On our recent trip from Houston to Fort Worth, we took a short detour to the Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historical Park. Known as the birthplace of Texas, it is one of the more important historical sites in the state – but it is often overlooked. When we arrived, we were surprised to find Barrington Living History farm within the same historical park area. I didn’t know it existed, but I am really glad we found it.
It is often forgotten that Texas was a slave holding state. The issue of slavery influenced politicians on all sides during the independence from Mexico, days as a Republic, statehood and during the Civil War when Texas was a part of the Confederacy. But there are few places within the state where you can really explore the history of African-Americans and slavery in the state.
Because of this, Barrington Living History Farm is even more of a gem. Originally owned by Anson Jones, the last serving President of the Republic of Texas, Barrington Farm was his family home and farm. As well as his large extended family, he owned five slaves.
While we’d discussed slavery with Claire in the past, it is such a hard concept for a child with a big heart to grasp. Seeing the large farm house with lots of light and nice furnishings compared with the dark, dank and tiny slave cabin was an eye opening moment for her.
Also, she has been exposed to large scale mechanical farming since she was a baby. Saying they were forced to “farm” doesn’t sound that bad. Seeing the true nature of the work helped her as well.
But despite that heavy lessons that she was able to discover herself, both children (and their parents!) had a great time checking out the farm. The workers in period clothing were fun to talk to and knew a lot about the farm’s methods. And the flowers were beautiful! Definitely worth a stop.
More information – The Birthplace of Texas website
$5 per adult; $3 per child (7 and up)
or $15.00 per family (2 adults and up to 5 children 7 and up)