|
 Friendship Community
N 30° 43.109 W 097° 19.288
14R E 660722 N 3399606
The ghost town of the Friendship Community is commemorated because it was/is covered by the lake created by damming the San Gabriel River. This marker is found off Granger Dam Road at the US Army Corps of Engineers station.
Waymark Code: WM1308X
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 08/19/2020
Views: 3
The drive to this TX historical marker will give an added bonus for making the trip to the lake created by the Granger Dam across the San Gabriel River in Williamson County. The official address of the US Army Corps of Engineers is 3100 Granger Dam Road and the marker is along the roadway of Granger Dam Rd, behind the Engineers' headquarters. There is a small right of way parking space at the marker. As the need for a stable water supply grew, the US Army Corps of Engineers designed and built a dam across the San Gabriel River to create a lake which can supply not only a place for boating and recreation, but can also provide a water supply and flood control to the surrounding area. As positive as these benefits are, it came at the expense of drowning the Friendship Community. By 1952, the residents of Friendship were aware the community was going to be underwater. The property was sold off and from 1972 to 1977 the dam was constructed. It was fully operational by 1980. Link to TSHA article about Fellowship community being under the lake water: ( visit link) Texas Water Development Board article on the history of Granger Lake: ( visit link)
Marker Number: 13614
Marker Text:
Beneath the waters of Granger Lake, constructed by the U.S. Corps of Engineers in the 1970s, lies the site of an early agricultural settlement known as Allison and later as Friendship. Brothers Elihu Creswell Allison and James A. Allison began ranching here in 1847, in what was then Milam County. A post office named Conel operated 1878-80, and in 1892 a new post office opened for Allison. Located along Willis Creek, Allison boasted a cotton gin, a store, a Baptist church, a tabernacle, a community cemetery and the Allison schoolhouse, later known as Old Friendship, shared with a Woodmen of the World lodge.The devastating 1921 San Gabriel River flood destroyed the gin, store and tabernacle, and the new Friendship community developed nearby on higher ground. It prospered with businesses and social events, such as three-day fairs featuring political speeches and rodeos. Following consolidation with Centerville and Enterprise schools, a new Friendship schoolhouse opened in 1923. In 1958, Friendship merged with Granger school, but the building remained a community center for elections and a meeting place for farmers and homemakers. Agriculture remained the economic base of the community throughout its existence, and local farm and ranch families reflected diverse cultures, including Anglo, Czech and African American. Most residents dispersed in the 1970s, after construction of the Laneport (later Granger) Dam across the San Gabriel River. Allison (Old Friendship) cemetery burials were relocated to Granger cemeteries. Much of the recorded early life of the community was the work of Stacy Mikulencak Labaj (1903-77), who collected oral histories with longtime residents. Today, a reunion of Friendship families and friends keeps the memories alive for future generations. (2006)
|
Visit Instructions:
Please include a picture in your log. You and your GPS receiver do not need to be in the picture. We encourage additional information about your visit (comments about the surrounding area, how you ended up near the marker, etc.) in the log.
|