HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Leesville is an unincorporated city in the
Gonzales Gonzales may refer to: Places * Gonzales, California, U.S. * Gonzales, Louisiana, U.S. * Gonzales, Texas, U.S. * Gonzales County, Texas Other uses * Battle of Gonzales, 1835 * Gonzales (horse) (1977 – after 1996), an American-bred Thoroughbr ...
- Guadalupe County area in
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. The community had a population of 384 residents as of 2018. The town was founded in 1874 and was named Leesburg for founder Newburn H. Guinn's daughter, Lee Guinn.Davis, Fletcher. The Hondo Anvil Herald. (Hondo, Tex.), Vol. 51, No. 52, Ed. 1 Friday, July 9, 1937, newspaper, July 9, 1937; Hondo, Texas.
/ref> The town was renamed Leesville by the
U.S. Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...
and was recognized by
state law State law refers to the law of a federated state, as distinguished from the law of the federation of which it is a part. It is used when the constituent components of a federation are themselves called states. Federations made up of provinces, cant ...
in 1891. Leesville is notable for its rich, well-documented history. It is also home to a $149 million water facility and 40-mile
pipeline A pipeline is a system of Pipe (fluid conveyance), pipes for long-distance transportation of a liquid or gas, typically to a market area for consumption. The latest data from 2014 gives a total of slightly less than of pipeline in 120 countries ...
that stores and moves to 11.6 million gallons of water toward the
Greater San Antonio Greater San Antonio, officially designated San Antonio–New Braunfels, is an eight-county metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Texas defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The metropolitan area straddles South Texas and Central ...
area.


History


Name

The first settlement in Leesville began in the 1830s around Sandy Creek, said to be once
landmark A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern-day use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures ...
ed by a giant
granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
stone. This settlement gave Leesville one of its nicknames: the Sandies. Population growth near Sandy Creek halted in the 1870s when the region's
proprietor Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as ''title'', which may be separated and held by diffe ...
destroyed the granite landmark in retaliation to a local food theft. The region was then named Capote, from the
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
for "cape" or "cloak", after its Capote Hills. In the late 1800s, local
land developer Land development is the alteration of landscape in any number of ways, such as: * Changing landforms from a natural or semi-natural state for a purpose such as agriculture or housing * Subdividing real estate into lots, typically for the purpo ...
Newburn H. Guinn attempted to change the town's name to Leesburg after his daughter Lee. This new name was soon changed to Leesville by the local
post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...
, which noted that another Texas town had already claimed the name Leesburg. In the 1800s, much of south Leesville was owned by Ezekiel Wimberly Cullen, a former
Congressman A member of congress (MOC), also known as a congressman or congresswoman, is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The t ...
and
Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
Justice of the
Republic of Texas The Republic of Texas (), or simply Texas, was a country in North America that existed for close to 10 years, from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846. Texas shared borders with Centralist Republic of Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande, an ...
. Cullen's ownership of this land led to another of Leesville's nicknames, the Ezekiel W. Cullen League (E.W. Cullen). in The federal government recognized Leesville, Texas in 1885 in
patents A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...
"315,236" and "325,154" with the former being an "Indicator for Merchandise" and the latter being a "Marking Device." The town was officially recognized as Leesville, Texas by state law in 1891.


1800s

In 1835, at Sandies Creek in what is now Leesville, 13 traders of
Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
and
French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...
origin traveling from
Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...
to
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
were killed by Comanche Native Americans. One of the earliest records of settlement of the Leesville area, interchangeably Leesburg at the time, involved
common property Common ownership refers to holding the assets of an organization, enterprise, or community indivisibly rather than in the names of the individual members or groups of members as common property. Forms of common ownership exist in every economic ...
of "the people of Leesburg," most-especially a single
crowbar A crowbar, also called a wrecking bar, pry bar or prybar, pinch-bar, or occasionally a prise bar or prisebar, colloquially gooseneck, or pig bar, or in Australia a jemmy, is a lever consisting of a metal bar with a single curved end and flat ...
. The crowbar was reportedly shared by the community from 1863 until 1883, when it was thought to have been used in a local theft. Although limited historical records of the early Leesville population exist, in the 1880s, during the election for the
Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...
, votes cast from Leesville numbered in the thousands.


Governor's pardon of John Hester

John Hester, a Leesville resident during the late 1800s, was imprisoned for the
felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that r ...
of stealing
sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to d ...
. In 1884, in a state criminal-
appeal In law, an appeal is the process in which Legal case, cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of cla ...
from the
District Court District courts are a category of courts which exists in several nations, some call them "small case court" usually as the lowest level of the hierarchy. These courts generally work under a higher court which exercises control over the lower co ...
of Gonzales County (''Robert Carr v. The State''), Hester exchanged his
eyewitness testimony Eyewitness testimony is the account a bystander or victim gives in the courtroom, describing what that person observed that occurred during the specific incident under investigation. Ideally this recollection of events is detailed; however, this is ...
regarding the
burglary Burglary, also called breaking and entering (B&E) or housebreaking, is a property crime involving the illegal entry into a building or other area without permission, typically with the intention of committing a further criminal offence. Usually ...
of Leesville's
general store A general merchant store (also known as general merchandise store, general dealer, village shop, or country store) is a rural or small-town store that carries a general line of merchandise. It carries a broad selection of merchandise, someti ...
for a
pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...
by Texas Governor John Ireland. The pardon was later revoked upon the judgement that Hester's testimony was inadmissible and unreliable.


El Capote Ranch

El Capote Ranch, a
Texas historical marker The Texas Historical Commission is an agency dedicated to historic preservation within the U.S. state of Texas. It administers the National Register of Historic Places for sites in Texas. The commission also identifies Recorded Texas Histor ...
that still exists today, was founded in 1806 by Joseph de la Baume (1731–1834), a French army officer who came to North America with the
Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette (; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (), was a French military officer and politician who volunteered to join the Conti ...
and fought in the
American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
. He later joined the
Spanish Army The Spanish Army () is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest Standing army, active armies – dating back to the late 15th century. The Spanish Army has existed ...
and was compensated for his service with the title to 27,000 acres of Texas land in what is now Leesville, upon which he developed the original El Capote Ranch. The ranch's cabin from the 1830s (now preserved in
Lubbock Lubbock ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Lubbock County. With a population of 272,086 in 2024, Lubbock is the 10th-most populous city in Texas and the 84th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the ...
in the
Museum of Texas Tech University The Museum of Texas Tech University is part of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. It is made up of the main museum building, the Moody Planetarium, the Natural Science Research Laboratory, the research and educational elements of the Lubbo ...
) represents the earliest form of dwelling utilized on the Texas frontier. Virginia-born Michael Erskine (1794–1862) acquired the property from de la Baume's
estate Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representativ ...
in 1840 and raised cattle there. The Erskine family hosted several eminent visitors, including William Bollaert of the British Royal Geographical Society (1840),
Ferdinand von Roemer Carl Ferdinand von Roemer (5 January 1818 – 14 December 1891), German geologist, had originally been educated for the legal profession at Göttingen, but became interested in geology, and abandoning law in 1840, studied science at the Univer ...
(1845–1847), and
Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822 – August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, Social criticism, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the U ...
(1857). After the Erskine family sold the ranch in the 1870s, part of the land was
deed A deed is a legal document that is signed and delivered, especially concerning the ownership of property or legal rights. Specifically, in common law, a deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, affirms or confirms an interest, right ...
ed to Edith Kermit Carow, the second wife of
Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
. During the
Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...
, Roosevelt rode a horse from the ranch, named Seguin, at the 1898 Battle of San Juan Hill. Several other horses from El Capote were used by the
1st United States Volunteer Cavalry The Rough Riders was a nickname given to the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, one of three such regiments raised in 1898 for the Spanish–American War and the only one to see combat. The United States Army was small, understaffed, and diso ...
("Roosevelt's Rough Riders") as well. In 1880, the
San Antonio Express The ''San Antonio Express-News'' is a daily newspaper in San Antonio, Texas, founded in 1865. It is owned by the Hearst Corporation and has offices in San Antonio and Austin, Texas. The ''Express-News'' is the third largest newspaper in the stat ...
newspaper rated the Capote Ranch as "the largest and most complete farm in Texas... if not in the south," giving examples of the diversity of
livestock Livestock are the Domestication, domesticated animals that are raised in an Agriculture, agricultural setting to provide labour and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, Egg as food, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The t ...
and
crop A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. In other words, a crop is a plant or plant product that is grown for a specific purpose such as food, Fiber, fibre, or fuel. When plants of the same spe ...
s that were raised at the scale of 75 workers over 20,000 acres. The farm's stock included 2,800 heads of
cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are calle ...
, 6,000
Berkshire pig The Berkshire is a British breed of pig. It originated in the English county of Berkshire, for which it is named. It is normally black, with some white on the snout, on the lower legs, and on the tip of the tail. It is a rare breed in the Un ...
s and various other types of livestock and agriculture. The ranch was acquired in 1897 by Judge Leroy Gilbert Denman (1855–1916), a justice of the
Texas Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Texas (SCOTX) is the court of last resort for civil matters (including juvenile delinquency cases, which are categorized as civil under the Texas Family Code) in the U.S. state of Texas. A different court, the Texas Court o ...
, and is currently owned by his descendants. At present day, the property's remaining estate has generated significant
caselaw Case law, also used interchangeably with common law, is a Legal system, law that is based on precedents, that is the Judiciary, judicial decisions from previous cases, rather than law based on constitutions, statutes, or regulations. Case law uses ...
in Texas in '' ConocoPhillips Co. v. Ramirez,'' in which the rights to the minerals beneath the ranch's soil were contested.


Littlefield-Martin feud and legacy

In 1880, two generations of the Leesville families Littlefield and Martin received national attention after three Littlefield family members died in a revolver gunfight between the two families. The late George W. Littlefield was the grandson of one of the deceased Littlefields. In 1883, George Littlefield relocated to the state capital of
Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...
from South Texas. His Littlefield Building on Congress Avenue in downtown Austin now houses
Capital One Bank Capital One Financial Corporation is an American bank holding company founded on July 21, 1994, and specializing in credit cards, auto loans, banking, and savings accounts, headquartered in Tysons, Virginia, with operations primarily in the U ...
. From 1895 to 1903, Littlefield also owned the
Driskill Hotel The Driskill, a Romanesque-style building completed in 1886,
, located near the Littlefield Building. He installed the first electric lighting system in the hotel, which became a gathering place for Texas politicians during much of the 20th century. He willed his residence, the
Littlefield House The Littlefield House is a historic home in Austin, Texas, on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin. The home was built in 1893 for Civil War veteran George Littlefield, who was a successful businessman in the bank and cattle trades ...
, to the
University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...
.


Peebles' election

In 1889, over a thousand people of the Leesville general area elected the Representative James William Peebles for the local
legislative seat A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers ...
without Peebles' direct involvement in the campaign. Peebles had lived in Leesville since 1869, but he had never exhibited any "political aspirations." Despite having no previous political experience, Peebles won the legislative seat by a margin of a thousand votes. In 1891, he was elected to a second term in the same Leesville district.


1900s

A 1904 voting press-record from
The Houston Post The ''Houston Post'' was a newspaper that had its headquarters in Houston, Texas, United States. In 1995, the newspaper shut down, and its assets were purchased by the ''Houston Chronicle''. History Gail Borden Johnson founded the ''Houston P ...
indicated that at least 708 ballots were cast in Leesville during a primary election. Five years later, in 1909, over a dozen cases of
smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...
were reported around Leesville, with African Americans disproportionately affected.


Farmer's union

As late as 1906, Leesville farmers were majorly
unionized A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
under the Leesville Farmers' Union, a focus of
Thomas Mitchell Campbell Thomas Mitchell Campbell (April 22, 1856April 1, 1923) was the 24th governor of Texas, serving two terms from 1907 to 1911. He was an attorney and businessman, working as a manager for the International-Great Northern Railroad before entering ...
's 1906 Texas gubernatorial election


Railroads

In March 1912, the
Quanah, Acme and Pacific Railway Quanah, Acme and Pacific Railway (QA&P) was a freight railroad that operated between the Red River and Floydada, Texas, from 1902 until it was merged into the Burlington Northern Railroad in 1981. History On May 3, 1902, the line was inc ...
was built 2.5 miles east of Leesville. During the same time period, engineers of the Quanah, Seymour, Dublin and Rockport Railroad completed a preliminary survey for the construction of another railroad through Leesville itself. In 1916, an
electric railway Railway electrification is the use of electric power for the propulsion of rail transport. Electric railways use either electric locomotives (hauling passengers or freight in separate cars), electric multiple units ( passenger cars with their own ...
contract was awarded to J. H. Berryman & Co., served by its president Steve Holmes from Leesville. The 190-mile line was proposed to reach
San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...
from
Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
, stopping at
Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...
, Garwood,
Gonzales Gonzales may refer to: Places * Gonzales, California, U.S. * Gonzales, Louisiana, U.S. * Gonzales, Texas, U.S. * Gonzales County, Texas Other uses * Battle of Gonzales, 1835 * Gonzales (horse) (1977 – after 1996), an American-bred Thoroughbr ...
, Holmes' home of Leesville, Willow Springs and New Berlin. The expected material cost was written as "530,000 cross-ties," "16,000,000 feet of lumber" and "32,000 poles." This was considered a notable prospective order for the
lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...
industry at the time, but the proposal was never further developed.


2000s

In late 2020, a porcelain sign weighing approximately 150 pounds was stolen from Leesville's Quien Sabe Ranch. It landmarked the northern area of Leesville at County Road 102 and . A $1000 reward was circulated "for information about the theft."


Economy

As of 2000, Leesville was home to seven businesses that earned an estimated $1.3 million total in 2016. From 1999 to 2018, the aggregate
household income Household income is a measure of income received by the household sector. It includes every form of cash income, e.g., salaries and wages, retirement income, investment income and cash transfers from the government. It may include near-cash gover ...
for the city ranged from $7.8-$10.6 million annually. All commercial and residential properties in Leesville paid a combined estimate of $192,500 in
property tax A property tax (whose rate is expressed as a percentage or per mille, also called ''millage'') is an ad valorem tax on the value of a property.In the OECD classification scheme, tax on property includes "taxes on immovable property or Wealth t ...
es in 2016. Leesville is commonly used by through-traffic as a
bypass route A bypass is a road or highway that avoids or "bypasses" a built-up area, town, or village, to let through traffic flow without interference from local traffic, to reduce congestion in the built-up area, to improve road safety and as replacement ...
for
Texas State Highway 123 State Highway 123 (SH 123) is a north–south state highway in Texas, United States, that connects U.S Route 181 (US 181) in Karnes City with Interstate 35 (I-35) in San Marcos. The route was initially proposed in 1927 and has had minima ...
. In 2019 as rated by the
Texas Department of Transportation The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT ) is a Texas state government agency responsible for construction and maintenance of the state's immense Texas state highway system, state highway system and the support of the state's maritime trans ...
, the aggregate annual-average-daily-traffic (AADT) of all local state highway-segments, that intersected into the Capote-Sandies-Leesville area, was rated at 12,179 vehicles. The Midtown-Downtown
Texas State Highway 80 State Highway 80 (SH 80) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the ...
/ Farm to Market Road 1682 intersection was rated at 2,978 vehicles. At present, the primary industries of the Leesville area are the real estate holdings of Texas Wildlife Management and the Quien Sabe Ranch that raises
Santa Gertrudis cattle The Santa Gertrudis is an American list of cattle breeds, breed of beef cattle. It is a taurine-indicine hybrid breed, descended from both zebu and European cattle. It was bred in the early twentieth century in Texas, and received official recog ...
of
King Ranch King Ranch is the largest ranch in the United States. At some it is larger than the area of the European country Luxembourg. It is mainly a cattle ranch, but also produced the racehorse Assault (horse), Assault, who won the United States Tri ...
Running W Bull descent.


Water facility and pipeline

A notable component of the Leesville economy is the town's large water facility and pipeline. Owned by the Schertz-Seguin Local Government Corporation (SSLGC), the 40-mile pipeline transports water from the local Carrizo
Aquifer An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing material, consisting of permeability (Earth sciences), permeable or fractured rock, or of unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Aquifers vary greatly in their characteristics. The s ...
to the greater San Antonio area. The construction of the water facility and pipeline was arranged in 2012 at a reported cost of $149-million. In 2014, this facility was permitted to pump 19,363
acre-feet The acre-foot is a non- SI unit of volume equal to about commonly used in the United States in reference to large-scale water resources, such as reservoirs, aqueducts, canals, sewer flow capacity, irrigation water, and river flows. An acre- ...
of water per year, with a then-present utilization of 10,000 acre-feet. Over 60,000 households can be sustained through this water supply. The location of the SSLGC water facility in Leesville, between Gonzales and Guadalupe Counties, was a strategic choice to mitigate cost and provide long-term reliability of the water source for nearby cities. As of 2016, the system can store up to 11.6 million gallons of water.
Fitch Ratings Fitch Ratings Inc. is an American credit rating agency. It is one of the three nationally recognized statistical rating organizations (NRSRO) designated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and is considered as being one of the " Bi ...
remarked on this water company's inability to directly assign liabilities to either the City of Schertz or Seguin. It has also remarked that
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
has not affected the demand of water from the facility. From 2016 to 2020, the facility made over $9.2 million in revenue each year. In addition to serving the greater San Antonio area, the water facility and pipeline serve additional cities such as Selma and Universal City.


Geography

Leesville is located at the southeastern Guadalupe County line in west Gonzales County, approximately 19 miles south of U.S. 183 North in Luling (
Greater Austin The Austin–Round Rock–San Marcos Metropolitan Statistical Area, metropolitan statistical area, or Greater Austin, is a five-county United States metropolitan area, metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Texas, as defined by the Office of ...
) and 26 miles west of U.S. 183 South in
Gonzales Gonzales may refer to: Places * Gonzales, California, U.S. * Gonzales, Louisiana, U.S. * Gonzales, Texas, U.S. * Gonzales County, Texas Other uses * Battle of Gonzales, 1835 * Gonzales (horse) (1977 – after 1996), an American-bred Thoroughbr ...
. The historical
city center A city centre, also known as an urban core, is the commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely equivalent terms that exist in ...
of Leesville is located alongside Farm to Market Road 1682, where the city's original church and
cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite, graveyard, or a green space called a memorial park or memorial garden, is a place where the remains of many death, dead people are burial, buried or otherwise entombed. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek ...
reside; both of which currently serve as locations for local events.


Historical descriptions of landscape

In 1830,
surveyor Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. These points are usually on the ...
Byrd Lockhart described the lands beyond the river as composed of rolling prairie and sandy hills covered with
post oak ''Quercus stellata'', the post oak or iron oak, is a North American species of oak in the white oak section. It is a slow-growing oak that lives in dry areas on the edges of fields, tops of ridges, and also grows in poor soils, and is resistant ...
s and
blackjack oak ''Quercus marilandica'', the blackjack oak, is a small oak, one of the red oak group ''Quercus'' sect. ''Lobatae''. It is native to the eastern and central United States. Description ''Quercus marilandica'' is a small deciduous tree growing to ...
s. In 1846,
geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...
Dr.
Ferdinand von Roemer Carl Ferdinand von Roemer (5 January 1818 – 14 December 1891), German geologist, had originally been educated for the legal profession at Göttingen, but became interested in geology, and abandoning law in 1840, studied science at the Univer ...
further described the area as composed of "fertile valleys" and "low hills... of gravel sand" with "farms every few miles." In 1851, William Bollaert of the
Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...
became lost in the Leesville area, which he described as the "Big Hill prairies." He found the soil to be "rich looking" and "black." He further reported encountering herds of
mustang The mustang is a free-roaming horse of the Western United States, descended from horses brought to the Americas by the Spanish conquistadors. Mustangs are often referred to as wild horses, but because they are descended from once-domesticate ...
s,
wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...
, and forests of
pecan The pecan ( , , ; ''Carya illinoinensis'') is a species of hickory native to the Southern United States and northern Mexico in the region of the Mississippi River. The tree is cultivated for its seed primarily in the U.S. states of Georgia ( ...
trees. Near Guadalupe River, Bollaert found the land "fit for all agricultural purposes, although the surface soil is sandy," with chiltepin peppers "most abundant." The main Capote Hill was described as a "conspicuous object...isolated in the prairie" Within the hill, he found disintegrated
limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
,
gypsum Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate Hydrate, dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, drywall and blackboard or sidewalk ...
,
oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but no ...
and other shells comprising a great variety of former marine life. In 1852,
Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822 – August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, Social criticism, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the U ...
, the then-future designer of
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
's
Central Park Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the List of parks in New York City, sixth-largest park in the ...
, noted the area's principal species of trees as
pecan The pecan ( , , ; ''Carya illinoinensis'') is a species of hickory native to the Southern United States and northern Mexico in the region of the Mississippi River. The tree is cultivated for its seed primarily in the U.S. states of Georgia ( ...
,
hickory Hickory is a common name for trees composing the genus ''Carya'', which includes 19 species accepted by ''Plants of the World Online''. Seven species are native to southeast Asia in China, Indochina, and northeastern India (Assam), and twelve ...
,
cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs from the ''Cupressus'' genus of the '' Cupressaceae'' family, typically found in temperate climates and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America. The word ''cypress'' ...
, cotton wood,
box elder ''Acer negundo'', also known as the box elder, boxelder maple, Manitoba maple or ash-leaved maple, is a species of maple native to North America from Canada to Honduras. It is a fast-growing, short-lived tree with opposite, ash-like compound l ...
,
white oak ''Quercus'' subgenus ''Quercus'' is one of the two subgenera into which the genus ''Quercus'' was divided in a 2017 classification (the other being subgenus ''Cerris''). It contains about 190 species divided among five sections. It may be calle ...
and
walnut A walnut is the edible seed of any tree of the genus '' Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''. They are accessory fruit because the outer covering of the fruit is technically an i ...
. He described the bottom land's "rich, black clay soil" as difficult to cultivate yet "producing high yields" of crops.


Climate

The Leesville- Belmont area has an annual average of 33.1 inches and 35.8 days of
rainfall Rain is a form of precipitation where water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. ...
. The average day consists of 12.6 hours of light. Temperatures are high with very mild winters, with the
climate Climate is the long-term weather pattern in a region, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteoro ...
generally described as
humid subtropical A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between la ...
.


Flooding

During Tropical Depression Eight of 1981, several dwellings in and around Leesville suffered
water damage Water damage describes various possible losses caused by water intruding where it will enable attack of a material or system by destructive processes such as rotting of wood, mold growth, bacteria growth, rusting of steel, swelling of composit ...
after the O'Neill Creek reached its highest level since at least 1936. Leesville experienced some part of the county's $5 million estimated damages caused by the storm.


Nearby ghost towns

The following
former towns A former is an object, such as a template, Gauge block, gauge or cutting Die (manufacturing), die, which is used to form something such as a boat's Hull (watercraft), hull. Typically, a former gives shape to a structure that may have complex curv ...
once existed along the border of Leesville: * Albuquerque, Texas * Dewville, Texas * Sandies Chapel, Texas


Infrastructure

The following highways pass through Leesville: * * * * *


Population and land ownership

As of 2018, Leesville was rated as having 249 residential structures. An estimated majority of homes (40.5%) in the area were built from 1980 to 1999. The estimated median year Leesville homes were moved into was 1996. No residential structures have been approved and built in Leesville since 2014, as recorded by the census in 2017. The local median cost of housing, as of 2018, ranged from $546 to $633 per month; with the households of the city paying an aggregate $23,500 in annual
property tax A property tax (whose rate is expressed as a percentage or per mille, also called ''millage'') is an ad valorem tax on the value of a property.In the OECD classification scheme, tax on property includes "taxes on immovable property or Wealth t ...
es. In estimation, of local workers 16 years and over who do not work at home, 16% commute within five minutes to reach their place of work, 28% commute 15 to 24 minutes, and 56% commute half an hour or more. From 2000 to 2018, all occupied residential real estate in Leesville was valued from $13.9 to 19.6-million, leading to a residential value density of more than $400 per acre. As of 2020, vacant and undeveloped Leesville land sold at $4,649 per acre.


Education

Public education in Leesville is provided by Gonzales Independent School District, Nixon-Smiley Consolidated Independent School District and
Seguin Independent School District Seguin Independent School District is a public school district based in Seguin, Texas, United States. In addition to Seguin, the district also serves the communities of McQueeney and Kingsbury. In 2009 and 2010, the school district was rate ...
. Since 1998, an organization known as the Happy Quilters has produced quilts for auction at the annual Leesville Country Fair to supporting local education and maintain Leesville landmarks such as the Leesville school house by raising $1,000 or more in support per quilt.


Culture

Michael Erskine, a founding settler of the Leesville area, described the values of its people summarily in 1845: "I move along here as well as I can—work hard, live poor and am respected by the poor chaps. There are but few rich people in this part of the country. And no claims to be superior to another on account of his wealth."


Folklore

In folklore, locals claim to see a
ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...
of a little girl in a blue dress playing in the Leesville Cemetery. She is reportedly seen only at a significant distance.


Notable people

* Frank E. Corley (1895-1924)—
African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
LAPD The City of Los Angeles Police Department, commonly referred to as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), is the primary law enforcement agency of Los Angeles, California, United States. With 8,832 officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the th ...
officer born in Leesville who was shot and killed while on duty * John Beecher (1904-1980)—descendant of
Harriet Beecher Stowe Harriet Elisabeth Beecher Stowe (; June 14, 1811 – July 1, 1896) was an American author and Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist. She came from the religious Beecher family and wrote the popular novel ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' (185 ...
who reported on Leesville working conditions and labor unionism


See also

* Texas Blackland Prairies * Albuquerque, Texas *
Bebe, Texas Bebe is an unincorporated community in Gonzales County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas The Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) is an American nonprofit educational and research organization dedicated to doc ...


References


General references


“Telling It Like It Was”...Beatrice O’Neill...charter member of the Leesville Historical Commission...
* John Beecher. Like it Be's in Leesville; Deep in the Heart of Texas. United States,&nbs
Workers Press, 1980.


External links




Newspaper Archives; Leesville, Texas

Leesville, Gonzales Inquirer (No Obituaries)
*
Auctioned Campbell jersey won at Leesville fair
{{authority control Greater San Antonio Railway towns in Texas Populated places established in 1874 1874 establishments in Texas 1861 establishments in the Confederate States of America Unincorporated communities in Guadalupe County, Texas Unincorporated communities in Gonzales County, Texas Former Masonic buildings in Texas Former school districts in Texas