Name: Belton, Texas
Address: Belton, TX

Belton, TX RoadyGoat

Belton's history is marked by significant events that shaped the city. Initially settled in 1850 and named Nolanville, it was renamed Belton in 1851 after becoming the county seat of newly created Bell County, named in honor of Peter Hansborough Bell, the Governor of Texas at that time. During the Civil War, Belton had a large pro-Union minority, with a Whig Party anti-secession newspaper called 'The Independent' published there. Despite this, Bell County voted for secession in 1861. After the war, unrest continued, with several pro-union sympathizers lynched in 1866, leading to Federal troops being called in to protect the Federal Judge. Belton's history also includes the establishment of the Woman's Commonwealth, a women's commune that started several business ventures, including a successful hotel, in 1868.

Belton, TX RoadyGoat

In 1866, several pro-union sympathizers in Belton were lynched, leading to Federal troops being called in to protect the Federal Judge serving in the city. This event marked a period of unrest in the city's history following the Civil War.

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Belton, TX RoadyGoat

Belton owes much of its early prosperity to a convergence of factors, but its location along the Chisholm Trail is undeniably central to its story. Think about it: in the decades following the Civil War, millions of cattle were driven north from Texas ranches to railheads in Kansas. Belton, strategically positioned, became a vital stopover for these cowboys and their herds. They needed supplies, rest for themselves and their animals, and a place to trade. Local merchants thrived, providing everything from beans and bacon to saddles and six-shooters. The town buzzed with the energy of the cattle drives, transforming Belton into a significant commercial hub. Though the days of the massive cattle drives are long gone, that legacy continues to ripple through the community. Interstate 35 now follows a similar path to the old Chisholm Trail, bringing a steady stream of travelers and commerce. While healthcare and retail have risen to become major employers, you can still sense that entrepreneurial spirit, that can-do attitude, born from the days when Belton was a crucial link in a vital economic artery. The welcoming atmosphere, the relaxed pace – it’s partly rooted in that history, a town that learned early on how to provide for travelers and build a community around connection and trade.

Peter Hansbrough Bell

1812

1812 - 1898. (right panel) Fought at San Jacinto April 21, 1836. Assistant Inspector General and Inspector General of the Texas Army 1837-1839. Captain of Texas Rangers and Lieutenant Colonel of Mounted Volunteers in the Mexican War 1845-1846. Colonel of a Texas Volunteer Regiment 1848-1849. (left panel) Governor of Texas November 5, 1849 to November 23, 1853. United States Congressman from Texas 1853-1857. He fought bravely to establish the Republic and with tact and skill he helped to steer the ship of state through the troubled waters of its early years. (back panel) Erected by the State of Texas 1936 with funds appropriated by the federal government to commemorate one hundred years of Texas Independence

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Bell County Jail

1874

In 1854, four years after the county was organized, a 2-story structure of logs was built on this site, to serve as the first Bell County jail. That log jail was replaced in 1873 by this building of native limestone. In 1874, vigilantes from all parts of Texas raided this jail and executed nine men charged with murder, robbery, horse theft and other crimes. This citizens' attack was regarded as a major factor in ending lawlessness in Bell County during the 1870's. Building was rented to city of Belton in 1884 when third county jail was completed. Sold later. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1967

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Belton Woman's Commonwealth

1867

In 1867, Martha White McWhirter experienced a religious vision during which she felt she had been sanctified by God. She began to share her experience with other Belton women, and soon formed a small community of women who, desiring to leave their unfulfilling lives as wives and mothers, joined McWhirter in her beliefs. The four major tenents of the group included a commitment to celibacy, non-denominationalism, dream interpretation and communal living. The group called themselves the true church colony, and were later incorporated as the Belton Woman's Commonwealth. Because group members severed ties with their non-sanctified husbands and churches, they were forced to produce income for themselves and their dependent children. Among other jobs, the women sold bread, took in laundry and practiced dentistry from their headquarters at the McWhirter home. In 1886, the women opened the Central Hotel, which was located on the West side of North Main Street, between First and Seocnd Avenues. Although community members tried to keep travelers away from the hotel at first, the Central Hotel soon earned a strong reputation in the community and throughout the state for its fine food and accommodations, and the hotel served as an important source of income for the women. In 1894, Martha McWhirter was elected as the first female to serve on the Belton Board of Trade. As instrcuted in a dream, the group sold their Central Texas properties and relocated to the Washignton, D.C. area in 1900. The group's membership began to decline, and there were only nine remaining members by 1908. The last commonwealth member, Martha Scheble, died at the age of 101 in 1983.

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Brown, George Rufus

1929

George Rufus Brown, businessman, civil engineer, and philanthropist, son of Riney Louis and Lucy Wilson (King) Brown, was born in Belton, Texas, on May 12, 1898. After studying at Rice University he graduated from the Colorado School of Mines in 1922. He joined the marines in the final months of World War I and later worked briefly as a mining engineer in Butte, Montana. After suffering a serious injury in a mining accident, he returned to Texas to join a small construction firm founded in 1919 by his brother Herman Brown and Dan Root, Herman’s brother-in-law. After Root died in 1929, George became vice president of Brown and Root, Incorporated. Herman’s wife Margarett Root Brown was also a partner. The paving of dirt roads and building of steel bridges for municipal and county governments in Central Texas led the firm to successful joint bids to construct the Marshall Ford (now Mansfield) Dam on the Colorado River. In 1940, the company won a $90 million joint bid to build the Naval Air Station at Corpus Christi. By the late 1950s Brown and Root became one of the largest engineering and construction companies in the world. In the 1960s and 1970s the firm completed jobs world-wide, including Guam, Spain, the United Kingdom, Iran and the Persian Gulf. In 1942 the brothers formed the Brown Shipbuilding Company on the Houston Ship Channel , which built 359 ships during World War II , employed 25,000 people, and was awarded the Army-Navy "E" and a presidential citation. Soon after the war, George and Herman Brown and a group of other investors purchased the Big Inch and Little Inch pipelines with a high bid of $143 million and founded Texas Eastern Transmission Corporation. After the death of his brother Herman in 1962, George became president of Brown and Root. Later that year the corporation was sold to the Halliburton Company. Brown served as a director of the Halliburton Company, Armco Steel Corporation, Louisiana Land and Exploration Company, International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation, Trans-World Airlines, Southland Paper Company, First City Bancorporation, and Highland Oil Company. He served on important commissions for presidents Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson, and was appointed to commissions for the state of Texas, from the 1930s under Governor James Allred to the 1970s under Governor Dolph Briscoe. He was a well-known friend and visible supporter of Lyndon B. Johnson throughout his political career. He was the recipient of many honors during his lifetime, including Awards from Rice University, Colorado School of Mines, Southwestern University, and the University of Texas. He received several awards in construction and engineering, including the John Fritz Medal in 1977 from the five national engineering societies, and the American Petroleum Institute Gold Medal. Brown served as chairman of the board of trustees of Rice University for fifteen years of his twenty-five years of service on the board. In 1951 the Brown brothers and their wives established the Brown Foundation , through which they pursued a strong and generous interest in philanthropy. By June 30, 1994, the foundation had granted more than $381 million to charitable institutions, primarily in higher education and the arts. In 1925 Brown married Alice Nelson Pratt of Lometa, Texas, who became well-known for her support for the arts at the local, state, and national levels. They had three children: Nancy, Isabel , and Alice Maconda . Brown died on January 22, 1983, and was buried in Glenwood Cemetery, Houston.

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Brown, Herman

1914

Herman Brown, business founder and executive, was born in Belton, Texas, on November 10, 1892, the son of Riney Louis and Lucy Wilson (King) Brown. His Texas roots went back two generations to 1839; his mother's grandfather, Hugh B. King, and his mother's father, Rufus Y. King, were county judges of Milam and Lee counties, respectively. After studying briefly at the University of Texas in 1911, Brown was employed by a contractor in Belton. In 1914 he was given eighteen mules in lieu of back wages and went into the construction business. In 1919 his brother-in-law, Dan Root, advanced him money for working capital, and the company was named Brown and Root, Incorporated. In 1922 Herman's younger brother, George Rufus Brown , joined the firm. Dan Root, a prosperous Central Texas cotton farmer, died in 1929. The paving of dirt roads and building of steel bridges for municipal and county governments in Central Texas led the firm to a successful joint bid in 1936 to construct the Marshall Ford Dam (now Mansfield Dam) on the Colorado River. A 1940 contract to construct the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station was the first of their big federal war projects. The brothers formed the Brown Shipbuilding Company in 1942 and constructed more than 350 vessels for the navy. The shipyard had a labor force of 25,000 and won the Army-Navy E and a presidential citation. After World War II the Brown brothers and other investors purchased the Big and Little Inch pipelines from the government with the winning high bid of $143 million and organized a new company, Texas Eastern Transmission Company, which is now a part of Panhandle Eastern Corporation. Brown and Root was widely known during the 1950s and 1960s for constructing United States air and naval bases (in Spain, France, and Guam) and roads, dams, bridges, petrochemical plants, and large offshore drilling platforms. In 1961 the company won the planning contract for the $200 million Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston. In December 1962 the Halliburton Company of Dallas purchased Brown and Root, which continues to operate under its own name. In 1917 Brown married Margarett Root ; they later adopted two children. Brown died on November 15, 1962, and was buried in Glenwood Cemetery, Houston. Margarett Root Brown died on January 25, 1963, and is buried by his side. Brown was a cofounder of the Brown Foundation . He was a member of the board of directors of First City National Bank of Houston, Texas Eastern Transmission Corporation, Southwestern University, Armco Steel Corporation, and Texas Children's Hospital in Houston. He was also active in oil and gas exploration and ranching.

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Ferguson, James Edward

1914

James Edward (Pa) Ferguson, Texas governor, son of James Edward and Fannie (Fitzpatrick) Ferguson, was born on August 31, 1871, near Salado, Bell County, Texas. When he was four years old, his father died. His mother continued to live on the farm, and he began working in the fields as a young boy. He entered Salado College, a local preparatory school, at age twelve but was eventually expelled for disobedience. He left home at sixteen and wandered for two years through the states of the Far West, where he lived by accepting any employment offered. After returning to Bell County, he farmed and worked with a railroad-bridge gang until, after a brief study of law, he was admitted to the bar in 1897 and began the practice of law in Belton. On December 31, 1899, he married Miriam A. Wallace ( see FERGUSON, MIRIAM A. W. ); they had two children. His law practice did not require all of his time, so Ferguson expanded his interests to include real estate and insurance and later turned his attention to banking. He was associated with the Farmers State Bank of Belton for several years and was a member of the Texas Bankers Association . He moved to Temple and in 1907 joined with others in establishing the Temple State Bank. Throughout his years in banking he took an active interest in county and local politics. Although he had never held office, he was not a stranger to political problems; he had done much work in keeping local-option prohibition from Bell County, had been one of the Bell County managers in the campaign of Robert L. Henry for Congress in 1902, had helped carry Bell County for Cone Johnson in his contest with Joseph Weldon Bailey in 1908, had served as a campaign manager for Robert V. Davidson in 1910, and had aided Oscar B. Colquitt in his successful gubernatorial campaign (1912). Prohibition was a major issue in the campaign of 1914, with several aspirants for the governorship on both sides of the question. The prohibitionists held an elimination convention and pledged their support to Thomas H. Ball of Houston. The antiprohibitionists attempted to have a similar convention, but Ferguson, whose statements and Bell County record identified him as an antiprohibitionist, refused to submit his name to it. As a result it was impossible for the convention to eliminate him and obviously unwise to divide the vote by naming a rival candidate. The convention did not endorse Ferguson, but the other antiprohibition candidates withdrew from the race. Ferguson won the nomination by a majority of about 40,000 votes. The campaign proved him to be a man of considerable native ability and the possessor of a captivating personality. As a political speaker he had few equals. The most discussed plank in his platform, which appealed especially to tenant farmers , proposed a law that would limit the rent charged by landlords and prevent the collection of bonuses. Landowners were assured, however, that they need not be alarmed by the proposal, as it would benefit all concerned. During Ferguson's first term, the legislature passed several measures of major importance. The tenant law was passed but remained on the statute books only a short time before being declared unconstitutional. The policy of state aid to rural schools was begun, and a rather timid law requiring compulsory school attendance was passed. Three new normal schools were authorized. Provision was made for the establishment of the Austin State School . Needed buildings were provided at other eleemosynary institutions. The colleges were permitted to begin building programs, and the educational appropriation bills were more generous than usual. As a result of these and other expenditures, the ad valorem tax rate for state purposes advanced from 12½ to 30 cents. The landholdings of the prison system were greatly increased, and because of the rising price of farm commodities, the system became self-sustaining; during the years of war prosperity, it showed a profit. In 1916 Fergu

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Belton, Texas

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Belton, TX RoadyGoat

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Belton, TX RoadyGoat

Peter Hansbrough Bell

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Belton Woman's Commonwealth

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