Peach Point Plantation
Peach Point Plantation is a historic Texas plantation site and former forced-labor agricultural estate associated with several prominent early Texas families.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Peach Point Plantation is a historic site in Jones Creek, Brazoria County, Texas. It was established as a large agricultural estate on land associated with Stephen Fuller Austin and became the home of the Perry and Bryan families, whose members were connected to the early settlement and political history of Texas. The property was originally known as Perry's Landing, after James Franklin Perry, before taking the name Peach Point because wild peach trees grew in the surrounding area. The shorter name Peach Point is also used. Stephen F. Austin held the tract by about 1830 under the broader context of Mexico's empresario settlement system. In 1832, he sold the property to his brother-in-law James Franklin Perry and his sister Emily Austin Perry for $300. The Perrys managed the estate with their son Stephen Samuel Perry. Peach Point became both a family residence and a working agricultural operation. Enslaved people performed the labor that sustained the plantation and produced its commercial crops. Cotton was the principal early cash crop, while eggs, pork, vegetables, and other provisions were raised for household use, with surpluses sold to Robert Mills and other local merchants. The agricultural economy shifted toward sugar cane during the 1840s. Cane cultivation began around 1845 and had become the estate's principal crop by the 1850s. The plantation therefore reflected the wider development of coerced agricultural labor and cotton-and-sugar production along the Texas Gulf Coast before the end of slavery in the United States. Its operation as a forced-labor farm continued until 1863, during the Civil War era. Peach Point was also a center of family and political association. Members of the Austin, Perry, and Bryan families lived at or were connected with the property, including Emily Austin Perry, James Franklin Perry, William Joel Bryan, Stephen F. Austin, and Guy Morrison Bryan. Notable visitors reportedly included Rutherford B. Hayes, Leonidas Polk, Thomas J. Pilgrim, and Gail Borden. Austin was initially buried at nearby Gulf Prairie Cemetery, which is also known as Gulph Prairie Cemetery. The original estate covered many square miles, although only portions of the historic tract remain associated with descendants of the original owners. Storms severely damaged the property. The 1900 Galveston hurricane and the 1909 Grand Isle hurricane destroyed or damaged numerous structures, and the principal plantation house was destroyed in the 1909 storm apart from Austin's former office and bedroom. By 1948, surviving rooms required restoration, and in 1949 the family constructed a new residence a short distance from the former house site. Perry's practice of planting an oak tree for each child created another layer of historical memory; two of those trees reportedly survive. Much of the former plantation area later became known as the Peach Point Wildlife Management Area and is now part of the approximately 12,000-acre Justin Hurst Wildlife Management Area, administered on land owned by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Peach Point is therefore remembered not as a contemporary commercial brand but as a historic landscape connected with Indigenous, Mexican, Anglo-American, enslaved, agricultural, family, and conservation histories in coastal Texas.
History
Peach Point Plantation developed on a large tract of coastal Texas land that Stephen F. Austin held by approximately 1830. Austin's landholding was connected to the Mexican government's empresario settlement framework, under which he accepted responsibility for bringing settlers into the region. In 1832, Austin sold the property to his sister Emily Austin Perry and her husband, James Franklin Perry, for $300. Perry's Landing, the site's original name, referred to James Perry. The name later changed to Peach Point because wild peach trees were abundant nearby. The Perrys established the property as both a residence and an agricultural estate, managing it with their son Stephen Samuel Perry. Its workforce was made up of enslaved people, whose forced labor supported the plantation's domestic and commercial operations. Cotton was the principal early cash crop. The estate also raised eggs, pork, vegetables, and other provisions for household consumption, selling excess production to Robert Mills and other local merchants. Around 1845, the plantation began cultivating sugar cane. By the 1850s, sugar had become its leading crop, illustrating the movement of Gulf Coast agriculture toward sugar production before emancipation. The plantation was associated with several influential early Texas families. In addition to the Perry household, the site is linked with Emily Austin Perry, Stephen F. Austin, William Joel Bryan, and Guy Morrison Bryan. The property served as a setting for family relationships and visits by prominent figures, including Rutherford B. Hayes, Leonidas Polk, Thomas J. Pilgrim, and Gail Borden. Stephen F. Austin was originally buried at Gulf Prairie Cemetery near the plantation, adding to the site's importance within the region's historical landscape. Peach Point's agricultural use as a forced-labor farm lasted from 1832 until 1863. The Civil War period marked the end of the operating period described for the plantation, although the land and family associations continued afterward. The property's structures were vulnerable to Gulf Coast hurricanes. The 1900 Galveston hurricane and the 1909 Grand Isle hurricane caused extensive destruction, and the main plantation house was lost in the 1909 storm. Austin's former office and bedroom were exceptions among the surviving historic spaces. By 1948, remaining rooms required restoration. The family built a new home nearby in 1949 rather than reconstructing the original house in its former form. Landscape features also preserved elements of family history. James Franklin Perry planted an oak tree when each of his children was born, and two of these trees were still reported to survive. Historic markers in and around the former estate identify figures and places associated with Peach Point, including Emily Margaret Austin Bryan Perry, Stephen F. Austin, Gulf Prairie Cemetery, and the Old Oakland Plantation area. The original holding once covered many square miles. Descendants of the original owners continue to own parts of the former tract, while much of the surrounding land has entered public conservation management. The area formerly called the Peach Point Wildlife Management Area is now known as the Justin Hurst Wildlife Management Area. Approximately 12,000 acres are owned by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Peach Point's present significance consequently rests on its archaeological, architectural, genealogical, agricultural, slavery, settlement, storm, and conservation histories rather than on ongoing plantation production or commercial branding.
- 1949
New family residence constructed
[1]The family built a new home a few feet from the former plantation-house site after surviving rooms required restoration.
- 1909
Grand Isle hurricane destroys the main house
[1]The Grand Isle hurricane destroyed the principal plantation house, while Austin's former office and bedroom survived.
- 1900
Galveston hurricane damages the estate
[1]The Galveston hurricane destroyed or damaged structures and landscape features at Peach Point.
- 1863
End of the documented plantation operating period
[1]The historical account identifies 1863 as the end of Peach Point's operation as a forced-labor cotton and sugar plantation.
- 1850
Sugar becomes the primary crop
[1]By the 1850s, sugar cane had become Peach Point's leading agricultural crop.
- 1845
Sugar-cane cultivation begins
[1]The plantation began growing sugar cane, adding a crop that later became more important than cotton.
- 1832
Perry family acquisition and plantation establishment
[1]Stephen F. Austin sold the property to his sister Emily Austin Perry and her husband James Franklin Perry for $300. The estate operated as a forced-labor farm from this period.
- 1830
Austin holds the tract
[1]Stephen F. Austin held the land that later became associated with Peach Point within the Mexican empresario settlement system.
Former wildlife area incorporated into Justin Hurst management lands
[1]The area formerly known as the Peach Point Wildlife Management Area became associated with the approximately 12,000-acre Justin Hurst Wildlife Management Area operated by Texas Parks and Wildlife.
Products and positioning
A historic Texas estate and cultural landscape rather than a contemporary consumer brand. Its historical identity is defined by early Texas settlement, the Austin-Perry-Bryan families, forced-labor agriculture, Gulf Coast cotton and sugar production, storm losses, and later wildlife conservation.
Agricultural commodity
Cotton
Cotton was Peach Point's principal early cash crop. Enslaved laborers cultivated it as part of the plantation's commercial agricultural system before sugar cane became more important in the mid-nineteenth century.
Agricultural commodity · 1845
Sugar cane
Sugar-cane cultivation began at Peach Point around 1845 and had become the plantation's primary crop by the 1850s. Its production formed part of the estate's forced-labor economy along the Texas Gulf Coast.
Agricultural products
Farm provisions
The estate produced eggs, pork, vegetables, and other provisions for household use. Any surplus could be sold to Robert Mills and other local merchants.
Sources1 sources
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