James J. Ross
La Grange, Fayette County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Born in South Carolina in about 1787, James Jeffres Ross was a member of the "Old Three Hundred." He arrived in Stephen F. Austin's colony in late 1822 or early 1823, moving onto the league granted him near Eagle Lake in Colorado County. In 1828 he moved to the S. A. Anderson League and built a home about one mile southwest of this site. Col. Ross, as he was known, soon assumed a position of leadership as captain of the militia of the Colorado District. He was a delegate to the second convention at San Felipe in 1833 and was one of those appointed in 1834 to help obtain Austin's release from imprisonment in Mexico. He helped establish a stage line and a stop that became the town of Fayetteville. An important figure during the early years of settlement in this part of the state, Ross was a successful farmer, rancher, trader, and merchant. Ross Prairie and Ross Creek, both in this vicinity, bear his name. He was killed by angry neighbors in January 1835 for sheltering Indians at his home and was buried in nearby Ross Cemetery. His home, which came to be known as the Ross/Martinek House, was owned by Czech immigrant Joseph Martinek and his descendants for nearly seventy years.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
James Jeffres Ross came to Stephen F. Austin's colony as one of the "Old Three Hundred," the first legally settled Anglo-American families in Mexican Texas. A militia captain, convention delegate, and successful trader, he helped win Austin's release from a Mexican prison and left his name on Ross Prairie and Ross Creek. In 1835 he was killed by neighbors enraged that he had sheltered Indians in his home.
Why it matters
Ross embodies the fraught first generation of Anglo settlement in Texas, where colonists lived alongside — and clashed over — the Native peoples whose land they were claiming.
Own a business near here? Add it to the map.
Related people
- · James Jeffres Ross
- · Stephen F. Austin
- · Joseph Martinek
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Site of a Twin Blockhouse
La Grange, TX
Built around 1828 as a fortified place of defense, this twin blockhouse—known as Moore's Fort—took its name from frontiersman John Henry Moore, a noted Indian fighter who commanded the Texans at the Battle of Gonzales in October 1835. The city of La Grange itself was established on Moore's land in 1831.
Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration of the American Declaration of Independence
Columbus, TX
Among Stephen F. Austin's "Old Three Hundred" colonists of the 1820s, American holidays like the Fourth of July persisted despite Austin's caution against provoking Mexican authorities. On July 4, 1826, settlers near Beason's Crossing — future Columbus — planned a barbecue marking the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, drawing colonists from far away. A group traveling from Gonzales to attend was attacked by Indians and returned to find their homes plundered.
Tumlinson Family
Columbus, TX
John and Elizabeth Tumlinson brought their seven children to Texas as members of Stephen F. Austin's Old Three Hundred, settling on the Colorado River. John was elected the district's first alcalde and, in May 1823, helped organize the first official Texas Ranger company to defend settlers — only to be killed in an Indian attack two months later. His descendants carried the family legacy forward, with more than a dozen serving as Rangers and frontier lawmen across the following century.
Christian G. Wertzner
La Grange, TX
Christian G. Wertzner fought at San Jacinto in the 1836 battle that secured Texas independence and is remembered as the first permanent German settler of Fayette County. Born in Germany, he was part of the wave of German immigrants who would give Central Texas its distinctive character. He died in 1852, having helped plant a lasting community in the young republic.