Rosedale Nursery

Rosedale sold more than plants. William Watson's 1876 newspaper ad told Brenham that the gardens, grounds and whole stock were open to the public at all times, and the catalog offered apple, pear, peach, nectarine, apricot, quince, almond and chestnut beside the ornamentals. His own cross, the Rosedale arborvitae, went out in 1874. His son David bred the Nona and Watson plums, and sons John and Stanley ran the nursery after 1897. Their 1899 catalog was dedicated to their father's memory.

What the plaque says

Rosedale Nursery Established around 1860 by English immigrant William H. Watson as the state's first commercial nursery, Rosedale grew from three acres in Brenham to 200 acres southeast of the town by 1897. At Rosedale, Watson specialized in peach and grape cultivars. The nursery's 31-page catalog for the 1869-70 season revealed that Watson stocked not only fruit trees and grape vines, but also numerous ornamental plants. In 1874, he produced the "Rosedale Hybrid" arbor vitae. Over the years, Rosedale employed several professional gardeners who trained at England's Royal Botanic Kew Gardens. Watson's sons continued the business into the 20th century. (2014)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Independence and Old Baylor Park — 12 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.
• Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site — 17 mi
  The townsite on the Brazos where delegates met in a cold, unfinished hall in March 1836 to declare Texas independent, with Independence Hall rebuilt and Anson Jones's Barrington farm worked as in 1850.
• Star of the Republic Museum — 17 mi
  A star-shaped museum of the Republic of Texas years, 1836 to 1846, built at Washington-on-the-Brazos after a Brenham campaign and opened on March 1, 1970.
• Round Top and Festival Hill — 21 mi
  A German village on the old La Bahía Road, named for a house tower, with an 1867 stone church, a Fourth of July kept since 1851 and a concert hall a pianist built without blueprints.

More markers nearby

• Brenham — 0.4 mi
• Blue Bell Creameries — 1.3 mi
• 100th Anniversary Brenham "Banner-Press" — 1.3 mi
• Germania Mutual Aid Association — 1.4 mi