HistoricSiteMarkers
Reconstruction & Gilded Age

Allen Hardware Store

Hearne, Robertson County, Texas

Marker Inscription

Built 1872 on land purchased from International Railroad Company by Drew and Holt of Hearne. After ownerships by Jas. Ferguson, w. T. Watt, R. A. Allen and H. K. Davis, Allen bought store in 1891; was joined by son Robert. Their heirs still own and operate the store. Goods carried in the past included seeds, saddles, wagons, building hardware, implements and coffins. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1968

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

Built in 1872 on land bought from the International Railroad Company, this Hearne store passed through several owners before R. A. Allen purchased it in 1891 and brought in his son Robert. Their heirs have kept it in the family and running ever since. In earlier days its shelves held everything a frontier town needed—seeds, saddles, wagons, implements, and even coffins.

Why it matters

A general store that has served the same town for 150 years, it embodies the enduring role of Main Street commerce in American community life.

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Related people

  • · R. A. Allen
  • · Robert Allen

Themes & tags

Nearby & related markers

Robert Cyrus Allen Home

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Robert Cyrus Allen (1871–1933) built this ornate Victorian home in 1900 as a wedding present for his bride, Florence Blair, on the site of his family's earlier house. A leading merchant, banker, mayor, and organizer of the Hearne and Brazos Valley Railroad, Allen commissioned noted Waco architect W. W. Larmour to design a residence rich with decorative shingling, classical detailing, intricate woodwork, and seven fireplaces.

Brazos Manufacturing Company, C. S. A.

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Ebenezer Hearne Cemetery

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