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 July 28, 2008 | Lampasas County Courthouse Texas County Courthouse Project #25: Lampasas County (Lampasas, Texas) In 1719 France had driven the Spanish from East Texas. Determined to reclaim the territory, the Aguayo expedition, led by the Marqués de Aguayo, marched to the east to increase missions and presidios. On the way they crossed a stream which flowed into the Leon River. The river was named the Lampazos after either a mission in Mexico by that name or the Spanish word for water lilies or cockleburs found nearby. Settlement of the area began when Moses Hughes, his wife and his brother, Nimrod, moved to the nearby Gooch Springs, then known as Hancock Springs. The healing powers of the mineral springs attracted others to the area. John Burleson was given land by the Republic of Texas in 1838 for his contributions to the Revolution. After his death, the townsite of Bruleson was laid out on his land by one of his daughters. When the county of Lampasas was created in 1856, the name of Burleson was changed to Lampasas, becoming the county seat. In the 1870’s lawlessness was abundant in Lampasas County. The most famous episode was known as the “Horrell and Higgins Feud”, a violent war between two families who had formerly been friends and neighbors. After five Horrell brothers killed four state policemen, including Captain Thomas Williams, in Jerry Scott's saloon in Lampasas, they fled to New Mexico and started what is known there as the “Horrell War”. One of the brothers was killed before they fled back to Lampasas in 1874 and surrendered. All four of the surviving brothers were acquitted for the murders of the state policemen. The Higgins Feud began when Pink Higgins accused one of the Horrell brothers of stealing cattle. Higgins shot and killed Merritt Horrell in a saloon in Lampasas, possibly the same saloon that the policemen had been murdered. The three remaining Horrell brothers vowed for revenge and set off a series of battles that saw the death of several gang members on each side. The Horrells and Higgins finally agreed to a truce after the Texas Rangers were called in. Two of the three remaining Horrell brothers were accused later of murder, however, and shot to death by vigilantes. Some believe the Higgins family plotted to have them wrongly accused as the final episode of the feud. The limestone courthouse was constructed in 1883 and replaced the original courthouse from 1856. It is the third oldest in Texas still used as a courthouse. In 2003 it went through major restoration thanks to the Texas Historic Courthouse Preservation Program. 
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