Dubina

The settlers made just one bale of cotton their first year. The place was first called Navidad, then Bohemian Navidad, and for a time it became the stopover for Czechs entering Texas. After the Civil War, which many of the men were drafted into against their will, the town added a gin, a hotel, a mill, a telegraph office and even a zoo; its post office ran from 1885 to 1910. Joseph Peter owned most of the town's property, served as state representative and gave the land for the first church in 1876. The railroad bypassed Dubina in 1873.

What the plaque says

Dubina, which derives its name from the Czech word for Oak Grove, was founded in 1856 by a group of Moravian immigrants, including the Marak Kahlich, Sramek, Peter, Holub, Muzny, and Haidusek families. By 1900 the farming community had erected a church building, mill, cotton gin, blacksmith shop, store, and post office. A 1909 storm and a 1912 fire caused extensive damage from which the town never recovered. As the first settlement in Texas to be founded entirely by Czech-Moravians, Dubina remains an important part of the state's regional and cultural history. (1983)

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• John Pettit Borden — 3.2 mi
• Town of Weimar — 3.7 mi
• Etta Moten Barnett — 3.7 mi
• Schulenburg — 5.6 mi