Name: Martindale, Texas
Address: Martindale, TX

Hollywood on the San Marcos RoadyGoat

If you feel like you've seen this town before, you might be right. Martindale's downtown has a second life as a Hollywood backlot. Its authentic turn-of-the-century brick storefronts are a filmmaker's dream. The most famous picture shot here was 1993's 'A Perfect World,' filmed around Martindale in the country between San Marcos and Lockhart, with Kevin Costner on the run and Clint Eastwood directing and chasing him. The town also turns up in 1998's 'The Newton Boys,' the true story of a family of Texas bank robbers, with Matthew McConaughey and Ethan Hawke. And it stood in for backroads horror in the 2003 remake of 'The Texas Chain Saw Massacre,' which needed a place that looked like nothing had been updated in forty years. Film crews love Martindale because it looks the part without much set dressing, and music videos and television have come through as well. It's a town that has aged gracefully, and its quiet streets provide the perfect unspoiled backdrop for stories of another time.

RoadyGoat →

The River of Constant Temperature RoadyGoat

The San Marcos River, which is the heart of Martindale, is an engineering marvel of nature. Its water doesn't come from rainfall runoff like most rivers. Instead, it bursts forth from the Edwards Aquifer at hundreds of springs just a few miles upstream in the city of San Marcos. This massive underground limestone formation acts as a natural reservoir and filtration system. Because the water has been deep underground, it emerges at a remarkably constant temperature, about 72 degrees Fahrenheit, all year long. That’s why the river feels so refreshing in the summer and surprisingly mild in the winter. This consistent, clear, and clean water creates a unique aquatic ecosystem, allowing certain plants and animals to thrive here. So as you pass by the river in Martindale, know that you’re looking at the end result of a fascinating hydrological system—a river that begins its life inside the earth.

RoadyGoat →

Martindale, TX RoadyGoat

Martindale's founding is closely tied to the Crayton family. John Crayton, along with his son James Lasater Crayton and their slaves, moved to the banks of the San Marcos River in what is now downtown Martindale in 1839. John later sold the land to George Martindale, which Nancy Martindale, who established the city, later donated for the town's development.

Staples, TX

1912

Staples, on the San Marcos River in northeastern Guadalupe County, is located at the intersection of State Highway 621 and County Road 1977. Some of the earliest settlers were the McKean brothers, John and William, who arrived in the vicinity in 1852. They were later joined by the families of Leonidas Hardeman, Stokely Holmes, J. G. Lilley, Hedley Polk, John D. Staples, Nelson Tuttle, and Robertson Waller. In 1861 Camp Edward Clark, a Confederate regimental training site, was located in the area. Here Capt. Stokely Holmes organized an infantry company of local recruits that became part of Col. Peter C. Woods 's regiment. In 1867 Leonidas Hardeman harnessed the waterpower of the San Marcos River to operate a cotton gin. Subsequent owners of the gin used waterpower in the off season to grind corn, saw lumber, and crush sugar cane. At the turn of the century the turbine was supplemented with steam power during periods of low river flow. In 1871 Civil War veteran Col. John Douglas Staples established a country store in a live oak grove on the George Allen league, 500 yards from Hardeman's cotton gin. On May 19, 1879, a post office was opened there. The place was called Staples Store until 1891, when the post office department dropped "Store" from the designation. The office and its duties were passed about frequently for the first half century of its existence. The postmaster was usually a business owner who was willing to house the postal operation as a part-time duty. Initially, the Staples office was served by rerouting the twice-weekly Luling–San Marcos mail run along the San Marcos River between Prairie Lea and Martindale. In 1884 the only business enterprises were the store, the gin and gristmill, and the school. By 1890 a machinist, a doctor-druggist, a beekeeper, and another general store had been added. The Lowman brothers, Quincy and Roston, established the Staples Water Power Company and began construction of a wooden water tower in April of that year. The population had grown from thirty to forty-five in the preceding six years; by 1892 it had surged to 125, and the town had added a wagonmaker. In 1896 the community had 150 people and its own cemetery. The Staples Telephone Company was established in 1901 in the home of entrepreneur Fred Gabriel. Electric service, as such, was provided by a 1,000-volt dynamo that the Lowman brothers installed at their gin in 1903. The lights were turned off each night at 10:00. In 1913 both a new schoolhouse and a new metal water tower were completed. The earliest arrivals in the area were served by two churches. The Woodlawn Baptist Church, established in 1875, was two miles southwest of the settlement. There were two Methodist churches: Harris Chapel two miles east and Pleasant Ridge three miles northwest. In 1887 a Baptist church was built next to the schoolhouse in Staples, and in 1902 a Methodist church was erected just up the street. The Baptist church has had an intermittent existence with prolonged periods of inactivity; the Methodist church has been continuously active. The watershed event in Staples history was the goring of Mrs. Tom Anderson by her Durham milk cow in the spring of 1912. While attempting to separate the cow from its newborn calf, forty-nine-year-old "Granny" Anderson was completely disemboweled by a swift hook of the cow's horn. Hearing an agonized scream, frantic neighbors rushed to improvise a stretcher by ripping a barn door from its hinges and carrying the gravely injured woman to young Dr. Wilburn Williams' office, where they laid her on the only available surface—the dining room table. After cleaning the gaping wound with tap water from a system that remained unapproved until 1954, he replaced her intestines, sewed her up, and pronounced her as good as dead. Mrs. Anderson carried the scar of this encounter to her grave at the age of 105 in April 1968. She outlived the doctor by more than two decades and remained his most famous case. For that generation

Tsha Handbook →

Burial Site of Rev. John McCullough

1838

(April 3, 1805 - January 7, 1870) Born in Pennsylvania; educated at Princeton; in New Jersey, 1835, ordained a missionary. In 1838 came to Texas. Elected chaplain, House of Representatives, Third Congress, Republic of Texas, 1839. Founded First Presbyterian Church, Galveston, 1840. Moved in 1841 to Columbia-on-the-Brazos. Driving an ox-drawn Conestoga wagon, "Little Church in the Wilderness," moved 1846 to San Antonio. Helped built "Old Adobe," city's first Protestant church. Founded Galveston Seminary in 1849. Moved to Burnet County in 1859, and to Prairie Lea, 1869. Continued to preach and teach. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1967.

Historical Marker → · 4.3 mi away

Camp Clark, C.S.A.

1861

Named for Edward Clark, first Confederate governor of Texas, whose executive order June 8, 1861, created voluntary camps of instruction such as this. Food, camp facilities and guns were voluntary gifts by local people. Farmers, merchants, artisans, laborers gave goods and services. Men with military training and experience gave their time as drillmasters. This and 50 or 60 other camps of instruction mainly taught walking to Texans brought up with the habit of moving about on horseback. (6 out of 10 Texans joined the Cavalry. Governor Clark felt compelled to say in his executive order that infantry service was actually a matter of honor.) Operated despite scorn of 18 to 35 year old recruits who had fought Indians most of their lives and were impatient for battle -- not for training. Though neither Texas nor the Confederacy in 1861 had funds for camps of instruction, by 1862 privates were paid $11 a month, officers $50. This Guadalupe County camp of instruction was convenient to roads and to water. Area units that trained here included Co. D, 4th Texas Infantry, of Hood's famous Texas Brigade, and 4th Texas Cavalry (Partisan) under Captain William P. Hardeman. (1965)

Historical Marker →

Rector, Pendleton

1836

He fought for Texas Independence at Velasco, the Siege of Bexar and San Jacinto. Erected by the State of Texas 1962

Historical Marker → · 4.4 mi away

Toler, Gary Dan [Doc]

1943

Doc Toler, singer and songwriter, was born Gary Dan Toler in Shreveport, Louisiana, on May 29, 1943, to Earl Ralph Toler and Delta Mae Toler. Doc was raised in the sawmill towns of Northeast Texas and began playing music as a child. He grew up listening to the Louisiana Hayride . By his teens he discovered his love for traveling and making music. About 1965, while in his early twenties, he married his wife Di from Red Lick, Texas. When he discovered she could sing harmony, they began traveling the country and making music, often singing for their meals. As they toured, Di learned to play the acoustic bass, complementing Doc's guitar work and providing a stronger rhythm for the music. Doc and Di settled in Martindale, Texas, about the late 1970s to raise their four children. They continued to make music for a living and gained a following playing fairs and festivals across Texas. His format was a traveling medicine show , and it was through this that he became known as "Doc." The show continued as the children grew and joined their parents on the medicine wagon stage. From the mid-1980s to 1995 Toler hosted a radio show broadcast live on Fredericksburg radio station KFAN from New Canaan Farms in Dripping Springs and the Stage Stop Ranch near Fischer. The shows featured music, storytelling, and Doc's peddling of his souvenir "Torpedo Tonic"-a mixture of cayenne pepper and grain alcohol. The family band continued to tour, mostly playing fairs across the state, until Doc's health began to fail. They garnered critical acclaim, including awards from the Kerrville Folk Festival , the Airplay International Awards Group in Nashville, and the Austin Music Awards. The Tolers also released several albums through the years. One of his songs, "More Than One Gun on the Rio Grande," was the Independent Country Music Song of the Year in 1993. Toler also wrote a music column for Hill Country Sun , a monthly magazine published out of Wimberley. Doc Toler, one of the last true Texas troubadours, died in Martindale on September 16, 2005. He was survived by his wife Di; daughters Fagan, Banjo, and Island; son Von; and his parents Earl and Delta Mae.

Tsha Handbook → · 4.5 mi away

Lowman, Harmon Luther

1918

Harmon Luther Lowman, teacher and school administrator, the son of Quincy Joseph and Mellie (Scott) Lowman, was born on November 30, 1894, at Staples, Texas. He was a student at Coronal Institute in San Marcos from 1909 until 1911. He was enrolled in a prelaw course at Washington and Lee University from 1915 until April 1917, when he volunteered for military service. Lowman served with the 345th Field Artillery, Ninetieth Division, in the American Expeditionary Forces and attained the rank of first lieutenant. After World War I he accepted a position as replacement teacher in Staples and decided to devote his life to teaching. He received a B.A. from Southwest Texas State Teachers College (now Southwest Texas State University) in 1924, an M.A. from the University of Texas in 1925, and a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1930. He was director of the Demonstration School and professor at Stephen F. Austin State Teachers College (now Stephen F. Austin State University) from 1925 until 1936, superintendent of the Livingston, Texas, schools in 1936–37, and superintendent of the Goose Creek district (Baytown) schools; from 1937 to 1940 he was president of Lee Junior College (now Lee College). In 1941, after serving for a year as executive secretary of Southern Methodist University, Lowman became president of Sam Houston State Teachers College (now Sam Houston State University). During the twenty-three years that Lowman was president of Sam Houston, enrollment increased from 1,200 to 5,200, the annual budget grew from $448,000 to $6 million, and the value of college buildings increased from $1,118,000 to $21 million. In addition to promoting the school's growth, Lowman was concerned with the welfare of students, especially those in financial need. He often helped poor students with his own money and at times took students into his home so that they could remain in school. In recognition of his generosity, in 1963 the board of regents named the new student union building the Lowman Student Center. Lowman married Marguerite Hightower on April 6, 1918. They had two sons. Lowman was a member of the National Education Association and the Texas State Teachers Association . He was author of History of Teacher Training in the Gulf States (1930). He died on January 26, 1964, and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery, Huntsville.

Tsha Handbook →

Martindale, Texas

Music in Martindale

Songs About Martindale

Artists From Martindale

Rivers & Roads in Song near Martindale

History of Martindale