Rich Coffey House

Rich Coffey (1823-1897) was a prominent pioneer and settler in the part of the state that now encompasses Runnels and Concho counties. In 1862 Coffey moved his family, cattle, and cowboys to a site near present day Ballinger. Several years later he established a settlement at the confluence of the Colorado and Concho rivers. In addition to raising cattle, freighting, and trading in salt, Coffey served as a Coleman County commissioner, participated in the first county grand jury, and started a post office in 1879. Jonathan Cook, an Irish stonemason, was hired to build a rock house for Coffey in 1880. The house was completed in 1881 as a one-and-a-half-story dogrun structure with exterior chimneys and a staircase in the dogrun that led to a loft. Outstanding features included the quality of the masonry construction and the particular dogrun configuration which was a form common to wooden structures in Coffey's home state of Georgia, but unusual for masonry buildings in central and west Texas. In 1989 the Rich Coffey house was moved to this site to avoid inundation by the construction of nearby Lake Ivie. (1992)

Rich Coffey House is a historical marker in Paint Rock, Concho County, dedicated in 1992. It is one of 16 historical markers documented in Concho County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 22 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 31.5746, -99.7228 near Paint Rock. The nearest cataloged historic site is Site of Mission San Clemente (historical marker), about 1.2 miles away. Others within a short drive include Concho, Community of, Chisum, John S., and Concho County.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5095004257. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.