Peyton Colony (Board House)

Peyton Colony was one of hundreds of freedom colonies founded across Texas between 1865 and 1930. With no land redistributed after the war, the Black Codes and the 1866 Texas homestead law barring African Americans from the 160 acres of public land open to each White settler, freed families who wanted land bought it or held it by adverse possession, often on poor ground at the edges of plantations, towns and county lines. Church and school held these settlements together. Black Texans owned 2 percent of the state's farmland in 1870 and 31 percent by 1910.

What the plaque says

Peyton Colony (Board House) In 1865, a group of freed persons, led by Peyton Roberts, established a community they named Peyton Colony. Roberts was born into slavery in Virginia. In the 1820s, he came to Texas with his owner, Jeremiah Roberts, settling in the Bastrop and Caldwell counties area. Peyton and his family eventually became the slaves of Jeremiah Roberts' grandson, William, who freed his slaves during the Civil War. The freed families agreed to work for William during the war, receiving payment in the form of supplies they would need to begin new lives. In 1865, the former slaves moved to this area, establishing Peyton Colony, which was known as Freedman's Colony to white settlers. The residents mostly farmed; they also built a lime kiln to make mortar for buildings in the county. The community received a Post Office named Payton in 1898. It was discontinued in 1909, but reestablished in 1918 with the name Board House, named for Alfred V. Walker's lumber home, which housed the Post Office. Life in the community largely revolved around Mt. Horeb Baptist Church, which organized in 1874 under the Rev. Jack Burch. Members built a log cabin which served as a church and community school on land donated by Jim Upshaw (Upshear). Residents used a cemetery on land deeded by Peyton Roberts; many of the settlement's early pioneers were buried there. Although the community declined throughout the 20th century, many descendants continued to live here and remnants remained. Today, Peyton Colony is remembered as the realization of the dreams of ex-slaves to establish a community as freed persons. (2008)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park — 12 mi
  The Johnson City district of the national park: the Victorian house where Lyndon Johnson grew up, and the stone barns his grandfather built in the Johnson Settlement.
• Pedernales Falls State Park — 13 mi
  The Pedernales stepping down over layered limestone east of Johnson City, a river that can turn from a placid stream to a torrent in minutes.
• Lyndon B. Johnson State Park and Historic Site — 21 mi
  A state park on the Pedernales opposite the LBJ Ranch, with a working Texas-German farm kept as it was around the First World War and the permit desk for the ranch tour.
• Luckenbach — 27 mi
  A store, saloon and dance hall on Grape Creek that a humorist bought in 1971, declared a free state of mind, and turned into a pilgrimage for Texas music.

More markers nearby

• Mt. Horeb Baptist Church — steps away
• Thomas C. and Eliza V. Felps — 5.4 mi
• Amenthal — 6.6 mi
• Jesse L. McCrocklin — 6.9 mi