Connie Hagar
East of SH 35 (Broadway Street) at “Y” intersection, waterfront property facing Connie Hagar Wildlife Sanctuary, Rockport, TX 78382 (see map) MARKER TEXT (June 14, 1886 – November 29, 1973) Born Conger Neblett in Corsicana, and married to Jack Hagar in 1926, Connie Hagar received early training as a musician. She and her sister became interested in birds and worked as volunteers with the U.S. Biological Survey. The Hagars moved to Rockport in 1935, shortly after Connie made her first visit here. She became a self-taught authority on Texas birds, and her expertise was sought by professionals and amateur ornithologists from around the world. In 1945 the Texas Legislature designated this waterfront property as the Connie Hagar Wildlife Sanctuary. (1990)
First Baptist Church of Rockport
1515 N. Live Oak, Rockport, TX 78382 (see map) MARKER TEXT Organized in 1873, the First Baptist Church of Rockport originally was located on S. Church Street. L. D. Young served as the first pastor. The hurricane of 1919 destroyed the first church building, but the members built a new structure at the corner of Live Oak and Main Streets the following year. They joined with Rockport’s Methodist and Episcopal congregations to form an ecumenical Sunday School. Throughout its history, the First Baptist Church of Rockport has served the community with a variety of worship, educational, and outreach programs. (1991).
First National Bank of Rockport
Corner of Austin and Liberty streets, Rockport, TX 78382 (see map) Chartered on October 8, 1890, the First National Bank of Aransas Pass (now Rockport) was organized by a group of businessmen led by John H. Traylor, James M. Hoopes, George W. Fulton, Jr., James C. Fulton, and Richard H. Wood. Located at Main and Water streets, the bank played a vital role in Rockport’s growth and development. Its name was changed to First National Bank of Rockport in 1903. After surviving both the 1919 storm and the Great Depression, the bank moved to new quarters across the street from its first location in 1958, and to this site in 1974. (1990).
Frandolig Island
1797 Bayshore Dr., Rockport, TX 78382 (see map) MARKER TEXT Dubbed “Nine Mile Point” by early settlers, this island was first used commercially by the Cushman Meat Packing Company in the late 1860s. Austrian Franz Joseph Frandolig, a horseman who had delivered cattle to Cushman & Co., homesteaded property at this site when the company vacated the land in 1878. Frandolig and his family established a large fig orchard. They sold the fruits and vegetables in Rockport and Fulton. Frandolig also kept a vineyard, where he produced and sold wine by the barrel, and built a salt works. The Frandolig family sold the property between 1901 and 1903. The severe hurricane of 1919 returned the island to its natural and uninhabited state. In 1958 the local navigation district began to offer it for development. (1999).
John Fagan
Lamar Cemetery, 222 Hagy Dr. Rockport, Tx 78382 (see map) MARKER TEXT Soldier in the Texas War for Independence at Goliad, 1835-1836. Old Lamar Cemetery, 7 mi. N on SH 35 to Goose Island State Park, follow P-13 east, then northeast 2.5 miles Rockport, Texas Marker Type: Civil War Memorials – (pink granite)
Baylor-Norvell House
617 S. Water Street, Rockport, Tx 78382 (see map) MARKER TEXT Located on the waterfront in a community that has survived many hurricanes, this house was built about 1868 by Dr. John W. Baylor. In addition to his medical practice Dr. Baylor owned a local meat packing business, ranched, and worked to bring a railroad to the county. Schoolteachers Elisha (1857-1933) and Irene (1865-1944) Norvell moved to Rockport from Goliad in 1888 and rented the house before buying it in 1890. Elisha also worked as an agent for the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railroad and was a realtor. Irene, a musician, sold the house in 1935. (1991).
Wood-Jackson House
Historical Marker at 701 N. Magnolia, Rockport, TX 78382 (see map) MARKER TEXT Tobias “T. R” Wood purchased lots at a sheriff’s auction in 1910 and built this Queen Anne style house. T.R worked on his father’s cattle ranch located on San Jose Island, When R.R. moved to Victoria to practice law, his brother, Will W. Wood and wife Alpha Kennedy Wood resided in the home. In 1923 the house was purchased by Stephen Ford Jackson and wife Irene Owners of the Jackson seafood company. Their sons, James and Norvell Jackson started a boat building company called Jackson Marine Service and a third business Jackson channel and dock. Features include front, rear and side-facing gables. A semi-wraparound covered porch supported by column and spindle work ornamentation.
Smith-Brundrett House
901 N. Austin Street, Rockport, TX 78382 , West side of N. Austin St. between Orleans and Cedar streets. (see map) MARKER TEXT Built in 1903 in Old Rockport, this Cottage and Craftsman Style House is an early frame Bungalow surrounded by giant oak trees. In 1920, W.H. smith, grandson of early Refugio pioneers, bought this house where he lived with his second wife, their four children and his sister. In 1934, John Frederick Brundrett and his wife, Elizabeth, purchased the house. Fred was a rancher and the family ranched on 8,000 acres on Matagorda Island and later on Port Bay. The Brundrett’s were devout members of the First Presbyterian Church. The Brundrett’s remained in this house for 53 years, until Fred’s death in 1987 at age 99. This home is a symbol of the generations of influence on local history.
Joe & Bertha Harper House
811 N. Live Oak, Rockport, Tx 78382 (see map) MARKER TEXT Built around 1910, this two-story frame Colonial Revival was used as a boarding house for shipyard employees. The home was also used for shelter for 50 refugees during the 1919 hurricane that devastated the coast. In 1920, county judge Joe A. Harper (1881-1928) and his new wife, Bertha Oertling Harper (1888-1978), purchased the home. Judge Harper, a four-term County Judge, was influential in bringing the first coastal highway to the area which spurred development. After Joe’s untimely death in 1928, Bertha and her siblings lived in the home for almost 45 years while she continued her long career as a teacher for primary grades and at the First Baptist Church.
Baldwin-Brundrett House
1028 N. Live Oak, Rockport, TX 78382 (see map) Aransas county judge W.H. Baldwin, who promoted Rockport as a deep water port, lived in this house in the 1890’s. George A. Brundrett, Jr. was a confederate veteran and cattle rancher on 15,000 acres on Matagorda island; His family lived here from 1917- 1942. Brundrett’s second wife, Flavilla, often turned the parlor into a makeshift hospital, and it is said that 200 people took shelter here during the 1919 hurricane. This one story house retains it basic design from the 1880s and exemplifies the queen Anne style adapted to the Texas coast. The house has a front facing gable, hip roof, lace-like corner brackets and it original windows and doors. The only modification has been the enclosure of the back porch.