Texas Rangers, 1890.
Major William H. Smith’s Texas Ranger battalion built Fort Henderson, Texas, early in 1837.
The post was part of a defensive line the Republic of Texas established to protect against Indian raids. It was named for General James Pinckney Henderson, the Secretary of State. Located on the upper Navasota River near the present boundaries of Robertson and Leon Counties, the fort was in Indian country some distance from the nearest white settlement.Â
Because of this, the fort was difficult to supply and was, therefore, abandoned in the Fall of 1837.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated October 2026.
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