San Felipe

Independence Trail Region
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On the eve of the revolution, San Felipe ranked second behind San Antonio as a commercial center. Founded in 1824 where the Old San Antonio Road crossed the Brazos River, San Felipe de Austin was named to honor both a patron saint of Mexico and empresario Stephen F. Austin. This “Birthplace of Anglo-American Settlement” was Austin’s home and his colony’s first capital. Nothing remains of the original town. It was burned during the Runaway Scrape but rebuilt after victory at San Jacinto. One of the resurrected town’s structures is the 1847 J. J. Josey General Store. It remains on the original townsite at the 12-acre San Felipe State Historic Site, part of the larger Stephen F. Austin State Park. The townsite also features a replica of Austin’s log home, a statue honoring the “Father of Texas,” plus monuments commemorating the town’s role in the revolution.

Mapped location of San Felipe

San Felipe

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