Historical Markers in Comanche, Texas

Comanche County · 1936

First settled in 1854 by five families, the county, created and organized 1856, was named for Comanche Indians, Lords of Texas frontier, who were losing hunting grounds to settlers. First county seat was Cora. Comanche…

St. Matthews Episcopal Church · 1964

The earliest Episcopal worship services in the Comanche area were conducted in the late 1870s by Bishop Alexander C. Garrett of Dallas. In 1886, soon after the organization of the St. Matthews congregation, work began…

First Comanche County Courthouse · 1965

A dwelling before county organization, 1856. Served as courthouse in town of Cora until 1859, when Comanche became the county seat; then reverted to use as a residence. Moved here and restored by Mr. and Mrs. A. P.…

Fleming Oak · 1965

Camped here in 1854 with his father, young Martin V. Fleming hid behind this tree and saved himself when hostile Indians rode through the grove. Years later paving contractors started to cut the oak, but were stopped by…

General Ashbel Smith, C.S.A. · 1965

(1805-1886) Born in Connecticut. Graduated at 19 from Yale. Studied medicine in France, where friends were Revolutionary War hero Lafayette and inventor Samuel F. B. Morse. As a North Carolina doctor he later took…

Hardin, John Wesley · 1966

Champion gunfighter in personal combat, Hardin was brought to justice for first time for murder of Deputy Sheriff Charles Webb here in Comanche in 1874. Served 15 years in prison. On release, opened law office in El…

Hanging Oak · 1967

Oak used 1874 by mob to hang Joe Hardin, Tom and Bud Dixon, kinsmen of John Wesley Hardin in reprisal for murder of Deputy Chas. Webb. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1967

L. B. Russell Home · 1967

Two original rooms built 1877 of rubblestone hauled to site by ox wagons. Purchased 1886 by Texas pioneers L. B. and Alice Beeman Russell, who added rooms as children grew older. Home is still occupied by descendants.…

Old Corn Trail · 1967

Surveyed in 1850 by Army engineers, this was the first wagon road to penetrate this area. Point of origin was San Antonio, site of U.S. Army District Headquarters after annexation of Texas in 1846. This segment of road…

Texas Ranger Captain James Cunningham · 1967

Born in Alabama, settled in Comanche County, 1855. Commander of Texas Ranger Company stationed in Comanche County, 1858. Helped bring law and order to county--drove out renegades and wild Indians. Cunningham commanded…

M. R. (Boss) Greene · 1968

(Oct. 14, 1843 - May 12, 1877) Deputy U.S. Marshal: pursued Dee and James Bailey for passing counterfeit quarters in Comanche. After 10 mile chase, he captured and disarmed brothers. Catching Greene off guard (because…

Indian Raid in Comanche · 1969

One of boldest depredations in Texas history, made in May 1861, during the "Bright Moon". A braying mule wakened town after nearly all horses were stolen. Citizens spent rest of night molding bullets. Pursuit began at…

Hasse Community · 1970

Began as "Cordwood Junction," a siding on the Fort Worth & Rio Grande Railroad. Flatcars loaded wood here to be shipped over a wide area. As demand for the fuel increased, the railroad built a station house at site. It…

George Washington Gentry · 1980

(1808 - 1883) A member of Stephen F. Austin's Colony, George Washington Gentry came to Texas in 1835 with his father and brother. Settling in what is now Washington County, he worked as a farmer and surveyor. He…

Old Cora Courthouse · 1986

Soon after the creation of Comanche County in 1856, the town of Cora (10 mi. SE) was platted to serve as the county seat. The courthouse in Cora, typical of many early Texas courthouses, was a 12' 7" x 12" 10",…

Cunningham Family Reunion · 1989

James (1816-1894) and Susannah (1817-1899) Cunningham came to the Republic of Texas in 1839-40 and settled in this area in 1855. An influential family in the county, the Cunninghams were active in military defense…

McCrary House · 1989

James Madison McCrary (1845-1932) came to Comanche about 1870. With his father and brother he operated a mercantile on the town square and began the county's first cotton gin. He married Ella Griffith in 1872 and began…

Oakwood Cemetery · 1994

Reconfiguration of Comanche County by the state in 1858 led to a relocation of its county seat. In 1859 local land developer Captain John Duncan donated 200 acres here for a townsite to served as Comanche County seat.…

Robert Thomas Hill · 1995

Robert Thomas Hill began life on August 11, 1858, in the aristocratic comforts of his parents' Nashville, Tennessee, home. His family, however, suffered tragic losses during the Civil War and by 1864 young Robert was an…

Taylor's Chapel Congregational Methodist Church · 2002

Taylor's Chapel Congregational Methodist Church Under a brush arbor in 1901, Rev. J.V. Havner, a Methodist circuit preacher, led area residents as they organized a Methodist congregation. In January 1902, Hood Taylor…

Lindsey-Gore Home · 2011

Attorney and politician Newton R. Lindsey (1847 – 1908) constructed this home between 1881 and 1888. Born in Alabama, Lindsey served in the Confederate army during the Civil War and attended college and law school…

T. O. Moore · 2018

Big Eye Cemetery · 2019

George William Montgomery moved to Comanche County from Mississippi in 1855. In 1869, George and Nancy C. (Hicks) Montgomery purchased 480 acres in the Andrew Crier Survey from Jessie and Alice Mercer. George built a…

St. Louis and San Francisco (Frisco) Railway Depot · 2019

The Fort Worth and Rio Grande Railway extended tracks to Comanche in 1890 and built depots and a section house. The St. Louis and San Francisco Railway acquired the line in 1901, and in 1909 built this depot to replace…