The Town of Gause
Gause, Milam County, Texas
Marker Inscription
William J. Gause (1829-1914), born in Alabama, moved to Texas in 1849, to the Brazos region in 1856, and to this locality in 1872. Buying lumber in Montgomery, he gave his friend Dan Fowler half in return for hauling it here. The two built the first homes in this settlement. In 1873, Gause gave right of way and 100 acres of land to the International & Great Northern Railroad, and the town was platted. Gause Post Office opened in 1874, with James S. Reynolds as postmaster. The I. G. N. freighted out great quantities of cotton, and the town thrived. Cotton gins, stores, blacksmith shops, a lumber yard, a bank, hotels, livery stables, a newspaper and other businesses were established. Besides W. J. Gause, civic leaders included Dr. J. E. Brown, Richard Cox, Dr. James dollar, Lafayette Ely, Bill Faubian, Dan Fowler, J. C. Lister, C. C. Moore, Dr. John Porter, Frank Thomas, and T. L. Watts. Churches were organized and a Masonic Lodge chartered. The county's first independent school was established in Gause. Good highways, mechanized farming, and decline of railroading halted commerce in the town of Guase. It survives, however, as a residential site chosen by descendants of the pioneers and by commuters of industrial plants and businesses in this vicinity.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Alabama-born William J. Gause settled here in 1872 and, with friend Dan Fowler, hauled in lumber to build the settlement's first homes. When Gause donated right-of-way and a hundred acres to the International & Great Northern Railroad in 1873, the town was platted and boomed on cotton — gins, stores, a bank, hotels, and a newspaper crowding in around the depot. Better highways, mechanized farming, and the decline of railroading eventually stilled its commerce, though descendants and commuters keep the place alive.
Why it matters
Gause is a classic study in how the railroad made and unmade small-town Texas, its fortunes rising and falling with the rails and the cotton economy.
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Related people
- · William J. Gause
- · Dan Fowler
- · James S. Reynolds
Themes & tags
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