Texas State University

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Table of Contents

Locations

1. Points of Pride

   1. History and Traditions

      1. Sewell Park

         On a hot summer day in 1916, Dr. S.M. “Froggy” Sewell, a mathematics professor, went wading into the brush- and weed-choked San Marcos River. No place was deeper than three feet, and he decided that the university needed a park. In 1917, the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries leased the college four acres of land along the river. College workers, armed with mud scrapers and mules, cleaned the river bottom, built up the banks and smoothed the slopes. It was called Riverside Park until 1946, when it was renamed in honor of Sewell.
         The San Marcos River flows through Texas State’s campus in the area known as Sewell Park. It’s home to eight endangered and threatened species, one world-class research and educational center, and countless members of the Bobcat family.
         
         Dive into stories about what makes the river special to us.