over 40 acres. Near the center of the park is a 19th century open-air chapel built for funeral and memorial services and is one of few remaining . . . — — Map (db m183760) HM
This cemetery lies within the Mexican Land Grant acquired by Thomas J. Chambers in 1834. Chambers died in 1865 and in 1867 his widow, Abbey, sold 3,000 acres containing this site to H.N. Duble at an estate sale held in Galveston. A portion of the . . . — — Map (db m183752) HM
Located on land that was granted to Juan M. De Veramendi in 1831, this tract was purchased by Edward Burleson (1793-1851) in 1844. A native of North Carolina, Burleson moved to Texas in 1830. Settling first in Bastrop County. He commanded forces . . . — — Map (db m157431) HM
Pouring forth millions of gallons of clear, icy water daily, these springs feed the San Marcos River and the 1,380-square-mile area which it drains. The immense springs rise at the Balcones Escarpment, a geologic fault line which slices across the . . . — — Map (db m68778) HM
Established 1868 by educator O.N. Hollingsworth. A private school, it was coeducational and offered military training to boys. So-named because it was a Coronal (crown) atop this hill. In 1870 the Rev. R.H. Belvin bought school, but sold it to the . . . — — Map (db m76900) HM
Early San Marcos settlers erected log house here in 1847.
Of elm, cedar and cypress, and built for church and school, the cabin had a floor of dirt, later one of puncheons (split logs). It was used as courthouse after Hays County was created . . . — — Map (db m149829) HM
Known officially as Villa de San Marcos de Neve. Established in 1807 by Mexican settlers. The population on January 6, 1808 was 81. A flood in 1808 and subsequent Indian raids led to its abandonment in 1812 — — Map (db m76023) HM
During the first half of the 20th century, San Marcos, like most communities across the United States, segregated its school facilities. Mexican-American children were first taught in a school building previously used by the community’s . . . — — Map (db m149929) HM
It might not look like one at first glance, but behind the cypress trees and steakhouse is one of the oldest dams in Texas. In 1849, General Edward Burleson constructed a "crib and rock" dam at the headwaters of the San Marcos River to power a saw . . . — — Map (db m198582) HM
Constructed as the first Hays County Jail in 1873, this small brick structure was later an annex for black prisoners. Known locally as the Calaboose, it became a neighborhood recreation center after the city of San Marcos acquired it in 1885. In the . . . — — Map (db m76897) HM
Starting in 1866 the broad valley behind this marker was the scene of cattle drives from the south Texas brush country to Kansas railheads, where livestock was then shipped to eastern markets. These old routes where always imprecise because, as one . . . — — Map (db m69113) HM
The Home
Charles Stephen Cock purchased this property on the banks of the San Marcos River in 1867 and promptly built his modest home. The limestone Greek Revival style home has two foot thick walls and is the oldest remaining residential . . . — — Map (db m195666) HM
When Hays County originated in 1848, its one public building was a log church-schoolhouse that had to serve as the courthouse, along with its other uses.
Although the San Marcos townsite, platted in 1851, contained a court square donated to the . . . — — Map (db m111158) HM
The Cabin
Dr. Eli Merriman's one-pen, hand-hewn log cabin home was built in 1846 on Fort Street (now Hopkins) about a block from the courthouse square (where the Goodyear building is currently located). At the time, it was the second home in . . . — — Map (db m195614) HM
This site near the source of the San Marcos River was part of the Thomas J. Chambers grant of 1834. The tract was sold in 1848 to Gen. Edward Burleson (1798-1851), military and political leader in early Texas, who built a cabin nearby. A later . . . — — Map (db m149827) HM
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, San Marcos firemen were summoned to a blaze by the clanging sound of a huge triangle which hung from a tree limb at the right of this entrance to the Hays County Courthouse.
The great (55 pound) . . . — — Map (db m111155) HM
William A. Thompson brought his family and slaves to Texas from Louisiana in 1850. They established plantations in Caldwell and Hays counties. With slave labor, the family built a mill on the San Marcos River near this site. Construction and . . . — — Map (db m149931) HM
The son of former slaves Joe and Elizabeth Cephas, Ulysses Cephas was born in San Marcos. He was trained at an early age to carry on the blacksmithing trade of his father. Known as "Boots" to his friends and family, Cephas eventually owned his own . . . — — Map (db m149882) HM
Wesley Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church traces its history to 1875, and is believed to be the oldest African American congregation in San Marcos. The first church building was erected on this site in 1879, and later was replaced by a . . . — — Map (db m149884) HM
In Balcones Fault, created by prehistoric earth shift. Said to have been campsite of Indians and Spaniards, especially priests who planted anaqua trees in area. By legend, robber gangs in 1820s cached Camino Real booty here.
Discovered 1893 for . . . — — Map (db m53525) HM
