A. J. and Carolina Anderson House
Round Rock, Williamson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
This house was built in 1908-09 for the family of Swedish immigrant Anders Johan Anderson (1858-1929) just after the death of his first wife, Edla Maria (1859-1906). After its completion, Anderson and his two daughters moved into the house from their farm two miles south of Round Rock. In 1912, Anderson married Carolina Lindquist, and the house remained in the Anderson family until 1963. The Folk Victorian structure, with details including fishscale shingles and classical columns, reflects Round Rock's prosperity and status as a mercantile center for Swedes in the early 20th century. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2001
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Swedish immigrant Anders Johan Anderson built this Folk Victorian house in 1908–09, moving in from his nearby farm with two daughters after his first wife's death; he later married Carolina Lindquist, and the family kept the home until 1963. Its fishscale shingles and classical columns reflect the prosperity of Round Rock at a time when the town was a mercantile hub for the area's Swedish community.
Why it matters
The house is a small monument to Scandinavian immigration in Central Texas, where Swedish settlers built farms, businesses, and a lasting cultural presence.
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Related people
- · Anders Johan Anderson
- · Carolina Lindquist
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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Andrew J. and Hedwig Nelson emigrated from Sweden and settled at Round Rock in 1854, where Andrew prospered in a range of businesses before his death in 1895. His widow and heirs commissioned Austin's Page Brothers to build this house, and in 1931 a later generation had Dallas architect Wilson McClure restyle its Victorian front into Classical Revival. Three generations of Nelsons lived here before Eugene and Jean Crier Goodrich bought and restored the mansion in 1960, naming it Woodbine.
Olson House
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Swedish immigrant Johanna Olson bought this Round Rock property in 1907, having returned to the area after her husband's death in 1894. Local contractor A.S. Robertson built her a Queen Anne house in 1908, complete with the style's hallmark asymmetry, wrap-around porch, and fishscale shingles. Johanna and her daughters took in boarders from nearby Trinity College, which operated from 1906 to 1929, and the house stayed in the family until 1944.
Andrew J. Palm House
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Andrew J. Palm sailed from Sweden in 1853 with his mother and brothers and settled at Palm Valley, a Swedish community north of Round Rock, on land bought from immigration agent S. M. Swenson. About 1873 he hauled cypress and pine down from Austin to build this house, where he and his wife Carolina raised their eight children. The home was relocated to Round Rock in 1976 and recognized as a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark.
Round Rock
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