Maudlowe

Maudlowe, on State Highway 35 two miles west of Hynes Bay in northeastern Refugio County, was named for Maud Lowe, wife of Martin O'Connor, on whose ranch the rail station was built. The ranch was divided into farm lots in 1912, at which time O'Connor established the community. A post office was acquired in 1915. The settlement once had a hotel, a large gin, a commissary, warehouses, and several houses for the field hands and employees of the O'Connor farms. In May 1929 a contract was awarded to built the first section of Highway 113 from Austwell to Maudlowe. In 1936 Maudlowe had a number of dwellings and its own school. In 1940 it had three businesses and a population of eighty. By 1965, however, no population figures were cited, although the community still appeared on highway maps as late as 1987. In 1990 it was still listed as a community.