HISTORY
OF
TEXAS LAND
With a preface by
BILL ALLCORN
Commissioner of the General Land Office
AUSTIN, TEXAS
1958
The Old GENERAL LAND OFFICE BUILDING—BUILT IN THE YEARS 1856-1857 IN AUSTIN, TEXAS
The Old General Land Office Building, pictured (above) asit appeared about 1890, is located at the southeast corner of the Capitolgrounds in Austin. It is one of the oldest remaining buildings in the CapitolCity.
It was designed in December, 1854, by a draftsman in the GeneralLand Office, Professor Doctor C. C. Stremme, who enjoyed considerableprestige in Europe before his emigration to Texas. In addition to otherhonors, Professor Stremme held a title at the Court of Emperor Nicholas Iof Russia.
Maps prepared by Professor Stremme suggest his German homeland,and he poured his rich background into the Old Land Office Building. Thisstructure is German Romance in style.
It was built in 1856 and 1857.
Thirty years after its construction, the building was the workinghome of William S. Porter, who was later to gain fame as a short storywriter under the name of O. Henry. He was a draftsman in the GeneralLand Office, and there he turned out numerous maps of rare beauty.
Later, O. Henry used the Old General Land Office Building in oneof his stories, entitled “Bexar Scrip Number 2692”.
Statistically, the old building is 62 by 94 feet, outside dimensions.It has 11,656 feet of floor space in its two floors. Its exterior walls aretwo feet in width. It is characterized by star-transomed windows.
Moving into the Old General Land Office Building shortly after itscompletion, the General Land Office occupied the structure until 1918, whenit moved into its present building.
A new building to be occupied by the General Land Office and theState Library and Archives is now in the planning stage.
More information about the historic Old General Land Office Buildingcan be obtained from Mr. August Watkins Harris, an Austin architect,13 Niles Road, Austin, who created the picture (below) and withwhose permission it is printed.
PRESENT GENERAL LAND OFFICE BUILDING, 1918
PREFACE
Here is the story of Texas land.
And the story of Texas land is the story of Texas. This history beginswith the Spanish in Texas, goes through the period of the Mexican occupation,tells about a courageous people who forced their independence, setup a republic, and ten years later joined the United States. The story ofTexa