Stephen F. Austin’s Birthplace - Austinville, VA
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member bobfrapples8
N 36° 50.980 W 080° 51.411
17S E 512761 N 4078205
This Virginia State marker (KD-8) is located at the intersection of Fort Chiswell Road (U.S. 52) and Lead Mine Road (Virginia Route 69) near Austinville, Virginia.
Waymark Code: WM1C6JA
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 06/16/2025
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member Alfouine
Views: 0
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This marker replaces a similar one that was titled Austin's Birthplace and had a lot less words. This happened in 2016. The new one is in the same place and reads:
Stephen F. Austin (1793-1836) was born near Austinville, three miles west of here. His father, Moses Austin, operated a substantial lead mine and smelting business nearby before moving the family to what is now Missouri in 1798. Moses Austin won permission in 1821 to establish the first large-scale Anglo-American colony in Spanish Texas but died that year. Stephen took over, brought thousands of people to Texas (by then part of Mexico), and negotiated with Mexican officials to promote the colonists' interests. During Texas’s war for independence from Mexico (1835-1836) he was a commissioner to the United States, and he became the first secretary of state of the Republic of Texas in 1836.
Marker Number: KD-8

Marker Title: Stephen F. Austin’s Birthplace

Marker Location: Austinville, VA

County or Independent City: Wythe County

Web Site: [Web Link]

Marker Program Sponsor: Department of Historic Resources
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