Caldwell County was founded in 1848 and named after one of the area’s early pioneers and military heroes, Matthew Caldwell.
Caldwell arrived in the area with his family and settled in Gonzales, capital of the Dewitt Colony in the Mexican-governed state of Texas. Caldwell soon became a notable citizen and was active in the security and command of minutemen rangers in Gonzales and the surrounding areas.
As relations between the Mexican government and the settlers in Texas continued to sour, Caldwell helped organize a Texas band of militiamen, actively recruiting men to the cause just ahead of the opening battle of the Texas Revolution against Mexico in Gonzales. For this, he is sometimes referred to as the Paul Revere of the Texas Revolution. In the battle, he served as a scout and mediator. As the war progressed, the provisional government of Texas gave Caldwell commands in the siege of Bexar and siege of the Alamo.
Caldwell served as one of the delegates from Gonzales to the Texas Independence Convention in 1836 and was a signer of the Texas Constitution. Caldwell continued to be an important military leader throughout the war and the Republic of Texas that emerged after the war. Among his civilian achievements in the Republic was founding Walnut Branch in the sparsely populated northwest corner of then Gonzales County. Caldwell died at home and was buried with military honors in 1842.
A County is Born
By 1847, after Texas had been annexed by the United States, the population in the northern part of Gonzales County had increased so much that residents petitioned the Texas legislature to establish a new county.
The next year, the state legislature established Caldwell County from portions of Bastrop and Gonzales County. Lockhart was declared the county seat and was located on a tract of land that had been part of Byrd Lockhart’s grant, received from Dewitt for Lockhart’s early surveying efforts on behalf of the Dewitt Colony. Byrd Lockhart was probably the first Anglo to traverse Caldwell County as he surveyed the land for Dewitt. Caldwell County’s historic role in Texas History is not only reflected in its involvement with the Texas Revolution, but also in its important involvement with the Independence Trail and Chisholm Trail of Texas.
Boom, Bust, Civil War and the Railroad
Caldwell County has experienced several booms throughout its colorful history, many followed by lean times, but always with an optimistic eye on the area’s next economic opportunity. Originally the area was favored for its rich farmlands and plentiful water sources, but a severe drought after the Civil War caused farmers to transform their ailing farmland into cattle ranges. The area became an integral southern gathering point for herds heading north on the Chisholm Trail, the trail led directly through the city of Lockhart, often causing damage to the property of local residents.
Between 1850 and 1860, cattle in the county grew from 3,800 head to more than 33,000. The number of hogs increased from almost 3,500 to almost 11,500. If not for a two-year drought in 1857, the increase would almost surely have been even more dramatic.
After the Civil War, Caldwell County, like much of Texas and the South, suffered severe economic setbacks. The county showed signs of new life in 1870 because of immigration, the county’s livestock production and the arrival of the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway.
There’s Oil in Caldwell County
Cattle and other livestock ranching dominated the economy until new developments in drought-resistant cotton acted as a catalyst to promote agriculture in the area for the next 30 years. In the 1920s, crop production again experienced significant reversals leaving the county seeking its next success. Oil speculation had already begun in Caldwell County almost immediately following the discovery of Spindletop in 1901. Edgar B. Davis was in the avant garde of this next boom with his exploration for oil just northwest of the city of Luling and the drilling of its first successful well in 1922.
This 28-square-mile field is one of the longest and richest producing oil deposits in Texas and is still productive today, producing about a million barrels of oil annually. Davis believed in sharing his good fortune for the betterment of his fellow men and established the Luling Foundation Farm in 1927, a first-of-its kind working agricultural research farm of over 1,200 acres dedicated to improving crop production and soil conservation throughout the state. Research and education from this farm laboratory continues to enhance crop production and soil ecology to the current day.
Caldwell County’s Next Boom — The Automobile
Growth in Caldwell County declined with the fortunes of cattle driving and wildcatting for oil. But as America’s new obsession with the automobile matured in the 1960s, Caldwell County’s shrinking population again began to grow with people who worked in nearby San Marcos or Austin but preferred living in the rural areas or small towns of Caldwell County, now taking advantage of manageable automobile commuting times. Today over 50% of the county’s workforce travels to work for employers located outside the county.