It may look like just a dilapidated old chimney to some, but to a group of Central Texans it’s a vital link to history, both local and statewide. And they’re trying desperately to shore it up before it falls down.
Noah Smithwick – yes, that Noah Smithwick – built a mill and homestead on the north bank of the Colorado River back in the 1840s in the area that is now named for him. Today, about all that’s left is the chimney, and it’s about to topple.
The Llano Uplift Archeological Society and the Journal of Texas Archeology and History, both nonprofit organizations, have banded together to start a fundraising page online to raise money to restore the chimney. Their effort is hoping to get $7,500 together to stabilize the chimney.
Why this chimney? Because Noah Smithwick was a pioneer Texas blacksmith who fought in the revolution, became a Texas Ranger, and eventually dictated to his daughter his “Evolution of a State” – a volume that’s in every serious Texas historian’s library. Smithwick moved westward to Williamson, then Burnet counties, becoming blacksmith at the then-active Fort Croghan in Burnet and later moving to the banks of the Colorado River east of Marble Falls, where he built the mill and home.
A Unionist during the Civil War, Smithwick left Texas for California because of death threats; his son in law was later murdered in Burnet County by Secessionists.
Denise and Scott Newman, who own Safari for the Soul Gramping on the property, noticed the chimney was there when they bought the land. Then erosion began chewing away the ground at the base, and they got in touch with the Texas Historical Commission, who called in the archeological society and the journal.
Experts from those groups took one look and gasped.
“This condition (tilting) has noticeably worsened in just the past four weeks, and its collapse is imminent. Immediate action must be taken to prevent collapse,” wrote Chuck Hixon, principal investigator for the archeological society, on the gofundme page.
Enter Dustin Current, owner of Current Custom Homes in Marble Falls. Despite the name, custom homes isn’t all he does – he’s also been involved in several local renovation projects.
“I’ve always been interested in Texas history,” he said. “My grandmother was the first woman in Texas to buy real estate without her husband’s permission.”
Current will work with the volunteers to shore up the chimney, but despite his experience, he can’t nail down a total price or timeline.
“It depends on the chimney,” he said. “And the funding.”
As of Sunday evening, Jan. 18, 29 donors had contributed $2,620, about 35 percent of what’s needed.
Stabilizing the structure is just the first phase of the project, according to Steve Davis, publisher of the Journal of Texas Archeology and History.
Second, they’ll begin seeking a grant for restoration. “Our goal is to make it stable for another 180 years,” Davis explained Third, they’ll do what’s called a “pedestrian survey.” That’s when volunteers walk a grid on the property to learn if there are any other artifacts. They suspect a house, a second chimney and a cistern; what remains of the mill itself is under the water of the Colorado River most of the time.
Monetary help will be needed to make sure all the square footage of the target property is examined for artifacts.
Last, they’ll put together a set of historical archives.Meanwhile, Denise Newman is glad she and Scott got the archeologists involved. A restored chimney, she thinks, is the sort of thing their clients would appreciate.
“We knew the chimney was there,” she said. “We didn’t know it was Noah Smithwick.”
Glamping, according to glamping.com, is “”where stunning nature meets modern luxury.” Or, as Denise Newman puts it, “it’s indoor plumbing instead of an outhouse.”
Donors or non-donors who want to volunteer can get in touch with principal investigator Charles Hixon at Charles. [email protected] (for the archeology) or Steve Davis, the publisher, at Gunflint. [email protected] (for the history research). Walking the acreage to look for artifacts will fall under Hixon; general volunteers also should use his email.
Just walking the property will have its own rewards, according to Denise Newman.
“The land has a peacefulness and attractiveness to it,” she said.
Much more, no doubt, than when Noah Smithwick built his house and mill there. For more information about the project or to find ways to help, call 512-900-0841.
