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RABBS CREEK.
Rabbs Creek rises in southern Lee County (at 30°11' N, 97°03'
W) west-southwest of Giddings and runs south for about 24½
miles, passing into Fayette County before reaching its mouth (at
29°58' N, 96°55' W) on the Colorado River, northwest
of La Grange. The creek is a major tributary of the Colorado and
has at least ten named tributaries of its own. It passes through
terrain surfaced by shallow, highly erodible topsoils of sand
and sandy loam, with subsoils of heavy clay and clay mixed with
gravel. Land along the stream is marginal for most agricultural
purposes, and though it has produced good crops of corn, it is
now used primarily for grazing and hay production. The flat lands
along Rabbs Creek are prone to flooding, and there are many natural
wide spots used for stock watering. Expanded oil extraction in
the vicinity during the 1980s increased the potential for pollution
from that source. Rabbs Creek was named for William Rabb,qv who settled in the area with his extended family sometime before
Texas independence. As a part of his commitment to Stephen F.
Austin'sqv colony, he constructed on the creek the first gristmill in what
is now Fayette County. The grinding stones were shipped from Scotland,
and the mill works came from New Orleans.
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