Rocky Hill
Rocky Hill, originally known as Zodiac, was on the Pedernales River four miles southeast of Fredericksburg in southern Gillespie County. Zodiac was founded in 1847 by a group of 200 Mormons under Lyman Wight, who had sought and received John O. Meusebach's permission to settle near Fredericksburg. The Mormons quickly built the first gristmill and sawmill in Gillespie County and supplied the Germans with seeds, flour, and lumber; they also helped build Fort Martin Scott in 1848. The 1850 census showed Zodiac with a population of 161. The Mormons left Gillespie County after a flood destroyed their mills in 1853 but retained ownership of a one-acre cemetery in Zodiac, at which Wight was later buried. Shortly after the Mormons departed, a group of English, German, and Danish families moved in. Before and during the Civil War the area was the site of the only Gillespie County cotton plantation to use slave labor; descendants of the slaves still owned land there as late as 1947. The town was renamed Rocky Hill after the local school, built in 1885.
Martin Donell Kohout | © TSHA
Adapted from the official Handbook of Texas, a state encyclopedia developed by Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). It is an authoritative source of trusted historical records.
- ✅ Adoption Status:
Belongs to
Rocky Hill is part of or belongs to the following places:
Currently Exists
No
Place type
Rocky Hill is classified as a Town
Associated Names
- (Zodiac)
Location
Latitude: 30.22464770Longitude: -98.79364770
Has Post Office
No
Is Incorporated
No