HistoricSiteMarkers
Reconstruction & Gilded Age

Old Rock Store

Chappell Hill, Washington County, Texas

Marker Inscription

Town's early masonry store, built 1869 by merchant John E. Glass. Has thick sandstone walls, massive hand-hewn and pegged pine timbers, doors and window shutters made with square nails. Tenants have been grocers and the Chappell Hill Post Office.

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

Merchant John E. Glass built this sturdy masonry store in Chappell Hill in 1869, using thick sandstone walls, massive hand-hewn and pegged pine timbers, and doors and shutters fastened with square nails. Over its long life the building housed grocers and served as the town's post office, anchoring commerce and daily errands for the community.

Why it matters

The Old Rock Store is a well-preserved example of the general store and post office that formed the commercial and social hub of small nineteenth-century Texas towns.

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Related people

  • Β· John E. Glass

Themes & tags

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