Lost Pines of Texas - Texas Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

The piney woods of east Texas are famous for having driven the Texas economy in through the 1800s and into today. Although not as central to economic success in todays economy, the lumber industry is still an important business generator for the Texas economy. But, hundreds of mile separate the dense piney woods of east Texas from the pine tree forests found in Bastrop County and surrounding the City of Bastrop. The pine trees are one of the main ingredients of the success of Bastrop State Park. The geological formation and shifts in climate over eons of time moved the location for favorable climate and soils for dense pine forest farther away from Central Texas than it was long ago. The unusual thing is that Bastrop still can grow large loblolly pine trees that are ideal for lumber. It is a pocket of the right soils and the right rainfalls, the right sunlight hours and temperatures.

This marker is located at the entrance into Bastrop State Park, where SH 21 and Loop 150 merge or split, depending on your travel direction. The plaque is on the drivers righthand side when approaching the stone arch entrance to the park. Two other TX historical markers are also nearby.

Additional references:
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Marker Number: 9208 Marker Text: Located 80 miles west of the main pine belt of Texas, these trees probably were once part of vast, prehistoric pine forests. As land areas gradually rose, possibly due to glacier activity, most of the forests moved east. Ideal local conditions have kept the Lost Pines intact. One of the first records of the trees was made in 1807 by Zebulon Pike, explorer for whom Pike's Peak was named. In the 19th century, these loblolly pines supported the county's main industry. Local lumber was shipped by riverboat and ox-wagon to points all over Texas. (1969)

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Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log   04/27/2017 WalksfarTX visited it 11/06/2016 Beetlebub visited it 08/16/2015 WayBetterFinder visited it

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