Bransford
Colleyville, Tarrant County, Texas
Marker Inscription
A post office with the name Bransford opened in this vicinity in the late 19th century. In 1889 the post office was moved to Red Rock on the route of the St. Louis, Arkansas, and Texas Railroad. Named for pioneer Felix Grundy Bransford (1828-1898), the post office name eventually replaced the name of Red Rock and the town of Bransford became the center of a large farming community. Early residents of the area remembered a post office, two daily passenger trains, four doctors, two blacksmith shops, a livery stable, four general stores, and lodge hall in the town. The railroad depot provided a passenger and supply center for the surrounding agricultural communities. The Bransford Lodge Hall, built in 1911, provided a meeting place for four groups: The Odd Fellows, Woodmen of the World, Knights of Modern Macabees, and the Farmers Union. It was also a gathering place for many community activities. The closing of the Bransford Post Office in 1913 and the advent of highway travel contributed to the decline of Bransford. By the time the city of Colleyville was incorporated in 1956, most reminders of the hamlet called Bransford had disappeared. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Named for pioneer Felix Grundy Bransford, this Tarrant County hamlet coalesced around a post office that moved to the railroad line in 1889, drawing stores, doctors, blacksmiths, and a lodge hall to the depot. Two daily passenger trains and the surrounding farms kept it humming until the post office closed in 1913 and highway travel drew life away. By the time Colleyville incorporated in 1956, Bransford had all but vanished.
Why it matters
Bransford's rise and fall around a railroad depot mirrors the fate of thousands of American farm towns whose fortunes lived and died with the rails.
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Related people
- · Felix Grundy Bransford
Themes & tags
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