The Arcane Texas Fact of the Day from Traces of Texas: The city of Hallettsville is named for Margaret Hallett, the widow of John Hallett. John Hallett, who had been a member of Stephen F. Austins colony and was a former sea captain, had the first home in the area, a log cabin that he built in 1833, but died soon after it was completed. After he passed away, his estate went to his wife, Margaret, who gave land for the town of Hallettsville in 1838. It became the county seat of Lavaca county in 1852. Margaret was a formidable woman. She turned the cabin into a store and traded for pelts and hides with the Tonkawa Indians and the white settlers, who were beginning to fill up the area; she then had the hides carted to Gonzales and exchanged for corn. She had a field cleared for a crop, raised horses under her own brand, and acquired a basic vocabulary in Tonkawa. More than once she raised lumps on the head of Tonkawas who attempted to help themselves to her merchandise. Tonkawa Chief Lolo is said to have rewarded her with the nickname Brave Squaw and with honorary tribal membership. She died in 1863 and was buried on the Hallett league, the land that had been granted to her husband by Stephen F. Austin some 30 years before. Later, her remains were transferred to City Memorial Park, where a grave marker acknowledges her as the founder of Hallettsville.
Posted on: Sat, 03 Jan 2015 18:28:41 +0000
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