Milam County Historical Commission - Milam County, TX
Statue of Ben Milam at Milam County, TX Courthouse
Old Junior High School Building, Rockdale, TX
Milam County Courthouse - Cameron, TX
Preserve America
All credit for this article goes to
Joy Graham
and the
Rockdale Reporter
Milam County Historical Commission
Milam County, Texas
                     County and Its Cities Show Impact of History
                               Milam History by Joy Graham
                          Rockdale Reporter - February 28, 2013

We learn of history as records of movement in time, whether it be growth in and of a
city, a region or a nation.

All this involves people, their lives, and events that happened. History depends on
individuals, families, communities and their abilities to carry on whatever way the
political process is going. Think of how history has swayed Milam County. Technology
has driven the movement.

Drive through your city. Look at the changes in buildings, structures, streets,
schools, and landscapes. Take Milam County. We trace our history by viewing the types
of buildings, bridges, style of our homes.

In Cameron, Ledbetter Park reveals the beauty of an area that was influenced when the
Work Progress Administration built the rock buildings in the park. The County
Courthouse, Old Jail Museum and the square around the downtown of Cameron go back to
the 1890s era. Thorndale’s Main Street south of the railroad tracks still has many of
the buildings from the 1870’s.

Some of the buildings are vacant, however the Thorndale Chamber of Commerce, Downtown
Restaurant, an antiques store, Butts Dry Goods, and a Bank, line the west side of the
street with several businesses flanking the east side on Main Street.

Rockdale’s downtown has several restored buildings on Main, East Cameron, and Ackerman
Streets; dating from the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.

Buckholts and Milano have a few buildings that date back in time also.

One can drive through their town and look for structures, and objects, associated with
significant events, lives of people who influenced change, and architecture. Every town
in Milam County was affected by railroads: Gause, Milano, Thorndale, Buckholts, Cameron
and Rockdale.

Rockdale has the only restored depot, which is now a museum.

maryjoygraham@hotmail.com