Adventuring Out in the Wilds

 So, Bobby and I took last Thursday (the 2^nd day of fall weather we’ve had so far) and went adventuring.  Our first stop was Egypt …..

 

Yeah – not that Egypt.  Egypt, TX.  And, just in case you didn’t know  . . .

 

Egypt was founded before any other settlement in Wharton County when Eli Mercer established a plantation and a ferry crossing on the Colorado River in 1829. The town, originally called Mercer's Crossing, during a severe drought in the area, supplied corn to surrounding settlements, and people began to refer to it as Egypt (as in Genesis 42:1-3).  As of the 2000 census, Egypt had a population of 26.  Couldn’t find any mention of the 2010 census so, I’m thinking it is considered a suburb of Wharton.

 

Is this not the perfect Halloween decoration!
Just needs some spooky lights in the windows.

 From there we went to Eagle Lake, TX.  It is home to a golf course and the largest private lake in Texas.   Private being the key word.  No going down to the lake, we tried.  The primary things to do in Eagle Lake – grow rice and hunt geese.  There is an old hotel – The Farris – now closed but there was this unique thing in the front yard . .

 

Can’t decide if it was for prisoners or regular people – bars on the windows and such.  I’m pretty sure I would not want to travel in it though.

 From there we drove over to Alleyton.  Now, I have seen the signs for Alleyton but have never been there.  And I learned some history. 

 Alleyton was settled in 1821 by the Alley brothers, Rawson, John, Thomas, William, and Abram.  In 1859 William Alley arranged for the extension of the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos and Colorado Railway to his property and donated land for the right-of-way and for the building of shops, a roundhouse, a depot, and loading facilities.  During the Civil War Alleyton was the beginning of the "cotton road".  Cotton was brought by rail to Alleyton and then shipped to Mexico via wagon train, in order to bypass the Union blockade of Texas ports.  From there it was shipped to Europe.  Returning wagon trains brought military and domestic supplies, which were then shipped by rail to the rest of the Confederacy. 

 Today Alleyton is a small unincorporated town of about 500 residents.  About the most interesting thing was the Historic Alleyton Cemetery.

 

The oldest marked burial at the site is that of T. S. M. Robinson, whose marker inscription reads "Born in Arkansas, Died in Texas, 1852, Age 22 years." Additional burials at the site include veterans of the Civil War, Spanish American War, World War I, World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War.

 There was, in the cemetery, one of the largest oak trees I’ve seen.

 

Or so I thought.

 From Alleyton we drove over to Columbus.  Again, while I’ve driven past Columbus, I’ve never actually been there.  It is smaller than I thought with about 3700 residents.  The town site, then called Beason’s Crossing, was originally established in 1822.  After the Texas Revolution and the population returned, residents renamed Beason's Crossing "Columbus".  Some speculate that it was named in honor of residents who migrated from Columbus, Ohio, while others believe the town was named after Christopher Columbus, who explored on behalf of Spain in the late 15th century.  Columbus has one of the coolest courthouses I’ve seen.

 

Classic revival building--erected in 1890-1891 in form of a Greek cross.

 And, there is this on the corner

 

I WANT ONE!

I’d put it right next to my house!

 Remember I mentioned big tree in Alleyton??

 

Okay, THIS is a big tree!  It’s also an oak and filled with all sorts of gnome doors and fairy holes.

 As we turned toward Wharton, we came upon The FreBo Ranch and skidded to a halt because I saw

 

Just don’t see many zebras here in Texas.  Their goal – “we are driven by a single goal; to share our love for all animals with the passing public”.

 And, so ends the Texas Travelogue for today.

 

19 Oct 2020