Uriah Lott
Kingsville, Kleberg County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(January 30, 1842 - March 29, 1915) Merchant, banker, builder of railroad to the Rio Grande. Born in Albany, N.Y. Came to South Texas in 1868. Chartered the Corpus Christi, San Diego and Rio Grande narrow gauge railroad in 1875. Later, reorganized it as the Texas-Mexican Railroad, to be built from Corpus Christi to Laredo. In 1884 he chartered and became president of the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway, which in time had 688 miles of track, and gave South Texas a new outlet to the Gulf of Mexico and international trade. Setting out (1900) to run a railroad to southmost tip of Texas, he obtained right of way for segment of the St. Louis, Brownsville and Mexico Railway from Robstown to Brownsville. The "Lott Railroad" tracks reached this point in February 1903. When for the first time a passenger train ran all the way from Corpus Christi to Brownsville, July 4, 1904, the new town of Kingsville held a special Fourth of July celebration. For some years prior to his death, Lott lived in Casa Ricardo Hotel in Kingsville. He and his wife, the former Mary Cicele Reynolds, are buried in the Chamberlain Cemetery, Kingsville. Lott's work, vital to South Texas development, also enhanced national prosperity at turn of the century.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Albany, New York native Uriah Lott came to South Texas in 1868 and devoted his life to binding the region together with railroads. He chartered the line that became the Texas-Mexican Railroad, built the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway to 688 miles of track, and finally pushed rails to the southern tip of Texas, reaching Brownsville by 1904. The new town of Kingsville marked that arrival with a Fourth of July celebration.
Why it matters
Lott's rail lines opened isolated South Texas to markets, ports, and international trade, turning ranch country into a modern regional economy.
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Related people
- · Uriah Lott
- · Mary Cicele Reynolds
Themes & tags
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