James O. Rice
Coupland, Williamson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(1815 - about 1875) South Carolina-born James O. Rice migrated to Texas by 1835 and served in the Texas Army during the War for Independence. In early days of the Republic of Texas, he protected frontier settlements as part of a Texas Ranger company. On May 17, 1839, in command of a volunteer force clashing with Mexican troops led by Manuel Flores on the North San Gabriel River, Rice captured vitally important documents related to the Cordova Rebellion against the Republic of Texas. He joined the Somervell and Mier Expeditions of 1842 and the Snively Expedition of 1843. He also served in the Mexican War (1846-48). For military services, he received several bounties of land. When Williamson County was created in 1848, Rice was one of the commissioners named to select a site for the county seat. One of the county's largest landowners, Rice built his home on Brushy Creek about one mile west of here at a site then known as Blue Hill and later called Rice's Crossing. He ran a store and was postmaster of Blue Hill post office, 1849-57. For a short time, he had a tanyard in Georgetown. Rice married Nancy D. Gilliland (d. 1860), of an early Texas family. The couple had four daughters. Rice is buried in the Sneed Family Cemetery near Austin. (1977)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
South Carolina–born James O. Rice reached Texas by 1835 and fought in its war for independence, then guarded the young Republic's frontier as a Texas Ranger. In an 1839 clash on the North San Gabriel River, his volunteers defeated Mexican forces under Manuel Flores and seized documents exposing the Cordova Rebellion, and he went on to join the Somervell, Mier, and Snively expeditions and serve in the Mexican War. Rewarded with land bounties, he became one of Williamson County's largest landowners, ran a store and post office at Rice's Crossing, and helped choose the county seat.
Why it matters
Rice's life spans the whole arc of frontier Texas — revolution, Ranger service, and expansion — embodying the soldier-settlers who turned the Republic into a state.
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Related people
- · James O. Rice
- · Manuel Flores
Related events
- · Cordova Rebellion
- · Mier Expedition
Themes & tags
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