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History in
a Pecan Shell
John C. Clark was
the first settler in the area in 1822.
Robert Kuykendall, Thomas Rabb and John Clark were the three landowners
for a large part of what is now Wharton,
Colorado and
Fayette Counties.
They were among the first of the "Old
300".
The land along the Colorado River was Karankawa Indian Country and
these three men became Indian fighters - making settlement of the
land possible. |
Egypt Texas
Post Office & Gas Station
1978 photo courtesy John
Germann |
A timeline
of significant historical events in Egypt
1829: Eli Mercer established Mercer's Crossing - a plantation
and ferry on the Colorado. After providing corn
to the drought-stricken area, people started calling it Egypt for
the biblical reference.
1832: William J. E. Heard started Egypt Plantation on land he purchased
from John C. Clark and built his home in Egypt. The land is still
owned by his heirs today.
1835: The post office was opened with Eli Mercer as postmaster. Egypt
became a central point since four different Texas mail routes were
passing through the town.
1836: Heard established a cotton gin and Captain Thomas Rabb recruited
a company of men that became Co. F of the First Regiment of Texas
Volunteers. At San
Jacinto, Company F captured the Mexican artillery.
1837: The republic opened Post Colorado at Egypt.
1839: a stagecoach line, operated by Andrew Northington, served Egypt.
Northington was the son-in-law of Heard.
1846: Egypt becomes part of the newly established Wharton
County breaking away from Colorado
County.
1848: Entrepreneurs in Egypt built a mule (or horse) drawn railroad
to Columbus.
1881: George H. Northington and Green C. Duncan built a large general
store in Egypt. The post office moved to the new store when it was
built and remained there for 100 years.
During the 1930s until World
War II - a racetrack operated in Egypt. |
Egypt, Texas
Landmarks & Attractions
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William Jones
Elliot Heard and Egypt Plantation
On FM 1161, off FM 102. 4/10 mile E of Egypt
Photo courtesy Barclay
Gibson, February 2009 |
Historical Marker:
William Jones
Elliot Heard and Egypt Plantation
William Jones Elliot
Heard was born in Tennessee in 1801, the first of Stephen R. and Jemima
M. Heard's nine children. Sometime in the 1820s Heard moved to Alabama
where he married America Morton.
Heard received a land certificate from Stephen F. Austin in 1830 and
in 1832 settled here on 2,222 acres he acquired from John C. Clark,
one of Austin's "Old
300" settlers. The area's rich soil prompted early settlers
to name their town for the biblical Egypt and later to refer to Heard's
property as "Egypt Plantation."
On April 21, 1836, about a month after Egypt Plantation had narrowly
escaped destruction at the hands of the advancing Mexican army, Heard
commanded Company F in Sam
Houston's army at the Battle
of San Jacinto.
After the war, Heard built a cotton gin at Egypt Plantation and raised
cattle, cotton, corn, and sugar cane. He registered his first cattle
brand in 1837. In 1840 he joined Colonel John H. Moore in a campaign
against the Indians in the upper Colorado River area.
In 1846 Heard was elected chief justice of Wharton
County. He died in 1874 and was buried in the Masonic
Cemetery at Chappell
Hill in Washington
County. A red brick residence built here by Heard in 1849-54 had
by the early 1990s housed six generations of his family.
(1994) |
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The
Heard/ Northington Family Cemetery at Egypt
TE photo 2001 |
Wharton County
Historical Museum Research Site
Photo courtesy Barclay
Gibson, February 2009 |
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The
Former Egypt Post Office
TE photo 2001 |
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An
old store
TE photo
2001 |
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A
well-ventilated barn at Egypt
TE photo
2001 |
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Egypt, Texas
Forum
My grandparents
once lived in Egypt, Texas where my paternal grandfather owned a meat
market. This market stood close to a saloon which ordered sausages
from the S.M. Gupton shop. In order to increase his sales of beer
the saloon keeper would implore my grandfather with these words. "Make
that sausage salty Buff". - Hank Gupton Anahuac,
Texas, July 12, 2006 |
| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories,
landmarks and recent or vintage photos, please contact
us. |
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