Fulton Historical District Tour
From the Fulton Mansion to the commercial fishing docks — Fulton's golden era
Fulton was the industrial engine of Aransas County — meat packeries, commercial fishing, and one of the grandest Victorian homes on the Texas coast. This walk loops through the remarkable story of George W. Fulton, who built his empire on the post-Civil War cattle industry and created a mansion that still stands today. The route ends where it began, at the second historical marker on the mansion grounds.
★ Tour Highlights
- ✓The Fulton Mansion — a Victorian masterpiece with central air and hydraulic plumbing, built 1877
- ✓Casterline Fish Company — the commercial fishing dynasty that shaped Fulton Harbor since 1916
- ✓Fulton Community Church — congregation organized 1875, predates the mansion itself
- ✓Site of Marion Packing Company — one of the largest meat packeries in 19th-century Texas
- ✓Fulton Cemetery — burial place of the Fulton, Casterline, and Smith families
- ✓Home of George W. Fulton — the 1936 Texas Centennial marker, completing the loop
Tour Stops
Fulton Mansion
Historical Marker317 Fulton Beach Rd.
Start at the Fulton Mansion State Historic Site (317 Fulton Beach Rd). George Fulton built this between 1874 and 1877 — it had hydraulic plumbing, central ventilation, and gas lighting decades before they were standard. Tours of the interior are available.
Casterline Fish Company
Historical Marker110 N. Casterline Dr.
110 N. Casterline Dr. — Casterline Fish Company, founded 1916. When the cattle packeries closed, commercial fishing took over. The Casterline family operation shaped Fulton Harbor for generations and the name still marks this street.
Fulton Community Church
Historical Marker215 N. 3rd
215 N. 3rd St — Fulton Community Church, organized 1875. This congregation predates the Fulton Mansion and served as the social center for the packery workers who built this town.
Site of Marion Packing Co.
Historical MarkerSite of Marion Packing Co. — after the Civil War, Texas cattle had no market until packeries like this turned longhorns into canned beef for the East Coast and Cuba. This was Fulton's economic engine before the fishing era.
Fulton Cemetery
Historical MarkerFulton Cemetery — walk the grounds and read the names: Fulton, Casterline, Smith, Dunbar. The families whose stories you just walked through are buried here. The cemetery was established alongside the town itself.
Home of George W. Fulton
Historical Marker317 Fulton Beach Rd.
End back at 317 Fulton Beach Rd — the Home of George W. Fulton marker, placed in 1936 for the Texas Centennial. Same grounds as the mansion, different story: this marker remembers the man, not just the house. The loop is complete.
Historical Glimpses
View fullThe Shell Hotel at Fulton, circa 1900 — William S. Hall's mansion overlooked by the "Jean Lafitte Oak." The hotel hosted 100 guests and was a centerpiece of the Fulton packery era.
View fullThe Marion Packing Company, Fulton, 1875 — painted by John G. Tobias. Fulton's packeries processed millions of pounds of beef bound for Cuba and Mexico, making this the cattle-shipping capital of Texas.
View fullRockport Harbor, 1949 — shrimping boats like the "Loraine C." kept the harbor busy for decades after the packeries closed. First Place winner, Aransas County Historical Society 2012 Photo Contest.
Tour Details
- Type
- historical
- Transport
- Walking Tour
- Duration
- 1h 15min
- Distance
- 1.1 miles
- Difficulty
- easy
- Cost
- Free
Starting Point
Fulton Mansion State Historic Site, 317 Fulton Beach Rd, Rockport, TX 78382
🗺️ Open Full Route in Google MapsMake a Weekend of It
Rockport has all four tours plus guided boat tours and 35 birding sites. Stay a few days and explore it all.
