Cumings Family Vault
Bellville, Austin County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Rebecca Cumings and her three brothers, James, John, and William, migrated to Texas from Virginia in 1821. As members of Stephen F. Austin's "Old 300" colony, they were given 20,000 acres here in return for the construction and operation of a mill on a nearby creek. Two years after the 1885 deaths of William's son and grandson, Samuel Cumings and Samuel, Jr., this family vault was built for their reinterment. Constructed of stuccoed brick, it was designed by Samuel's son George. Fifteen members of the Cumings family are buried here. (1981)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Rebecca Cumings and her three brothers came to Texas from Virginia in 1821 as members of Stephen F. Austin's famous "Old 300," earning a 20,000-acre grant by building and running a creekside mill. After deaths in the family in 1885, a descendant designed this stuccoed-brick vault for their reinterment, and fifteen Cumings now rest inside. It stands as a rare architectural relic of Texas's first Anglo colony.
Why it matters
The Cumings family were among the literal first families of Anglo Texas, and their vault is a tangible link to Austin's Old 300 and the founding of American settlement in the region.
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Related people
- · Rebecca Cumings
- · Stephen F. Austin
- · George Cumings
Themes & tags
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