{"nrhp_refnum":"79002950","name":"Saffold Dam","other_names":["Starcke Park Dam"],"category":"site","location":{"address":"Off TX 123","address_restricted":false,"city":"Seguin","county":"Guadalupe County","state":"TX","lat":29.55120027600003,"lon":-97.97033478099996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-11-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Engineering","Exploration/Settlement"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A masonry and boulder mill dam across the Guadalupe River in Max Starcke Park, Seguin, Guadalupe County, Texas, dating from about 1853 and later improved with concrete.","why_significant":"The dam is tied to the settlement of Seguin and supplied power and water for local mills, a cotton gin, and electric and water plants. It is also one of few surviving examples of the mill dams built on central Texas rivers in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It began as a natural rock outcropping built up with boulders and was gradually strengthened.","narrative":"Saffold Dam crosses the Guadalupe River in Max Starcke Park in Seguin, Texas. It began around 1853 as little more than a line of boulders on a natural rock outcropping and was raised and reinforced over the decades. Today it consists of three reverse curves about 250 feet long, built of boulders, smaller stones and gravel, and covered in concrete. A low concrete crest wall was added in the summer of 1934, raising the water level 12 to 18 inches. The dam served mills, a ferry, a cotton gin and a hydro-electric plant on the river's south bank, and the city of Seguin acquired the falls and water rights in 1907. It has been repaired and improved by the city since. It still supports a water treatment plant and a power plant and forms a recreational pool. It is considered a rare surviving example of the stone mill dams once common on central Texas rivers.","period_of_significance":"c. 1853 (specific date given; 1800-1899 period checked)","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as structurally sound and in good condition; it still impounds the river and is used by an adjacent city water plant and a power plant. The park is publicly owned and accessible.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:19.073862-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/25/9722/40972225/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/79002950.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79002950/639f723c8b-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79002950/639f723c8b-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 4.0","author":"Larry D. Moore","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Saffold_dam_2013.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Larry D. Moore</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Saffold_dam_2013.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40972225","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saffold_Dam","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7398706"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/guadalupe-county/saffold-dam-79002950/"}