Oakland, Prairie Point [Lithograph]
Name/Title
"Oakland, Prairie Point" [Lithograph]Description
An 1876 lithograph of "Oakland, Prairie Point" from the Galveston, Harrisburg & San Antonio Railway Company’s book “A Description of Western Texas.”Context
Oakland is on a site originally granted to James Bowie. As early as 1844 the community, then called Prairie Point, had a store on the stage line between Columbus and Gonzales. There was a small log schoolhouse in the community by the 1850s. The town was laid out by A. C. Herford in 1857. When Herford could not secure a post office because of the town's nearness to other post offices, Amasa Turner agreed to move his post office in Lavaca County to Herford's location on the condition that the post office retain the name Oakland, which Turner had chosen in honor of David G. Burnet's home. A Masonic lodge was established in the community in 1861, and when a two-floor schoolhouse was built in the 1870s, the upper floor was used for Masonic meetings. The building was also used as a church. “A Description of Western Texas" is an extensively illustrated guide for prospective immigrants to western Texas. Published by the Galveston, Harrisburg & San Antonio Railway Company in 1876, the text provides descriptions of the cities, towns, and counties of western Texas, complemented by additional information on a variety of topics of interest for those considering a move to the region. Executed in an accomplished, understated style, the lithographs serve as a marvelous invitation to the region. Eberstadt called the book "a valuable description of the lands, towns, agricultural prospects of West Texas, of high interest for the lithographic views."Category
The Handbook of Texas