Site of Hays County's First Public Building
San Marcos, Hays County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Early San Marcos settlers erected log house here in 1847. Of elm, cedar and cypress, and built for church and school, the cabin had a floor of dirt, later one of puncheons (split logs). It was used as courthouse after Hays County was created 1848. County and district courts met in the building until 1861. Presbyterian and Baptist churches were organized here. Nearby was a stagecoach stop. Confederate Army recruits were trained in the area, using this house as headquarters. Structure burned in 1874, after falling into disuse by public.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In 1847, San Marcos settlers raised a rough log house of elm, cedar, and cypress on this spot — dirt floor, split-log benches, and a single room asked to be everything at once. It served as the young county's courthouse after Hays County was organized in 1848, hosted the first Presbyterian and Baptist congregations, sat beside a stagecoach stop, and later became a drill headquarters for Confederate recruits. Fallen into disuse, it burned in 1874.
Why it matters
It marks the humble civic birthplace of an entire Texas county, where justice, faith, and schooling all began under one cabin roof on the frontier.
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Related events
- · Creation of Hays County (1848)
Themes & tags
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