Williams Creek School is located at 5501 South
Ranch to Market Road 1623
Ranch to Market Road 1623 (RM 1623) is a farm to market road in Gillespie and Blanco counties, Texas.
Route description
RM 1623 begins in eastern Gillespie County at an intersection with RM 2721. It travels to the south into Stonewal ...
in
Gillespie County
Gillespie County is a County (United States), county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, its population was 26,725. The county seat is Fredericksburg, Texas, Fredericksburg ...
, in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
. Although now consolidated with the community of
Stonewall
Stonewall or Stone wall may refer to:
* Stone wall, a kind of masonry construction
* Stonewalling, engaging in uncooperative or delaying tactics
* Stonewall riots, a 1969 turning point for the modern LGBTQ rights movement in Greenwich Village, Ne ...
, the school is actually located south of there in the ghost town of
Albert
Albert may refer to:
Companies
* Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic
* Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands
* Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia
* Albert Productions, a record label
* Albert ...
. It was established in 1891 as the Albert School, and was originally a log cabin on Williams Creek. Six years later, it was moved farther from the creek onto a larger piece of land. A new building was constructed of native limestone.
Up until
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, classes were taught exclusively in the
German language
German ( ) is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and Official language, official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Ita ...
. The war brought a new law that not only required all classes, except foreign languages, to be in English but also banned the use of German on school property. During the 1920–1921 school year,
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
was an 8th-grade student in the one-room school. An additional room was added in 1922 to accommodate expanded enrollment. The school was consolidated with Stonewall in 1950.
The building is now used as a community center. The school was designated a
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark (RTHL) is a designation awarded by the Texas Historical Commission for historically and architecturally significant properties in the U.S. state of Texas. RTHL is a legal designation and the highest honor the sta ...
in 2002. It was added to the
on May 6, 2005.
See also
*
*
Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Gillespie County
References
External links
*
Handbook of Texas Online, Stonewall, Texas
{{Gillespie County, Texas
Defunct schools in Gillespie County, Texas
Lyndon B. Johnson
National Register of Historic Places in Gillespie County, Texas
Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks
School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas