C.S.A. Cotton Cards Factory

The plaque explains the wartime scarcity of cotton cards; the town shows who made things. The Handbook of Texas says three brothers, James, Joseph and William Eubank, all skilled craftsmen, settled Circleville in 1853 and named it for its semicircle of homes. The village had tin and pewter shops, a blacksmith, a gristmill, a gin, a molasses press and a carding factory, and its post office ran from 1857 to 1911. The plaque names Joseph Eubank Jr. as owner of the cards factory; the Handbook does not say whether its carding factory is the same one.

What the plaque says

C.S.A. Cotton Cards Factory Near this site in 1862-65. Used power from the San Gabriel River. Chartered by Confederate Texas during re-tooling of agricultural economy to meet demands of the Civil War years. Because trade of bales of cotton for finished cloth was no longer practical, and textiles had to be made at home, Texas imported through neutral Mexico, at costs of $4 to $20 a pair, thousands of cotton cards -- stiff brushes that made fluffy cotton into firm, smooth "batts" to be spun into yarn or thread, quilted or made into mattresses. The administration of Governor F. R. Lubbock (1861-63) also acted to have cards made in Texas, in factories such as the one here, owned by Joseph Eubank, Jr. Heavy military demands (90,000 Texas men under arms; a 2,000 mile coastline-frontier to guard) plus reduced imports, caused fast expansion of industry. Arms and munitions plants were built, land grants were used to encourage production. Private effort met the need, and produced vital supplies for both the military and civilian populations. Confederate quartermaster set up depots and shops for military goods. Production of salt and "king cotton" was hiked to trade for scarce items. The State of Texas became a storehouse for the Confederacy. (1964)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Williamson County Courthouse — 14 mi
  The fifth Williamson County courthouse, a Beaux Arts building by C. H. Page, rises over a Georgetown square of more than 50 Victorian-era buildings.
• Inner Space Cavern — 15 mi
  A Georgetown cave found in 1963 when highway engineers drilled test holes, holding Pleistocene fossils and 72-degree rooms that visitors reach by an artificial tunnel.
• The Round Rock — 17 mi
  A table-shaped stone in Brushy Creek gave Round Rock its name in 1854; the Chisholm Trail crossed the creek near it, and Old Town stayed behind when the railroad pulled the town east.
• Mount Bonnell — 30 mi
  Austin's old lookout over the Colorado, named by an 1838 traveler, picnicked on by George and Libbie Custer, and reached by a 1939 flight of about 100 limestone steps.

More markers nearby

• Site of Moravia School — 4.1 mi
• Taylor Brethren Church — 4.4 mi
• Birthplace of Governor Dan Moody — 4.5 mi
• First Presbyterian Church of Taylor — 4.6 mi