Bastrop County, Texas

Cities, Towns & Communities

History

Bastrop County. A part of Austin’s grant in 1821; created the municipality of Mina, 1834; became the County of Mina in the Republic of Texas, 1836. Name changed to “Bastrop,” December 18, 1837, in honor of Felipe Enrique Neri, Baron de Bastrop, 1770-1829, land commissioner of Austin’s Colony. Member of the Congress of Coahuila and Texas. Bastrop, the County Seat. – Historical Marker Text. Marker erected 1936. Located at the intersection of Loop 150 and SH 21 – island between the two roads, near entrance to Bastrop State Park, Bastrop.

Bastrop County Jail. Designed by Eugene T. Heiner of Houston, this building was erected in 1891-92 by contractors Martin, Byrne & Johnston. Red brick trim decorates the tan brick walls. A pressed metal cornice encircles the structure, and a mansard roof tops one end. Jailer’s quarters were located on the first floor and cell blocks on the second and third, which appear to be one floor on the exterior. This edifice served as the Bastrop County Jail until 1974. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark – 1977. Located at the Corner of Pine and Waters Streets, Bastrop.

Early Site of Bastrop County Fort. In the late 1820s a group of families settled in this area as a part of Stephen F. Austin’s second colony. Included in this group were the Winslow Turner, Stephan Cottle, and Ahijah M. Highsmith families, who came to Texas from Lincoln County, Missouri. They were later joined by other families, including the Whites, Crafts, Grimeses, Ridgeways, and Parkers. For defense purposes, they built a log fort at the juncture of the Colorado River and Alum Creek (south of this site) and placed their cabins near the fort. During the 1830s, settlers established churches, schools, and communities around the fort and in neighboring areas on land given to them in return for their colonization efforts. Alum Creek, Craft’s Prairie, Yeupon, Cottletown, Antioch, and Mount Pleasant were some of the names given to these settlements. A post office was established, and a number of early sawmills in Bastrop County were located near the fort site. It is not certain when the fort was razed. Though no physical evidence remains, the site is important as a reminder of early Bastrop County settlement and of the harshness of life during the early years of colonization in Texas. – Historical Marker Text. Marker erected 1984. Located 8 miles east of Bastrop on US 71 in roadside park. Marker reported missing Jun. 2010.

The CCC at Bastrop State Park. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the U. S. Congress, as part of the New Deal efforts to offer unemployed workers jobs on public projects, created the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in March 1933. Due to decades of lumbering activities, Bastrop County’s “Lost Pines” forest was a prime candidate for the CCC’s reforestation program and a logical site for the establishment of a park. Two hundred recruits of the CCC’s Company #1805 arrived in Bastrop in November 1933. With the help of Austin architect Arthur Fehr and a group of “local experienced men” or L. E. M.s, the men worked to create a state recreational park in the forest. Built of native materials in the “NPS Rustic” style promoted by the National Park service, the park structures, particularly the central refectory, reflect the expert craftsmanship of the CCC. A second CCC company, #1811, arrived in November 1934 to assist with reforestation work and development of nearby Buescher State Park. Additional activities included making native wood furniture for this and other Texas state parks, and building roads, trails, bridges, and small lakes. CCC work at Bastrop ended with the park substantially complete in 1939. – Historical Marker Text. Marker located 1991. Located at Bastrop State Park Refectory on Park Road 1A, 2 miles east of Bastrop on Loop 150 at SH 21.

County Histories

History of Texas, together with a biographical history of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson counties Digital book online from the Portal to Texas History.

Courthouses

Over the years, Bastrop County has been four courthouses, all located in Bastrop. The present courthouse was built in 1883.

Location

Bastrop, TX 30° 6′ 37.782″ N, 97° 18′ 54.972″ W

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