Site of John Bremond & Company
Austin, Travis County, Texas
Marker Inscription
New York native John Bremond (1813-1866) built a dry goods store at this site as early as 1847. Soon, his dry goods department faced Pecan (Sixth) Street, and the grocery department faced Brazos Street. Active civically, he served as a member of the group that encouraged the eventual construction of the Houston & Texas Central Railway, which was associated with Bremond's brother Paul. John Bremond, a former firefighter, was instrumental in establishing Austin's first hook and ladder company. His sons Eugene and John, Jr., who were also active in the city's firefighting, joined him as business partners in 1865, forming John Bremond & Company. After their father's death the next year, the sons continued the business. In a back room of the store, Eugene operated a private loan operation that would become the State National Bank, or "Bremond's Bank." He sold his share of the family business in 1870 but continued operating the bank, which received its charter in 1882. John, Jr. Then made his brother-in-law, John H. Robinson, Jr., a partner. The John Henry Robinson family, proprietors of the J.H. Robinson & Son General Merchandise Store on Congress Avenue, was closely linked to the Bremonds, with three marriages among the children. The Bremonds' store continued, shifting to wholesale operations after the railroad came to Austin in 1871. In 1905, it became one of the early companies to roast, grind and distribute its own coffee, eventually shipping its products across the state. The business moved a few blocks away in 1924 and finally closed its doors in 1967. At the time it was demolished in 1979, the two-story limestone building was reportedly the oldest commercial structure in Austin. (2003)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
New York native John Bremond opened a dry goods store here as early as 1847, and by the 1860s he and his sons had built John Bremond & Company into a cornerstone of Austin commerce. The family helped launch the city's first hook-and-ladder company and championed the railroad that reached Austin in 1871; a back room even birthed what became the State National Bank. The firm later roasted and shipped its own coffee statewide before closing in 1967, its old limestone building reputedly Austin's oldest commercial structure at its 1979 demolition.
Why it matters
It traces how a single frontier-era merchant family helped build a capital city's commerce, banking, railroads, and civic institutions.
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Related people
- · John Bremond
- · Eugene Bremond
- · Paul Bremond
Themes & tags
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