HistoricSiteMarkers
Reconstruction & Gilded Age

Gordon Home

Granbury, Hood County, Texas

Marker Inscription

Alonzo Peyton Gordon came to Granbury from Georgia in 1871. He taught school for a time before opening a mercantile store that grew into one of the largest in Hood County. His business was housed in a large stone building that he constructed on the Granbury Square. A cotton gin operator, Gordon also served as superintendent of the local school and in 1898 was elected to the Texas Legislature. Gordon built his home here in 1882. Remained in the Gordon Family until 1982.

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

Alonzo Peyton Gordon left Georgia for Granbury in 1871, teaching school before opening a mercantile store that became one of the largest in Hood County, housed in a stone building on the town square. A cotton-gin operator and civic leader, he served as local school superintendent and won a seat in the Texas Legislature in 1898. He built this house in 1882, and it remained in his family for a full century.

Why it matters

Gordon's rise from schoolteacher to leading merchant and legislator typifies the enterprising newcomers who built up North Texas county-seat towns after the Civil War.

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Related people

  • ยท Alonzo Peyton Gordon

Themes & tags

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