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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNaming of College Station (7/6/2009) Anne Boykin - Naming of College Station Page 1 From: "Bill Page" <BPAGE @Iib - gw.tamu.edu> To: <nross @bryantx.gov >, <Aboykin @cstx.gov >, <2opersteny @directv.net >, "John... CC: "Catherine Coker" <CCoker @Iib- gw.tamu.edu >, "David Chapman" <DCHAPMAN @Ii... Date: 7/6/2009 10:41 AM Subject: Naming of College Station Historians have to deal with unanswered questions every day. One of those questions is what was the source for the name "College Station." People often say its name came from the name of the railroad depot, "College Station." That sounds plausible. In fact, that's the story that is given on the historical marker for the College Station depots. There is just one catch. The College Station name was in use by the spring of 1877, while the first railroad depot is said to have been built in 1883. If those facts are true, then the name "College Station" could not have come from the depot. Historians have long known that the name "College Station" was in use by January 1877, when a request was sent to Washington for the establishment of a post office. College Station — Post Office Department site location report: About 6 miles east of Brazos River and 3 miles west of Carters Creek; post office would serve about 700 inhabitants; signed H. D. Parsons; dated 29 January 1877 The Post Office records also show that Henry D. Parsons was appointed post master at College Station, 7 February 1877 * So, could the name have come from the post office itself, rather than the depot? In the United States, "station" is a term used to describe a small post office. Thus, people might have described the school's post office as being the "college station." It would not have taken a rocket scientist, when faced with the task of naming the new post office, to suggest using simply "College Station." (7/6/2009) Anne Boykin - Naming of College Station Page 2 So, if the post office were opened in 1877 and the first train depot was not built until 1883, that would seem to settle the matter. Unfortunately, historical research is rarely that simple. It turns out the building of the first depot may also date back to the spring of 1877. Just to complicate matters further, no copies of the local newspaper, the Brazos Pilot, survive for 1877, so we are forced to depend on papers published elsewhere. Two articles have been found that shed some light on the subject. First: New Railway Station Mr. Alexander Hogg, Professor of Mathematics of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, informs the News that arrangements have been perfected with the Texas Central Railway Company by which they will open a station at the college, four miles south of Bryan. Mr. Hogg further states that the Hon. Roger Q. Mills, M. C. [member of Congress], has promised to use his influence toward securing a postoffice. These features, with the efforts that are being made to secure a telegraph office at College Station, will greatly facilitate communication with pupils, besides proving generally advantageous. Galveston Daily News, 2 January 1877, page 3 This is the earliest use of the name "College Station" I have seen, and it appears to be connected to the railway depot rather than the post office. Another possibility is that no depot was built in 1877, but the railroad instead established some sort of stop - perhaps just an open platform where passengers, freight and possibly the mail could be offloaded. Then there is a second article which seems to state a bit more clearly that there was some kind of stop or depot at the college by 1877. Brazos County Agricultural College — The Grounds, Pupils, etc. College Station, March 13, 1877 Eds. News — College Station is newly established by the Houston and Texas Central Railroad for the convenience of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, and is immediately under the shadow and protection of that institution. Less than half a mile from the railroad tower the walls of the college, with its grand consort, Steward's Hall, to the southwest, and the long (7/6/2009) Anne Boykin - Naming of College Station Page 3 line of beautiful brick cottages, for the professors' residences, to the southeast. The inclosure of the grounds is nearly complete, shade trees having been set out and farming has commenced. There are now about one hundred students in attendance, with constant accessions to the ranks. These young men are fine specimens of young Texans, and are much above the average in intelligence and physical build, and are making rapid progress in their studies under the able tuition of the efficient corps of professors. The military feature of the school is very interesting, and it is astonishing how apt these youngsters are in the drill and manual of arms, and they present a very soldierly appearance in their neat gray uniforms, in "columns of fours," with their bright muskets at "right shoulder shift." The college has two hundred new improved breech - loading muskets, with bayonets, cartouche boxes, etc. The college is situated on a high, rolling prairie, and fanned by a cool breeze at all times. There are several large cisterns attached to the buildings, and with all these advantages it is no wonder that general good health prevails. Taken altogether, this college is a most desirable place to send the young men of the country for education, and it is destined to become one of the most popular schools in the United States. The population around here is composed of law- abiding and industrious people, and they are busy now putting in this year's crop, and one may hear the plowman's song, accompanied by the whistle of the lark, from "daily morn to dewy eve," for spring is here. Some of our neighbors have corn already up, preferring to risk Jack Frost than G. Hopper, Esq., although I do not apprehend any trouble with the grasshoppers here, they not hatching out in near the numbers we feared before warm weather set in. Bryan, five miles distant, held an election Saturday last, 10th inst. Candidates, King Alcohol and Morality. King Alcohol was the successful aspirant, getting a majority of near two hundred, and so he continues in office. With us college folks, local option is compulsory, no intoxicating liquor being allowed for sale within two miles of the college, consequently our moral [text missing] is pure. [Text missing] ment has established a [text missing] with Mr. Parsons [text missing] great convenience [text missing] thank Prof. Alex Hogg, assisted at Washington by Hon. R. Q. Mills. Letters [text missing] for persons at the college should hereafter be addressed, College Station, Brazos County, Texas, in full, instead of Bryan as heretofore. The News is our favorite paper here, and we could not begin to get along without its welcome advice and information from the outside world. Dumard. Galveston Daily News, 15 March 1877, page 1 As you can see, portions of the text are missing from the microfilm, which only complicates matters further. (7/6/2009) Anne Boykin Naming of College Station Page 4 It is certain that a depot was constructed in College Station in 1883, as shown by this brief statement. The Houston and Texas Central Railroad Company is building a neat depot at College Station. Galveston Daily News, 19 July 1883, p.1 I have not seen anything, however, that explicitly states this was the first depot located there. So, the question boils down to this. Which came first, the depot or the post office? My guess is that the sources that give the date "1883" for the construction of the first railroad depot are in error, and that the town was actually named after an earlier depot — or at least a stop — that was established in 1877. But I would not bet the farm on it.