DUANE
Duane's take
The official marker's got the story here, and I'm just the one bringin' it to life for you. Now settle in, because this little cottage on the corner has seen more Texas history than most courthouses twice its size. We're talking about Oran M.
Roberts — born in 1815, died in 1898 — a man whose fingerprints are all over some of the most consequential moments this state ever lived through. He presided over the 1861 Secession Convention. Let that land for a second.
The convention that pulled Texas out of the Union, and Roberts was the one calling the room to order. He went on to serve as a Confederate officer. Then — and here's where the story takes one of those long, winding Texas turns — he came back, and Texas handed him the governorship.
Served from 1879 to 1883. After that, the University of Texas made him a law professor, which tells you something about the kind of mind the man carried around with him. Then, when all the big chapters were written, Roberts did what a lot of tired and remarkable men do — he built himself a cottage.
Right there at Third and Main Street in Burnet. Retired in 1893 and settled in to live out his days in that modest little place. Now here's where the house itself becomes the story.
In 1901, Mr. and Mrs. H. E.
Faubian bought it. And they didn't just buy it — they moved it. Picked that cottage up and brought it to this very site.
While they were at it, they reshaped the front porch and changed the roofline, adding what the marker calls Victorian touches. So what you're lookin' at today is a governor's retirement home that's been relocated and gently reimagined — still standing, still telling its tale, same as ever.
What the marker says
President of the 1861 Secession Convention and a Confederate officer, Oran M. Robert (1815-1898) served as governor of Texas from 1879 to 1883. After leaving office, he became a law professor at the University of Texas. He built this cottage at Third and Main Street and settled there after his retirement in 1893. Mr. and Mrs. H. E. Faubian bought the house in 1901 and moved it to this site. They altered the front porch and roofline, adding Victorian touches. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1978