Lakeside Heights Property Owners Association

KINGSLAND, TEXAS

Of Kings & Indians

When Damon & I moved here four years ago, it was just to enjoy the beautiful countryside and be closer to family.  Little did we know there was so much history here.

When dinosaurs ruled the earth, the Paleo Indians moved to this area from Asia, crossing the Behring Straight. They moved south over the years and found the area at the two rivers to be abundant with wild game and fish.  The Paleo were hunters and gathers and the area we know as Kingsland was an unlimited food source.

The area evolved again and the abundant countryside was home to the Comanche, Apache, Kiowa, Aztec and Tonkawa.  The Comanche's fought everyone and soon captured the entire area for their own.

When the settlers starting arriving in the early 1800's, Martin Daniel King and his family came all the way from Mississippi.  The Comanche's fought them too.  When the area families were not fighting for their lives, they had to marvel at the horsemanship of the fierce Comanche's.  Eventually, twenty-six hard fighting cowboys fought off the last few Indian stragglers at Packsaddle Mountain and the Kingsland area could take a deep breath and began to grow.

Before he could see his dream of a town could come true, Martin Daniel King died from injuries he had received in the Civil War.  His wife Nancy continued to hire surveyors, platted and laid out the original streets and named them.  Nancy named her town Kingsville after her husband. When the post office was erected, they found out that the name Kingsville was already taken.  Thus Kingsland was born, still respectful of Martin Daniel King, but the community had its own signature now.

The town grew fast and eventually businesses popped-up: churches, stores and The Antlers Hotel was built.  It housed vacationers, railroad men and the cattle herders anxious to have a soft bed to sleep in.  The railroad came and the railroad bridge was built over the river, close to the junction of the Colorado and the Llano Rivers.

Many of the original settlers to this area have distant relatives still living here.  The cosmetics of the community have changed over the years, but you can see in the children's faces that pride of family is still the first priority.  Whether they are permanent resident or visiting vacationer, Kingsland offers something for everyone.

Donna K. O'Neal

10/09/2011