Aransas County · 1936
Created September 18, 1871 from Refugio County; Organized in 1871 with Rockport as the county seat Named for the river Nuestra Senora de Aranzazu
View on map ↗Aransas County, Texas
Historical Markers in Rockport, Texas
Rockport is home to 40 official Texas Historical Commission markers — each one telling a piece of the city’s story. Browse the markers below, then find them on the map and discover more nearby with RoadHistorical.
John Fagan · 1962
Soldier in the Texas War for Independence at Goliad, 1835-1836. Erected by the State of Texas, 1962.
View on map ↗Fulton-Bruhl House · 1988
Built about 1868, this vernacular early Texas home was purchased in 1872 by James C. Fulton, a noted early business and civic leader. Fulton sold the home in 1907 to his son-in-law, Albert L. Bruhl, a pharmacist and…
View on map ↗Rockport · 1988
The town of Rockport was founded by cattlemen J. M. and T. H. Mathis in 1867. Originally a part of Refugio County, it became county seat of newly formed Aransas County in 1871. Shipping and fishing provided the primary…
View on map ↗Rockport Cemetery · 1988
This cemetery has served the citizens of Rockport and Fulton for over a century. The oldest marked grave is that of Emma Fulton (d. 1876), granddaughter of George Ware Fulton, who was instrumental in the development of…
View on map ↗Hoopes-Smith House · 1989
Prominent local businessman and land developer James M. Hoopes (1839-1931) had this home built between 1890 and 1892. The home later served as a hotel and boardinghouse between 1894 and 1930. It was sold in 1934 to T.…
View on map ↗Mathis House · 1989
John M. Mathis (1831-1922) had this home built for his family in 1868-69. Instrumental in platting the town of Rockport, he served as its first mayor in 1870. In 1880 he deeded the house to his cousin, Thomas H. Mathis…
View on map ↗Aransas County · 1990
Created out of the coastal portion of Refugio County in 1871, Aransas County is the second smallest county in Texas. Within its boundaries are three bays of the Gulf of Mexico: Copano, St. Charles, and Aransas. The area…
View on map ↗Connie Hagar · 1990
(June 14, 1886 - November 29, 1973) Born Conger Neblett in Corsicana, and married to Jack Hagar in 1926, Connie Hagar received early training as a musician. She and her sister became interested in birds and worked as…
View on map ↗First National Bank of Rockport · 1990
Chartered on October 8, 1890, the First National Bank of Aransas Pass (now Rockport) was organized by a group of businessmen led by John H. Traylor, James M. Hoopes, George W. Fulton, Jr., James C. Fulton, and Richard…
View on map ↗Rockport Pilot, The · 1990
The earliest newspaper in this area was "The Vaquero," published by Charles F. Bailey and Geraldo A. Beeman in St. Mary's in 1868. In 1869 Bailey moved to Rockport and founded "The Transcript," which continued in…
View on map ↗Baylor-Norvell House · 1991
Located on the waterfront in a community that has survived many hurricanes, this house was built about 1868 by Dr. John W. Baylor. In addition to his medical practice Dr. Baylor owned a local meat packing business,…
View on map ↗First Baptist Church of Rockport · 1991
Organized in 1873, the First Baptist Church of Rockport originally was located on S. Church Street. L. D. Young served as the first pastor. The hurricane of 1919 destroyed the first church building, but the members…
View on map ↗First Methodist Church of Rockport · 1991
The Methodist Church has been in existence in Rockport since about 1870. The Rev. H. G. Horton was assigned as pastor of the Rockport church in 1872. The original Methodist church building, erected at the corner of Live…
View on map ↗First Presbyterian Church of Rockport · 1991
This congregation traces its history to 1869. Although deactivated in 1879, it was reorganized with twenty charter members in 1889. The members met in facilities provided by other churches until their first house of…
View on map ↗Port Bay Hunting and Fishing Club · 1991
Danish native Andrew Sorenson (1864-1941), established a reputation as a hunting and fishing guide in this area in the early 20th century. He bought 240 acres of land (.5 mi. W) in 1909 and in 1912 incorporated the…
View on map ↗Sacred Heart Catholic Church · 1991
Roman Catholic priests visited the Rockport area as early as 1838. The first Mass in the town of Rockport was celebrated in the home of County Judge John Hynes in 1860, and services continued there for a number of…
View on map ↗St. Peter's Episcopal Church · 1991
The Rt. Rev. Alexander Gregg, Bishop of the Diocese of Texas, officiated at the dedication of St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Rockport on November 30, 1871. Led by lay ministers for much of its early history, St.…
View on map ↗San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railroad in Rockport, The · 1994
During its early years Rockport relied on Gulf shipping for goods and services. After the arrival of the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railroad in 1888, however, the town's economic focus changed to include rail shipping…
View on map ↗Site of Aransas Hotel · 1996
Built in 1889 by civic leader and politician John H. Traylor, the Aransas Hotel covered this city block. The three-story structure, a major tourist attraction in Rockport, had about 100 rooms and a massive open dining…
View on map ↗Site of Heldenfels Shipyard · 1996
Shipping industries flourished on the Rockport waterfront by the 1880s. Heldenfels Shipyard was established here on 12.9 acres in October 1917. Four 281-foot wooden cargo vessels were to be built for military use in…
View on map ↗Frandolig Island · 1999
Dubbed "Nine Mile Point" by early settlers, this island was first used commercially by the Cushman Meat Packing Company in the late 1860s. Austrian Franz Joseph Frandolig, a horseman who had delivered cattle to Cushman…
View on map ↗Aransas County Airport · 2001
This aviation facility developed out of a need during World War II for additional air training sites for U.S. Navy pilots. In 1942 the Aransas County Commissioners Court offered the Civil Aeronautics Administration the…
View on map ↗Moore House · 2006
Built in 1906, this house was the vision of James Edward (J. Ed) and Josephine Kennedy Moore. The two were married from 1903 until 1915, when Josephine passed away. J. Ed was a business owner who served several terms as…
View on map ↗Rockport School · 2006
Rockport School has served the town of Rockport for many years as both an educational and community institution. It dates to 1935, during the era of the Great Depression. One of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New…
View on map ↗Sorenson-Stair Building · 2008
Simon Sorenson, a native of Denmark, bought Brunner's Merchantile at this site in 1886. The building was originally two stories, rebuilt after an 1895 fire. The Sorensons received weather reports by telegraph, posted…
View on map ↗Woman's Club of Aransas County Building · 2009
In March 1948, Mrs. Fred B. Hunt issued a call to organize the Woman’s Civic Club. One of the club’s major early activities was financing a permanent building for the organization. Later that year the recreation…
View on map ↗Bracht House · 2010
Adolph L. Bracht (1872-1961) was born in Rockport and worked at lumber and grocery stores before establishing his own wholesale and retail grocery in 1899. He was a charter member of the Intracoastal Canal Association…
View on map ↗Baldwin-Brundrett House · 2011
Aransas County Judge W.H. Baldwin, who promoted Rockport as a deep water port, lived in this house in the 1890s. George A. Brundrett, Jr., was a Confederate veteran and cattle rancher on 15,000 acres on Matagorda…
View on map ↗Mills Wharf · 2011
MILLS WHARF, BUILT BY JOHN HOWARD MILLS IN 1932, WAS A RENOWNED CENTER FOR WATERFOWL HUNTING AND FISHING FROM THE 1930s UNTIL IT WAS SOLD IN 1960. IT CONSISTED OF COTTAGES, A COOK HOUSE, A GUIDE SERVICE OFFICE, A STORE,…
View on map ↗Rockport Marine Laboratory · 2011
In 1935, Rockport Marine Lab was set up aboard the houseboat "Vivian" in Rockport Harbor to assist the Texas Game, Fish and Oyster Commission with fisheries management. In 1947, a permanent lab was built on the harbor,…
View on map ↗The Cedars · 2011
Tourism has been a major part of the Rockport economy for generations, but in the 1920s and 1930s with the rise of the automobile, more visitors began to travel to the area. The Cedars, built in 1928 by Dr. Joe and…
View on map ↗Mc Lester Family Cemetery · 2012
McLESTER FAMILY CEMETERY SITUATED AMONG HACKBERRY, MESQUITE AND LIVE OAK TREES, THIS HISTORIC CEMETERY HAS SERVED THE McLESTER FAMILY FOR OVER A CENTURY. CHARLES H. McLESTER, AN ENGINEER ON THE SAN ANTONIO AND ARANSAS…
View on map ↗Wood-Jackson House · 2012
Tobias “T.R.” Wood purchased lots at a sheriff’s auction in 1910 and built this Queen Anne style house. T.R. worked on his father’s cattle ranch located on San Jose Island. When T.R. moved to Victoria to practice law,…
View on map ↗Joe A. and Bertha Harper House · 2013
Built around 1910, this two-story frame Colonial Revival was used as a boarding house for shipyard employees. The home was also used for shelter for 50 refugees during the 1919 hurricane that devastated the coast. In…
View on map ↗Smith-Brundrett House · 2014
Built in 1903 in Old Rockport, this Cottage and Craftsman Style House is an early frame Bungalow surrounded by giant oak trees. In 1920, W.H. smith, grandson of early Refugio pioneers, bought this house where he lived…
View on map ↗Hynes-Balthrope House · 2015
This 1874 house of longleaf pine features full-length gallery porches and such classical revival elements as square columns, dentils and brackets. It was built on Austin Street for the John Hynes family and designed by…
View on map ↗Rockport Volunteer Fire Department · 2015
As Rockport grew as a center of commerce and a tourism destination in the 1880s, businessman Sam Smith, who owned several homes and businesses, donated the city’s first firefighting equipment. The unit cost about $1400…
View on map ↗Lamar Volunteer Fire Department · 2017
Established by a group of concerned citizens, the Lamar Volunteer Fire Department formed in 1963. The volunteers dedicated themselves to fire prevention, fire-fighting, hurricane patrol, beach patrol and working with…
View on map ↗Richard Henry Wood House · 2018
Born in 1846, Richard Henry Wood was one of the first residents of Rockport. In 1866, Wood partnered with James Doughty and built the first cattle pens, warehouse and wharf at Rockport Harbor. Wood ran his business…
View on map ↗Discover Rockport’s history on the road
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