CEDAR PARK,
TEXAS
est. 1873
Austin and Northwest Railroad steam engine pulling 18
flat cars of pink granite destined for use in construction of the State
Capitol. On a steep, curving decline, the granite blocks were lost over
the edge of the trestle into Brushy Creek. The granite slabs still
remain in the creek bed.
Courtesy of Cedar
Park Heritage Society
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Brushy Creek Railroad Train Trestle Historical Marker Dedication
"Granite For The State Capitol"
The first white man’s
settlement in the part of Texas that would become Williamson County was
the Blockhouse Tumlinson fort built between present day Cedar Park and
Leander in 1835/36. Steps were cut into this oak tree to be used as a
“lookout” but the tree died several years ago. Texas Centennial Marker
1936.
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contact the museum at 512-943-1670
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HISTORY OF CEDAR PARK TEXAS NARRATIVE
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Cedar Park marker
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View Historical Marker Page
Marker Text|
In 1873, George and
Harriet (Standefer) Cluck purchased a large amount of land in
this area, which they found to be rich in cedar trees and
limestone. Their ranch and home became the central point around
which the Cedar Park community developed.
A Post Office was established in 1874 and was named Running
Brushy. Harriet Cluck served as an early Postmistress. When the
railroad came through Running Brushy in 1882, the community's
name was changed to Bruggerhoff to honor a railroad official.
Five years later, the current name was adopted.
Cedar Park was the scene of much growth and activity during the
latter years of the nineteenth century. A community school and
church building was constructed, and by 1892, a landscaped park
had appeared along the rail line. George Cluck noticed the
increasing popularity of barbed wire and opened a cedar yard in
which he made and sold cedar posts.
Cedar Park did not see much growth during the first part of the
twentieth century, and by 1960 nearly all traces of the earlier
community had disappeared. During the 1970s, however, the growth
of Austin led to a population increase in this area, also, and
the city of Cedar Park was incorporated in 1973.
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Leaner page
Leander grew from the once
thriving town of Bagdad, founded in 1854 (1 mi. W). when the Austin
& Northwestern Railroad bypassed Bagdad in 1882, a new town was
surveyed and named for railroad official Leander Brown (1817-89).
Homes and businesses from the older community quickly moved to the
new site along the rail line. The post office was brought here from
Bagdad in 1882. The school started here in 1893 has grown into the
largest school district in Williamson County. Originally in a rural
area, Leander had boomed in recent years due to Highland Lakes
development.
New Hope First Baptist Church
and Cemetery - Historical Marker
Although Baptist worship services may have been conducted in this area
as early as 1848, this church was not formally chartered until 1868. On
October 22 of that year the organizational meeting was held in the home
of James M. and Elizabeth Trammell, pioneers of the rural Block House
community. Six charter members formed the New Hope Missionary Baptist
Church of Christ, and the Rev. Thomas F. Bacon was chosen to serve as
the first pastor. The church cemetery was first used in 1869 for the
burial of Martha Elizabeth Inman, the wife of deacon S. C. Inman. Other
marked gravesites include those of settlers who were prominent early
leaders of the church and community. For over a century the New Hope
First Baptist Church has been instrumental in the development of the
Cedar Park area. From 1871 until 1919 the church building was also used
for the public school. Pastors have included such leading Baptist
ministers as missionary J. E. Hamilton, who died in Brazil of yellow
fever, and the Rev. D. E. Simpson, board member and first treasurer of
the Texas Baptist Children's Home, who was baptized and ordained here.
Location: 200 W New
Hope Dr, off US 183
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W. Park Lane, 0.2 mi. W of US 183
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Cedar Park Cemetery - Historical Marker
Text
George W. and Harriet Cluck settled in this area with their family
in the early 1870s, soon after they returned from a cattle drive on the
Chisholm Trail. They built a log home and were instrumental in the
community's development. In 1901, upon the death of their infant
grandson, Emmett A. Cluck, the couple set aside land on their farm for a
family burial ground. The family graveyard became a community cemetery
and was formally deeded as such in 1912. George and Harriet Cluck are
buried here, along with many family members and neighbors.
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Cypress School (Old)
Historical Marker
2900 El Salido Pkwy
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Marker Text
Neighbors
living in a scattered settlement along Cypress Creek
known as Cypress neighborhood joined together to
establish a school for their children in the 1860s. A
small log schoolhouse was built on a hilltop above the
creek. By 1877 the students had outgrown the first
school, and a new one-story wood frame building was
erected on the same site. Students attending the
one-room school were taught by one teacher. The school
continued in operation until 1937. In 1987 a new Cypress
school was built here by the Leander Independent School
District. (1987) |
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in Leander and Cedar Park
In 1983 TX-DOT archaeologists found one of the oldest
and most complete prehistoric human skeletons while building RM 1431
connecting Cedar Park with Round Rock and Interstate 35. They named her
the Leanderthal lady after nearby Leander (because it rhymed well with
Neanderthal) even though the find was nearer to Cedar Park.
Champion Cemetery
John (Jack) Champion
(1817-1908) was a native of York County, South Carolina. He moved to
Texas by 1850, the year he and Naomi Jane Standefer (1834-1862) were
issued a marriage license in Williamson County. In 1854, Champion bought
more than 200 acres at the headwaters of Brushy Creek. He later served
in the Civil War and, briefly, as County Sheriff. The grave of Naomi,
the mother of seven of Champion's nineteen children, is the oldest of
the four marked graves in the pioneer family's cemetery. Surveys
indicate the presence of at least five unmarked graves. Historic Texas
Cemetery - 2002
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Brushy Creek Railroad Train Trestle Historical Marker Dedication
"Granite For The State Capitol"
Minnick Cemetery
