1841 | The International Border Marker
Granite marker between Louisiana and the Republic of Texas still stands
6 MINUTE READ | NUMBER 6
You can thank Siri for this one. She took me down Texas Highway 31 while I was sightseeing on my way back from Dallas. I probably took a wrong turn outside Longview, and she redirected me down 31 towards Logansport. I had to do a U-turn when I saw two roadside markers in the same spot. I'm glad Siri sent me that way, and I sure am glad I stopped.
The Only One Left
1841
On April 23, 1841, a crew placed a 10-foot-long, 9-inch square granite block 5 feet into the ground, marking the international border between the United States and the Republic of Texas.1
Other granite boundary markers had been placed regularly along the line between the Sabine River's turn and the Red River's bend as it entered Arkansas. Still, only the one near Logansport, Louisiana, remains.
The Border Or Lack Thereof
When the Republic of Texas was established in 1836, border issues arose, particularly regarding the Louisiana border, with the United States settlers in this area uncertain about their status—wondering whether they lived in the U.S. or Texas—resulting in the region being called No Man's Land.
In the late 1830s, the U.S. surveyor-general ordered a survey to begin drawing the borderlines in the area. Even after the work was completed, confusion persisted. Based on the 1830s survey, Colonel Robert Potter, a resident of Louisiana, ran for and won a seat in the Republic of Texas legislature.2 After the 1841 border work was completed, Potter learned he was a Texan and continued to serve in the Republic until he died in 1842.
Tensions from the unknown border occasionally escalated between the two nations. In November 1838, there was an incident where the Texas Militia crossed the border into Caddo Parish while pursuing a group of Native Americans. They briefly occupied Shreveport during this pursuit.
Time to Map It Out
In January 1839, Congress passed an act to initiate border work, appointing John H. Overton as the leader of the American team. After several picks, the Republic of Texas named Memucan Hunt to head the Texas delegation.
In August 1839, the commission convened in New Orleans to make preliminary arrangements regarding provisions and transportation. However, due to an outbreak of yellow fever in the city, the commission dispersed temporarily. They agreed to reconvene at the mouth of the Sabine River in October, but again, delays caused problems for the teams. It was in December that the teams finally assembled. Memucan Hunt, the head of the Texas delegation, arrived even later on January 20, 1840.
The commission's work was supposed to commence at the mouth of the Sabine River and move northward. However, they encountered numerous delays and complications. The Texans needed more instruments, the intended map to be used as a guide was missing, and debates arose over whether Sabine Lake should be considered part of the river that was to be borderline.
Finally, on May 19, 1840, the joint commission started work. They began by constructing an earth mound, measuring 50 feet in diameter and seven feet in height, along the Gulf of Mexico shoreline next to the Sabine River. A 36-foot pole was erected on top of the mound. Four bottles were buried at equal distances from the center of the mound, representing the cardinal points. Each bottle contained a paper bearing the following inscription: "Be it remembered that on May 21, 1840, the demarcation of the boundary between the United States and the Republic of Texas was begun at this point, being in conformity with the provisions of the convention for demarcation of the said boundary." Overton, Hunt, the surveyors, and the engineers on the project signed it.
The Work Starts, Stops, Starts Again, and then Stops
Continuing their journey, the commission proceeded northward along the west bank of Sabine Pass Lake. They encountered a pause when they reached the Neches River, as they needed to confirm if it was the designated river for the border. After clarifying their route was instead along the Sabine River, they resumed their northward progress. However, their plans were again disrupted at Gaines' Ferry due to transportation issues. Once the matter was resolved, they traveled by steamboat up the river to Logan's Ferry (which eventually became Logansport in 1848), where they continued on foot and established a nearby camp. Unfortunately, their work was halted by unfavorable summer weather conditions, and the Texans needed more money.
It was in February 1841 that the commission reconvened to resume their work. Still, weather-related challenges and the missing shipment of sextants they had requested caused further delays, and it was late April when the crew could finally able to start up again. They cleared a path approximately three miles along the Meridian, and on April 23, they positioned the granite Meridian marker.
Finally
The granite Meridian marker bore the engraving "Meridian Boundary, Established 1840" — even though it was set in 1941— on its south side, with the east side indicating "U.S." and the west side indicating "R.T." (Republic of Texas).3
After placing the marker, the group progressed northwardly, covering a few miles each day. Along the way, at every mile, they constructed a five-foot-high dirt mound with an eight-foot wooden post carved with "U.S." on the east side and "T" on the west. The south side was numbered with miles north from the 32nd parallel.4
As they set the boundary markers, a significant realization dawned upon some settlers—they discovered that they resided on the wrong side of the line. Smithland's settlement was situated within Texas now, while Greenwood, Texas, ended up falling within the borders of Louisiana. Additionally, Caddo Parish lost a 70-mile-long strip of land, approximately 7 miles in width, which became part of the Republic of Texas.
Following Texas' admission to the Union in 1845, the previously established line ceased to serve as an international boundary. Instead, it became the border between Texas on the west and Arkansas and Louisiana on the east. The border established has remained unchanged. There was one attempt to alter it. In 1941, Bascom Giles, Commissioner of the General Land Office of Texas, proposed a potential line shift by 150 feet to the east. In the end, the border was never moved.5
A three-acre park on the Texas side was established adjacent to the first granite marker set, and a protective fence was installed around it in 1976, while America was commemorating its bicentennial year.6
Remarkably, the marker has endured until now and holds significance as it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the American Society of Civil Engineers recognized the marker as a historic civic engineering landmark. It holds the distinction of being the sole surviving international border marker within the contiguous United States.▪️
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Thomas Tuffin, “The Elusive East Texas Border,” East Texas Historical Journal 11, no. 1 (1973): 8
Thomas Tuffin, “The Elusive East Texas Border,” East Texas Historical Journal 11, no. 1 (1973): 3.
Thomas Marshall, A History of the Western Boundary of the Louisiana Purchase, 1819-1841 (1914; Berkeley: University of California Press, n.d.), 224–41.
Journal of the Joint Commission, ibid. 66
Bascom Giles to Sam Jones, “Reply Brief, Texas vs. Louisiana,” November 25, 1941.
“International Boundary Marker - Historical Sites & Places of Interest - about Logansport - Town of Logansport Louisiana,” www.townoflogansport.com, accessed May 27, 2023, http://www.townoflogansport.com/About-Logansport/Historical-Sites-And-Places-of-Interest/International-Boundary-Marker.aspx.