Site of a Block House
Leander, Williamson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Built by Texas Rangers under Captain John J. Tumlinson in 1836. Destroyed by Indians in 1837. This was the first white man's post in Williamson County.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In 1836, as the Republic of Texas was born, Texas Rangers under Captain John J. Tumlinson raised a blockhouse here—the first Anglo post in what became Williamson County. It stood only briefly, destroyed by Native raiders in 1837. Its short life captures the precariousness of the earliest frontier defense.
Why it matters
The blockhouse marks the violent frontier line of the young Texas Republic, where Rangers and settlers pushed into contested Native lands.
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Related people
- · John J. Tumlinson
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Webster Massacre
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On August 27, 1839, John Webster and a party of about thirty were traveling to a land grant in Burnet County when a band of Comanche attacked them. Attempting to flee under cover of darkness, they were trapped on open prairie; Mrs. Webster and her two children were taken captive and the rest were killed. The victims rest together in a single grave a short distance away.
Here Sleep the Victims of the "Webster Massacre"
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This site marks the graves of homeseekers led by John Webster who, in August 1839, were attacked by a Comanche band while traveling toward what is now Burnet County. Trapped after trying to flee in darkness, all the men were killed; Mrs. Webster and her two children were captured and later released. The episode, remembered as the Webster Massacre, was one of many violent clashes between Republic-era settlers and the Comanche.
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