Town of Grandview
Grandview, Johnson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(Original Site One Mile Northwest) Settled in 1850 on land grant from Governor Elisha M. Pease. Supplies were hauled by ox wagon from Houston. A visitor exclaimed, "What a grand view!" which gave community its name. Church organized 1853. Post office opened in 1856. Masonic lodge (county's first) founded 1860. Town moved to this site, on Missouri-Kansas-Texas rail line, in 1883. Incorporated in 1891. Home of Grand View Collegiate Institute 1897-1907. Devastating 1920 fire razed 135 homes, schools, churches, and businesses. Town name changed to Grandview (one word) in 1925. (1970)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Grandview owes its name to a traveler who took one look at the rolling Johnson County prairie and exclaimed "What a grand view!" Settled in 1850 on a land grant from Governor Elisha M. Pease, the community hauled its supplies by ox wagon from Houston and built up a church, post office, and the county's first Masonic lodge before the Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad pulled the whole town a mile southeast in 1883. Incorporated in 1891, it survived a devastating 1920 fire that razed 135 buildings and rebuilt, merging its name into one word in 1925.
Why it matters
Grandview's journey from ox-wagon settlement to incorporated rail town captures how the railroads redrew the map of 19th-century Texas, deciding which communities thrived and even where they physically stood.
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Related people
- · Elisha M. Pease
Related events
- · 1920 Grandview fire
Themes & tags
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