The Lindsay House
Mason, Mason County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Tom Lindsay settled in Mason County during the 1860s and was a farmer and cattle raiser north of the town of Mason. About 1899 he and his wife, Fredericka (Durst), moved into town and built this house. It features fine stonework, particularly in the segmental arches over the windows and in the corner quoins. Following her husband's death in 1917, Fredericka Lindsay continued to live here until she died in 1928. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1984
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Tom Lindsay came to the Texas Hill Country in the 1860s to farm and raise cattle north of Mason. Around 1899 he and his wife Fredericka moved into town and built this handsome stone house, notable for its segmental window arches and corner quoins—the work of the German-influenced stonemasons for which Mason County is known. Fredericka lived here until her death in 1928.
Why it matters
The house showcases the distinctive limestone craftsmanship that German settlers brought to the Texas Hill Country, a signature of the region's built heritage.
Own a business near here? Add it to the map.
Related people
- · Tom Lindsay
- · Fredericka Lindsay
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
First Comanche-German Meeting
Mason, TX
On February 5, 1847, in the Texas Hill Country, a band of Penateka Comanches under Chief Ketumusua approached the camp of German immigrant surveyors led by John O. Meusebach, agent for the Adelsverein colonization society. Rather than fight, the two parties shared gifts and a meal and agreed to talk further. That first encounter opened the way to a formal peace council weeks later—a rare voluntary agreement to share territory that both sides largely honored.
Holmes & Bierschwale Law and Land Office
Mason, TX
Attorney Henry Holmes (1836–1895) settled in Mason after Army service and served as county attorney, justice of the peace, and personal secretary to Governor Lawrence Sullivan Ross. About 1883 he built this sandstone office, and by 1888 he had partnered with Mason native Charles Bierschwale, whose work lay in land survey and sales. The building housed their combined law and land office and stayed in the Bierschwale family until 1994.
Taylor-Carter House
Mason, TX
This sandstone house grew in stages, its first rock rooms built around 1870 and a two-story cut-stone section added in 1875 for Mrs. E. B. Taylor, an Irish immigrant and prominent rancher. The Carter family owned it for nearly a century, adding a frame wing in 1928. Symmetrically arranged around a central hall with arched windows and corbelled chimneys, it carries Italianate touches unusual on the Hill Country ranching frontier.
Mason County Courthouse
Mason, TX
Completed in 1909, this was the third courthouse to serve Mason County, following a first built in 1872 and a red sandstone successor that replaced it after an 1877 fire. Designed by E. C. Hosford in the Beaux Arts style with a central dome, clock tower, and rusticated stonework, it anchored the county seat until it too was gutted by fire in 2021.