King's Highway
N 30° 45.345 W 096° 27.065
14R E 743992 N 3405309
Number 45 of 118 total Camino Real markers placed by the Daughters of the American Revolution, this marker is at a small pullout near the junction of the OSR and the TX 6 near Benchley TX
Waymark Code: WMXBT3
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 12/23/2017
Views: 9
In 1915 the Texas branch of the Daughters of the American Revolution decided to mark the historic route of the King's Highway, also called the El Camino Real or the Old San Antonio Road. They placed squat pink granite markers every 5 miles along the route in 1918.
The markers are identical. This marker, No. 45, is located near the OSR junction with the US 190 and TX SH 6 near Benchley TX.
From the Texas Historical Commission: (
visit link)
"History of State of Texas Historical Markers
The State of Texas first commemorated a historical site in 1856 by contributing to marking graves at the San Jacinto battleground. In 1858, the Legislature bought an existing Alamo monument, built in 1841 with stones gathered from the battle site. William Nangle and Joseph Cox of San Antonio designed the ten-foot high pyramid on a square pedestal to be portable, and it traveled to Houston, New Orleans and Austin. After the state acquired the monument it was moved to the Capitol, and ultimately destroyed in the 1881 fire that razed that building.
. . .
From 1915-18, the State of Texas and the Daughters of the American Revolution together placed 123 pink granite markers about every five miles along the King’s Highway, also known as Camino Real or Old San Antonio Road, the trail blazed in 1690 by Alonso de Leon. Surveyor V. N. Zively mapped the route through south, central and east Texas. Most of these markers are still intact."