Morris Ranch

Morris Ranch is a ghost town in Gillespie County, Texas, sitting about 8.5 miles southwest of Fredericksburg. Its roots trace back to 1856, when Francis Morris, a New Yorker, established a thoroughbred horse ranch on the land. A small community gradually formed around that operation over the following decades.

The most tangible surviving landmark is the Morris Ranch Schoolhouse, which served local students until 1962, when the school district was consolidated into Fredericksburg Independent School District. Recognized for its historical significance, the schoolhouse was designated a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1980 and later added to the National Register of Historic Places. Visitors today will find little beyond this historic structure and the surrounding rural landscape — a quiet, sparsely developed site rather than a preserved townsite with multiple buildings or amenities.