Long before the arrival of Stephen F. Austin’s colonists, the Coushatta Indians traveled through the lands that would become the Lake Creek Settlement upon the Coushatta Trace, a trade road from Louisianna into Texas. Located in Austin’s second colony in the Mexican State of Coahuila and Texas during the Texas Colonial Period, Lake Creek Settlement traces its origins to 1825. On June 4, 1825, Stephen F. Austin signed a contract with the Mexican government to begin the introduction of five hundred families from the United States. In 1831, some of the families settled between the West Fork of the San Jacinto River and a stream called Lake Creek in today’s Montgomery County. The Lake Creek Settlement is the earliest known Anglo-American settlement in the county. In 1835, William W. “W.W.” Shepperd, a colonist from North Carolina, purchased a tract in the northwestern-most corner of the John Corner League. Shepperd opened a store on the property, the first business in the area. He also operated a gin and stockyard and was the Postmaster. In July 1837, Shepperd founded the town of Montgomery at the site of his store. The area’s proximity to Town Creek and available fresh water attracted settlers and provided for their crops and livestock. In addition, nearby popular trade routes aided in the community’s growth, serving as a trade stop or meeting place. A number of Lake Creek settlers fought in the Texas Revolution, including John Marshall Wade, who manned one of the famous “Twin Sisters” cannons during the battle of San Jacinto.
Lake Creek Settlement
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Lake Creek Settlement is a historical marker in Montgomery, Montgomery County, dedicated in 2016. It is one of 67 historical markers documented in Montgomery County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 165 historic sites cataloged across the county.
The site sits at 30.3894, -95.6964 near Montgomery. The nearest cataloged historic site is Davis, N. H., Cottage (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Nat Hart Davis Pioneer Complex and Museum, Davis Law Office, and Montgomery Baptist Church Building.
This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5507018408. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.
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