POWDER HORN, TEXAS. Powder Horn, in Calhoun County, was a depot for Indianola in the 1850s, located south of that town at the site where Powder Horn Lake connects with Matagorda Bay. It began as an addition to the already established Indianola and was known as Brown's Addition. It was at the site of the old German immigrant campsite. As Indianola grew, many businesses moved to the Powder Horn area, and citizens increasingly regarded Powder Horn as a part of Indianola. The settlement and development of the Powder Horn area was expected to replace Port Lavaca as the major port in South Texas. It succeeded for a while in becoming a transshipment point for supplies to the interior of the state, particularly San Antonio. In 1853 the depot had five structures for supplies, a small blacksmith shop, and a stable. These structures were built on ground leased by the United States government. A 250-foot-long wharf, on which was laid a railway, was connected with the government land. In 1856 there was a semiweekly line of steamers to New Orleans, and in 1857 Powder Horn was a troop shipping point.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: M. L. Crimmins, ed., "Colonel J. K. F. Mansfield's Report of the Inspection of the Department of Texas in 1856," Southwestern Historical Quarterly 42 (October 1938, January, April 1939). Earl W. Fornell, "Texans and Filibusters in the 1850s," Southwestern Historical Quarterly 59 (April 1956). Brownson Malsch, Indianola-The Mother of Western Texas (Austin: Shoal Creek, 1977).