Baylor University for Boys

Baylor's male school at Independence went through upheaval. The Handbook of Texas says Rufus Burleson became president after Henry Lee Graves resigned in 1851, and the first degree came in 1854. In 1861 Burleson and the male faculty resigned after disputes with the trustees, and George W. Baines Sr. took over, followed in 1863 by William Carey Crane. During Crane's presidency the female department became its own college, so from 1866 to 1886 Baylor University was a school for men. In 1886 it was consolidated with Waco University, which Burleson had headed.

What the plaque says

Baylor University for Boys On this site stood one of the early buildings of Baylor University erected for boys in 1851, and torn down in 1934; The institution was incorporated February 1, 1845 under the laws of the Republic of Texas; named for Robert Emmett Bledsoe Baylor who with Reverend William M. Tryon secured the charter; Henry L. Graves was elected first president January 12, 1846; consolidated with Waco University in 1886 and moved to Waco; Baylor University; The oldest existing educational institution in Texas; continues in unselfish service; Pro Ecclesia, Pro Texana

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Independence and Old Baylor Park — 0.5 mi
  A crossroads north of Brenham that was the richest town in Texas when it won Baylor University in 1845, refused the railroad, and lost the college to Waco and Belton in 1886.
• Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site — 11 mi
  The townsite on the Brazos where delegates met in a cold, unfinished hall in March 1836 to declare Texas independent, with Independence Hall rebuilt and Anson Jones's Barrington farm worked as in 1850.
• Star of the Republic Museum — 11 mi
  A star-shaped museum of the Republic of Texas years, 1836 to 1846, built at Washington-on-the-Brazos after a Brenham campaign and opened on March 1, 1970.
• Navasota — 16 mi
  A railroad and cotton town where the La Bahia Road crossed the Navasota River, scarred by an 1865 explosion and yellow fever, and the home ground of the songster Mance Lipscomb.

More markers nearby

• Robert Emmett Bledsoe Baylor (1793-1873) — steps away
• General Sam Houston — steps away
• Baylor University on Windmill Hill — steps away
• Home Built in 1845 by General Jerome B. Robertson — steps away