Waco
Waco, McLennan County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Founded 1849. Named for Waco Indians. Sent men to state frontier defense and Confederate Army in Civil War. Home of five C.S.A. generals. Civic facilities serve as populous Central Texas region, as do its financial enterprises. Home of Baylor University, Paul Quinn College, Cameron Park and annual Heart O'Texas Fair.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Founded in 1849 and named for the Waco Indians who had lived along the Brazos, the city grew from a frontier settlement into a hub of Central Texas. In the Civil War it sent men to both state frontier defense and the Confederate Army and counted five Confederate generals among its residents. Today it anchors the region as home to Baylor University, Paul Quinn College, and the Heart O'Texas Fair.
Why it matters
Waco's story traces the full arc of Central Texas history — from Indigenous homeland to frontier town to a regional center of education and commerce.
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Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Powell-Tull Cemetery
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When John Powell was buried here in 1889, his family set the land aside as a burial ground shared among a cluster of pioneer families who had settled this part of Falls County. Among those laid to rest is Thomas Marion Tull, a Confederate veteran who had served in the Arkansas legislature and as a justice of the peace before coming to Texas. Descendants still tend the site, which reads as a record of the families who put down roots here.
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