Jardine-Brown House

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Way out in Walker County, there's a house that started as one cabin and just kept on growing, the way a good family tends to do. Robert and Jane Jardine Browne built the east cabin first, back in 1849, hewn pine logs set on walnut posts, solid as a promise.

And this wasn't just any patch of ground they were building on. The site was part of the James Jardine, or Jordan, League, a land grant that goes all the way back to 1835, surveyed by the Republic of Texas in 1838 for Jane's uncle. In other words, this land had roots before most of Texas had a government worth mentioning.

The Brownes put down their own roots right alongside those old survey lines. Well, families have a habit of growing, and growing families have a habit of needing more room. So a west cabin of sawed pine logs got added on, giving the household a little breathing space.

Then came James F. Browne, a son born and raised right there on that property. He did what sons do when the place means something to them: he added to it.

A lean-to bedroom, a dining room, a detached kitchen. Layer by layer, the house told the story of one family putting more of themselves into the land. The property passed to heirs, and in 1940 it was bought by Ben H.

Powell, Jr. He took what the Brownes had built across generations and restored it in 1966. One cabin on walnut posts, added to, added to again, and still standing.

What the marker says

Robert and Jane Jardine Browne built east cabin of hewn pine logs on walnut posts, 1849. Site was part of James Jardine (or Jordan) League--1835 land grant surveyed 1838 by Republic of Texas for Jane's uncle. The west cabin of sawed pine logs was added for growing family. James F. Browne, a son born and reared here, added the lean-to bedroom, dining room and detached kitchen. Bought 1940 from the heirs and restored 1966 by Ben H. Powell, Jr.