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History in a Pecan
Shell
Part of the original Stephen F. Austin land grant, Brazoria
was platted in 1828 by John Austin. It was deserted in what is called the Runaway
Scrape as the Mexican army advanced from their victory at the Alamo.
A school opened as early as 1838 but it wasn't granted a post office for eight
more years. The town had a respectable population of 800 by the mid 1880s. Sugar
mills and cotton gins provided employment and income while the town gained three
hotels and no less than twelve general stores.
The town became the county
seat and by 1890 the population reached 900. The first newspaper was published
in 1892 and a second sometime before 1914. Brazoria was bypassed by the railroad
and lost its status as county seat to Angleton.
Nevertheless, the population grew from 633 in 1904 to 1,050 by 1929. Its population
reached 1,291 by the early 1960s which has more than doubled to the current 2,787.
|
| | All
that remains of the 1894
courthouse in Brazoria
Photo courtesy Julie McConnell, 2002 |
| The
Old Brazoria Cemetery historical marker
Photo courtesy Julie McConnell
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