Stringfellow Ranch
Freeport, Brazoria County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Born at Old Brazoria, Robert Edward Lee Stringfellow (1866-1951) began his career on a cattle ranch at the age of 14. Soon he acquired his own herd. He opened a Velasco meat market in 1890 and provided beef for workers building jetties at the mouth of the Brazos River. Stringfellow's ranch holdings here in southern Brazoria County increased to 20,000 acres. A philanthropist and civic leader, Stringfellow was an early builder and investor in Freeport townsite. After he was injured in the 1932 hurricane, his wife Nannie (Maddox) (d. 1971) operated the ranch and Freeport interests. (1980)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Robert Edward Lee Stringfellow started on a Brazoria County cattle ranch at fourteen and soon had a herd of his own, opening a Velasco meat market in 1890 that fed the crews building jetties at the mouth of the Brazos. His holdings grew to 20,000 acres and he became an early investor in the new town of Freeport. After a 1932 hurricane injured him, his wife Nannie ran the ranch and the family's Freeport interests for decades more.
Why it matters
The Stringfellow ranch story links the open-range cattle era to the industrial development of the Texas coast—and quietly credits a woman who kept a sprawling enterprise running through storm and loss.
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Related people
- · Robert Edward Lee Stringfellow
- · Nannie Maddox Stringfellow
Themes & tags
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