Green Lake

Green Lake came back. After the Civil War its planters were left without horses, mules, tools, money or enslaved labor, and the place was almost abandoned, but by 1900 the fertile soil near the lake was drawing people again. The St. Louis, Brownsville and Mexico Railway arrived by 1910, and in 1914 Green Lake had a general store, a telephone and perhaps 300 people. A post office came and went twice between 1912 and 1930. Oil was found a mile east in 1947; by 1984 one of the field's twenty wells still produced.

What the plaque says

Green Lake Named for the nearby tidal lake of the same name, the community of Green Lake began to develop in the late 1840s, although records indicate there were some settlers in the area before that time. A group of wealthy planters from Kentucky migrated to the area about 1849, along with their families and many slaves. They established extensive cotton plantations and built large and impressive homes. Early in its history, in 1851, a tornado struck the settlement, but miraculously caused little property damage and no injuries. A private school was established in 1852 and served children of the Green Lake and surrounding communities. The outbreak of the Civil War caused many changes in Green Lake. Following the U.S. surrender by General David Twiggs in 1861, Federal troops camped near here awaiting transport ships. With its agricultural economy based largely upon slave labor, Green Lake declined following the war when landowners, facing a labor shortage, began to leave the area. By 1875 most of the original settlers were gone. Although in existence a relatively short period of time, Green Lake contributed to the history of Calhoun County. (1988) Incising on reverse: Erected by Calhoun County Historical Commission, George Fred Rhodes, Chairman

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• Original Mission Refugio — 1.4 mi
• Cotton Gins of Calhoun County — 2.3 mi
• Calhoun County — 8.0 mi
• Moses Johnson, M.D. — 8.0 mi