Fort Oldham
Cooks Point, Burleson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Built 1836-37 by pioneers who took refuge with William Oldham (1798?-1868), Infantry major in Texas War for Independence. The fort stabilized the area, as dozens lived there in seasons of Indian raids, and eventually preachers who helped found early church. By 1838, Fort Oldham had a post office and was a stopping place on Independence-Tenoxtitlan Road. Maj. Oldham joined Somervell and Mier Expeditions (1842) to counter Mexican raids into Texas. Captured by the foe, he escaped, fought way through perils, and returned home. He amassed fortune in land surrounding fort site.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Fort Oldham was raised in 1836–37 by pioneers who sheltered with William Oldham, an infantry major in the Texas War for Independence. In seasons of Native raids dozens lived within its walls, and by 1838 it had a post office and stood on the Independence–Tenoxtitlan Road; Oldham himself later rode with the Somervell and Mier Expeditions, was captured by Mexican forces, and escaped to make his way home.
Why it matters
The fort illustrates how fortified refuges anchored Anglo settlement in the young Republic of Texas, where survival meant banding together against raids and cross-border war.
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Related people
- · William Oldham
Related events
- · Somervell Expedition
- · Mier Expedition
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Fort Tenoxtitlan
Caldwell, TX
Founded by Mexico in 1830 as a bulwark against Anglo-American immigration, Fort Tenoxtitlan took the ancient Aztec name for Mexico City, meaning "prickly pear place," and its commandant even dreamed of it becoming Texas's capital. The plan backfired as Mexican soldiers and Anglo pioneers became friends and the empresario Sterling C. Robertson funneled in settlers. After troops withdrew in 1832 the site passed to the Anglos, and among its residents were five signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence, an Alamo martyr, and seven veterans of San Jacinto before it was abandoned amid Indian raids in 1841.
Burleson County
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The land here was farmed as early as 1744 by Native people under Spanish missionaries, and in 1830 Fort Tenoxtitlan guarded the Brazos crossing on the old San Antonio Road, drawing Anglo-Texans who lived off wild game. The county was organized in 1846 and named for Gen. Edward Burleson — a hero of San Jacinto, Indian fighter, and Republic of Texas vice-president — with its seat at Caldwell. During the Civil War it sent troops, cotton, and food to the Confederacy.
Early Settlers of Burleson County in the Texas War for Independence
Caldwell, TX
When Santa Anna revoked constitutional rights, thirty or more men left this thinly settled corner of Burleson County to join the Texas Revolution, fighting in the Grass Fight of November 1835 and the Siege of Bexar that December. With the men away, the Mexican advance came within forty miles, and civilians fled across the flooded Brazos toward safety in the United States during the panic known as the Runaway Scrape. On April 21, 1836, these settlers helped win the Battle of San Jacinto and Texas independence.
Lewis L. Chiles
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