1/2 Mile to the Site of Kenney's Fort
Round Rock, Williamson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
First settlement in Williamson County. Erected as a home by Dr. Thomas Kenney and Joseph Barnhart in the spring of 1839. Served as a place of defense during Indian raids. Rendezvous of the Santa Fe Expedition, 1841. Here the archives of the Republic of Texas en route to Washington-on-the-Brazos were captured on December 31, 1842 and returned to Austin. Erected by the State of Texas 1936
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Erected as a fortified home in the spring of 1839 by Dr. Thomas Kenney and Joseph Barnhart, Kenney's Fort was the first settlement in what became Williamson County and a place of refuge during Indian raids. It served as the rendezvous point for the ill-fated Santa Fe Expedition of 1841, and on the last day of 1842 it was where the archives of the Republic of Texas—being carried off toward Washington-on-the-Brazos—were seized and turned back to Austin in the Archive War.
Why it matters
As a frontier strongpoint tied to the Santa Fe Expedition and the Archive War, Kenney's Fort sits at the heart of the young Republic of Texas's struggles to define itself.
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Related people
- · Thomas Kenney
- · Joseph Barnhart
Related events
- · Santa Fe Expedition
- · Archive War
Themes & tags
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