DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Capt. William G. Hunt House in Colorado County.
Now settle in, because this house has been standing longer than most people's family trees. We're talking about what is considered to be the oldest house in Columbus, Texas — and the story behind it goes back to a Virginia-born man who arrived in this part of the world around 1831, when Columbus itself was barely a notion. That man was William G.
Hunt, born in 1813, died in 1898, and in between those two years, he packed in more Texas history than most folks could dream up. The land itself first belonged to Bluford DeWeese — the founder of Columbus, no less. And around 1858, somebody put up this house on that ground.
The very next year, August of 1859, Capt. Hunt purchased it. He lived there until his death.
That's the kind of rootedness that makes a place mean something. But here's what makes Hunt himself worth a long look around the campfire. Before he was a Columbus fixture, before he was a farmer and trader, before he was a captain — this Virginian showed up on Texas soil just in time for things to get consequential.
He fought in the 1835 Battle of Gonzales. And then, right on the heels of that, he took part in the subsequent capture of San Antonio. The man had a way of being exactly where history was happenin'.
Then came the Civil War, and Capt. Hunt answered that call too, serving in the 13th Texas Infantry. When the fighting was done, he came back to that house on the old DeWeese land and got on with the business of living — farming, trading, and serving on the vestry of St.
John's Episcopal Church. He even donated the land for the original church on Milam Street. A man who fights battles and then gives land for a church — that's a full life by any measure.
The house itself has seen renovations come and go over the years, but it held on to what matters: the basic structure, those pine floors, those pine ceilings. Wood that was laid down around 1858, still underfoot. The oldest house in Columbus, carrying the story of a Virginian who came here around 1831 and never left.
Some places just hold.
What the marker says
On land originally owned by Bluford DeWeese, founder of Columbus, Capt. William G. Hunt (1813-1898) purchased this house in August 1859, and lived here until his death. He was a Virginian who came to Columbus around 1831, and fought in the 1835 Battle of Gonzales and the subsequent capture of San Antonio. A farmer and trader by occupation, Capt. Hunt also served in the 13th Texas Infantry during the Civil War. He was on the vestry of St. John’s Episcopal Church and donated land for the original church on Milam Street. This house, built around 1858, is considered to be the oldest in Columbus. Multiple renovations occurred over the years, but it retains the basic structure, pine floors and ceilings. RECORDED TEXAS HISTORIC LANDMARK – 1973