1890 Ranch: A look behind the Land

1890 Ranch: A look behind the Land

Written by Cathy Kincaid Thursday, 07 September 2006

Bill and Katherine Carssow laugh about the criticism received from a friend when they decided to retire to their 1890 Ranch in 1979.

 

“You’ll live out there until you need to be near hospitals and doctors’ offices,” the friend told them, “then you’ll move back into town.”

But the future didn’t play out as the friend expected. As Bill tells it, instead of their moving back to be near the doctors, the doctors moved out to them.

“We have doctors’ offices, shopping and soon we’ll have a hospital next door [referring to the Cedar Park Regional Medical Center being built on some of the old 1890 Ranch],” Katherine said. “There is even an undertaker near us in Round Rock ready for us when we need him.”

The couple worked and raised their four children near the University of Texas. Bill, 94, was executive director of the State Bar of Texas. He was the first executive director after successfully lobbying the state legislature to pass the bill creating the unified State Bar in 1939.

“I guess after I worked so hard to get the organization started,” Bill said, “they thought they should make me director.”

In 1970, they bought the 166-acre ranch they owned until they sold all but 15 acres to their children in 1996.

“ There was no 1431 at that time. There was a two-lane road that turned up onto our road [CR 185],” Bill said.

They named the ranch for the small cabin built in 1890 which sat on the land. They restored the cabin and spent weekends in it until they retired and built their present house, leaving the wood unpainted to match the original wood on the cabin and barn.

Today the active couple remains involved in the future. Bill is growing a beard, his only one in his 94 years.

“I decided to grow it until I learn how to e-mail,” he said. “It’s a something I’m determined to learn how to do.”