Sterling

Sterling was on the east bank of the Little Brazos River two miles west of the site of present Calvert in eastern Robertson County. It was founded in the 1830s and named for Sterling C. Robertson, who lived near the community and called Sterling home, as did another famous Robertson County pioneer, Robert Calvert. In the 1850s the settlement had several general stores, three saloons, a blacksmith shop, two livery stables, a post office, two churches, and a Masonic lodge. In 1869 the railroad bypassed the community. Calvert was established two miles to the east on the Houston and Texas Central Railroad, and many Sterling citizens moved to the new village, which also served as the county seat for a decade. Sterling survived until 1900. In 1990 all that remained was the cemetery.