La Porte, Harris County
A pioneer ferry of Texas under Mexico and the Republic. Established at the confluence of Buffalo Bayou and the San Jacinto River, 1822, by Nathaniel Lynch, one of Stephen F. Austin's "Old Three Hundred" colonists. Usual charges at ferries like this were man and horse, 25 cents; cattle, 4 cents a head. But rates could be raised for risky high-water service. Lynch, from Missouri, was an active Texas merchant and judge. After a small settlement grew up near his ferry, he platted the town of "Lynchburg" about 1835, but few shared his enthusiasm for the spot. In March and April, 1836, as Texan settlers fled the Mexican army during the War for Independence, hundreds crossed the San Jacinto at Lynch's Ferry. By April 2 the prairie was covered with wagons, horses, mules, tents, and baggage; but 19 days later at the Battle of San Jacinto, the Mexican general Santa Anna, hoping to cut off a Texan retreat at the ferry, was himself defeated near the site. In later years Lynchburg became a steamboat stop for the picturesque stern-wheelers plying Buffalo Bayou as eastbound freight was transferred there. Today the modern, motor-driven "Lynchburg Ferry" is operated at the site of the original ferry. (1969) SUPPLEMENTAL PLATE: This marker has been moved from its original location and is now in close proximity to the location of Lynch's Ferry.