Salado College

While visiting Salado, Texas, with my family, we stopped at a glass blowers' shop and watched them make a vase. It was summer, and the glass blowers' shop held a fierce heat, so I took a walk. Across the road and up a small hill, I found the ruins of the building above. After wandering around a little while, I found a placard explaining I was seeing what remained of Salado College.

The college was founded in 1860 by group of prominent men in Bell County, Texas. It was the first college in the state of Texas to be operated without state or church funds. Further differing from other educational institutes of the time, it was co-educational. The first term enrolled seventy-five students, and attendance peaked at 307 students just a few years later.

There was a sharp decrease in enrollment due to the Panic of 1873, and in 1885 closed for good. It was operated as a private high school from 1890 until 1918. It became a free public high school until 1924, when it burned down. The fire was a little suspicious, but nothing came of those suspicions.

The town of Salado couldn't afford to rebuild the school, and the ruins remained for almost one hundred years. A foundation was established in 2011 to make sure the remains of the buildings were safe and it was opened to the public.

The area is wooded, quiet except for the numerous birds calling to one another and the occasional passing car. The site is raised up a small hill from the surrounding area, further isolating you from the rest of the world. When you're walking around the ruins of Salado College by yourself, it feels like you've made some sort of archaeological discovery and it's yours alone.

I'm glad I found it, and while I wouldn't say it's worth a trip out of your way on its own, if you're in Salado, it's cool to check out.