Near Homesite of Judge Andrew S. Broaddus

The wagon train that reached Cooks Point in 1854 carried more than its leader. Of the roughly 200 people who made the six-month trip from Virginia behind Andrew S. Broaddus, about 120 were Black and enslaved and about 80 were White, according to the Handbook of Texas, which says the line stretched over a mile. Those men, women and children cleared and planted the land that built the judge's standing. Their names appear neither on the plaque nor in the Handbook's account.

What the plaque says

Near Homesite of Judge Andrew S. Broaddus Noted pioneer leader. Member Virginia House of Delegates (1844-45). Piloted to Texas (1854) a mile-long wagon train of 200 people, who built Salem Baptist Church-- reminder of their Virginia home. Broaddus debated the Hon.Sam Houston at Waugh Campground (8 Mi. W), 1857. He served in 1861 in Texas Secession Convention; 9th (1861-63) Texas Legislature; 13th Texas Legislature (1873); also on commission to locate and build Texas Agricultural & Mechanical College (now university); judge, 32nd District (1874-75; 1879-80). Married twice, had 13 children. (1971)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum — 15 mi
  The library of the forty-first president on the Texas A&M campus, opened in 1997, where George and Barbara Bush and their daughter Robin are buried in a family plot on the grounds.
• Lake Somerville State Park and Trailway — 23 mi
  Two park units on an 11,000-acre lake between Austin and College Station, joined by a thirteen-mile trailway for hikers, cyclists and riders with primitive camps along the way.
• Independence and Old Baylor Park — 25 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.
• Milam County Courthouse and Jail — 28 mi
  Cameron's 1892 Renaissance Revival courthouse and the 1895 St. Louis-built jail beside it, now the county museum, are listed together on the National Register.

More markers nearby

• Cooks Point — steps away
• Elizabeth Chapel Methodist Church — 1.8 mi
• Fort Tenoxtitlan — 1.8 mi
• Cooks Point United Methodist Church — 2.0 mi