DUANE
Duane's take
The official marker's the one doin' the talkin' here — I'm just the voice it's borrowin' for a spell. Now settle in, because this little patch of water in Chambers County has got a story buried under it. Literally.
Near this very spot lies an area of land called Cedar Point, tucked out there in Trinity Bay, and it was known to some of the earliest settlers this state ever had. The land itself started its recorded life as part of an 1824 Mexican land grant — awarded to a man named John Ijams, an Ohio native who had made his way to Texas back in 1822. That's early, folks.
That is early. Texas was still a Mexican territory, and John Ijams was already planting his flag out on that bay. Then December of 1837 rolls around, and here's where Cedar Point's story takes a turn that puts it in a different category entirely.
The Cedar Point tract was purchased from Ijams' widow — Tabitha Ijams Harris — by one General Sam Houston. Born 1793, died 1863. The Hero of the Battle of San Jacinto himself.
And here's the part worth letting sit a moment: when Houston bought this land in December of 1837, he was serving as the first President of the Republic of Texas. The man who had just won Texas its independence was out here picking up a piece of Trinity Bay real estate. Houston went on to serve two terms leading the Republic, then was elected United States Senator from Texas, and later became the seventh Governor of the state.
Not a quiet life. His home out here at Cedar Point has been described as a two-room log house of Dog Trot construction — modest, functional, the kind of place a man builds when he wants somewhere to breathe. Now here's the part that'll stay with you.
That homesite? It's underwater now. The site of a cemetery — one that probably dates back to the Ijams' ownership — is underwater too.
Cedar Point didn't disappear from history. It just sank beneath the bay. And yet it remains, the marker tells us, an important site in Chambers County history.
Some places don't need to be seen to matter. They just need to be remembered.
What the marker says
Near this site is an area of land known as Cedar Point that was known to some of the earliest settlers of the state. Located in Trinity Bay, Cedar Point was part of an 1824 Mexican land grant awarded to Ohio native John Ijams, who had come to Texas in 1822. In December 1837, the Cedar Point tract of land was purchased from Ijams' widow, Tabitha Ijams Harris, by General Sam Houston (1793-1863), who then was serving as first President of the Republic of Texas. The hero of the Battle of San Jacinto, Houston served two terms as leader of the Republic and later was elected United States Senator from Texas and seventh Governor of the state. Houston's home at Cedar Point has been described as a two-room log house of Dog Trot construction. The homesite now is underwater, as is the site of a cemetery, which probably was established during the Ijams' ownership. Significant for its association with the early settlement of Texas and with one of the state's most noteworthy figures, Cedar Point remains an important site in Chambers County history. (1986)