|
|
|
The Washington County Railway Company |
|
The Washington County
Railway Company was incorporated February 2, 1856, and between the
date of incorporation and October 1, 1860, had constructed a line
of railway extending from Hempstead, Texas, to Brenham, Texas, a
distance of twenty one and three tenths miles. This company
was sold under fore- closure on June 2, 1868, to William
Sledge. |
| On March 11, 1869,
Mr. Sledge sold the to the Houston and Texas Central Railway
Company. The Houston and Texas Central Railway Company
extended the line from Brenham to a point near the present station
of Ledbetter, Fayette County, reaching there in January of 1871.
Construction proceeded from that point through Bastrop County,
reaching a point near the present station of McDade in September,
1871 and to a point near the present station of Manor, Travis
County, in November 1871 |
Little
information is available as to the exact dates of construction
reached and preceeded through Bastrop County but the approximate
period of construction is from Jume to October in 1871.
|
| Much of
the road bed of the Houston and Texas Central Railway was built by
convict labor which used wheel barrows to build up the dirt work
of the road bed. Formerly there was a flag station known as
Glasscock just west of the present location of the town of Elgin. |
|