James House
Boerne, Kendall County, Texas
Marker Inscription
This two-story limestone house is believed to have been built about 1880 by Ives Brown for Ichabod and Alice Kingsbury. In 1925 it was purchased by Maria (Williams) James (1859-1940), the pioneer surveyor and early community leader who platted the town of Boerne in 1852. Named "Puccoon" by Maria for her ancestral home in Hanover County, Virginia, the residence remained in her family following her death. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1982
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
This two-story limestone house was built around 1880 by Ives Brown for the Kingsbury family and, in 1925, was bought by Maria James — the pioneer surveyor and community leader who had platted the town of Boerne back in 1852. She named the home "Puccoon" for her ancestral place in Hanover County, Virginia, and it stayed in her family after her death in 1940. Her career surveying and laying out a town was a striking achievement for a woman of her era.
Why it matters
Maria James's work platting Boerne makes her a rare documented woman surveyor of frontier Texas, and her home keeps that pioneering story visible.
The story behind this marker
AI contextThe era
Boerne sits in the Texas Hill Country, a region shaped in the mid-1800s by waves of settlers, many of them German immigrants, who built towns of stone, farmed the valleys and brought their own cultural traditions to the frontier. The town itself was named for Ludwig Börne, a German writer, a reminder of that heritage.
Across the Hill Country, limestone was the natural building material. It was plentiful, durable and well suited to the climate, and the stone houses built by local craftsmen give towns like Boerne much of their enduring character. A two-story limestone house from around 1880 is a fine example of that building tradition.
The decades after the Civil War brought growth and change to the region, with new families arriving, towns filling in and the frontier gradually giving way to settled communities. The history of this house spans that entire transition, from frontier days into the twentieth century.
People & events
According to the marker, the house is believed to have been built about 1880 by a builder named Ives Brown for Ichabod and Alice Kingsbury. That "believed" is an honest reminder that records for early buildings are not always complete.
Its best-known owner arrived much later. In 1925 the house was bought by Maria (Williams) James, whom the marker honors as a pioneer surveyor and early community leader credited with platting the town of Boerne. As printed, the marker's dates for her (1859-1940) are hard to reconcile with a platting date of 1852. Curious visitors may want to consult local historical sources for the full story of her life and work. What is clear is that the marker credits a woman with a central role in laying out this town, a remarkable distinction for her time.
Maria gave the house a name, "Puccoon," after her ancestral home in Hanover County, Virginia. That gesture ties this Hill Country house to a family story that reaches back east. After her death, the house stayed in her family, carrying her memory forward.
Its place in the American story
Surveying was one of the most important jobs on any American frontier. Before a town could exist, someone had to measure the land, draw the lots and lay out the streets. The people who did that work literally drew the map of the communities that followed.
It was work done almost entirely by men. That is why the marker's recognition of a woman in that role stands out. Women's contributions to frontier life were often recorded only as wives and mothers, if at all, so a marker that credits a woman with platting a town points to a richer and more complicated story than the usual picture of westward expansion.
The house also reflects how families carried their pasts with them as they moved west. Naming a Texas home for an ancestral Virginia place was a way of holding onto roots while building a new life, something countless migrating American families did in one form or another.
If you visit
Boerne is one of the most pleasant towns in the Texas Hill Country, known for its historic main street, stone buildings and relaxed pace, and it is an easy drive from San Antonio. Walking the older parts of town is the best way to appreciate its nineteenth-century character.
When you find the James House, notice the limestone construction and the two-story form typical of the region's substantial early homes. Stone like this helped Hill Country houses stay cool in the summer heat, and it has kept them standing for well over a century. It is a private residence, so please enjoy it from the street and respect the owners' privacy.
Think about the layers of history here: the builder, the first family, and later a woman remembered for helping lay out the town around her, who named the house for a family home far away in Virginia. Pair your visit with a stroll through downtown Boerne and a drive through the surrounding hills for a full taste of the region.
Written by AI to add context, grounded in the marker’s inscription and the historical record. The inscription above is the original, unaltered text.
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Related people
- · Maria James
Themes & tags
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