Allen-Bell House
1408 Church St., Bastrop, TXThe Allen-Bell House is a fine example of the Greek Revival style, and was the home of the commandant of the Bastrop Military Academy.
The Allen-Bell House is a late Greek Revival house with fine proportions and an unusual wall sheathing of vertical board and batten with the battens joined at both top and bottom by arch-like cuts in the facia. The structure was occupied by 1859,and remained occupied until 1866, by Major R. D. Allen, commandant of the Bastrop Military Academy, and son of Col. R. T. P. Allen. Col. Allen, formerly the head of the Kentucky Military Academy, became head of the Bastrop Military Academy when it was opened in 1857. The grounds of the former Academy adjoined the present Allen-Bell property. Major R. D. Allen sold the property in 1866, after the Civil War had closed the Academy. In 1886, the property was acquired by Henry N. Bell (born Aug. 27, 1856 - died Nov. 15, 1934), a famous peace officer, who with two terms as sheriff, gave over twenty-one years of continuous service to Bastrop County. The grandson of H. N. Bell, Judge Henry N. Bell, is the present occupant of the house. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1968
Bibliography
Ray, Worth S. Austin Colony Pioneers. Austin, 1949.
Texas State Historical Survey Committee marker files.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1971.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.