Kleberg
Dallas, Dallas County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The town of Kleberg began in 1850 on the land grant of Robert Justus Kleberg (1803 - 1888), veteran of the Republic of Texas Army and a participant in the Battle of San Jacinto. Originally a stage stop where two wagon trails crossed, Kleberg grew into a farming community. After the railroad came in 1881, the town boasted a post office, bank, and a number of retail businesses. The construction of a series of dams and locks on the Trinity River provided jobs in the early 1900s, but a 1908 flood destroyed the work. Incorporated in 1956, Kleberg was annexed by Dallas in 1978.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
The town of Kleberg took root in 1850 on the land grant of Robert Justus Kleberg, a veteran of the Republic of Texas army who had fought at San Jacinto. Beginning as a stage stop where two wagon trails met, it grew into a farming town that gained a post office, bank, and shops once the railroad arrived in 1881. Ambitious dams and locks on the Trinity River briefly brought jobs in the early 1900s, until a 1908 flood swept the work away.
Why it matters
Kleberg's journey from wagon-trail crossroads to railroad town to Dallas suburb captures how transportation—stagecoach, rail, and river—dictated the fortunes of Texas communities across a century.
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Related people
- · Robert Justus Kleberg
Related events
- · Battle of San Jacinto
Themes & tags
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