William J. Gause, born in Alabama in 1829, moved to Texas in 1849, to the Brazos region in 1856, and to this locality in 1872. After buying lumber in Montgomery, he gave his friend Dan Fowler half in return for hauling it there, and the two built the first homes in the settlement. In 1873, Gause gave right of way and 100 acres of land to the International & Great Northern Railroad, and the town was platted. A post office opened in 1874 with James S. Reynolds as postmaster, and as the I. G. N. shipped out great quantities of cotton, the town prospered. Cotton gins, stores, blacksmith shops, a lumber yard, a bank, hotels, livery stables, a newspaper, and other businesses were established. Civic leaders included W. J. Gause, Dr. J. E. Brown, Richard Cox, Dr. James Dollar, Lafayette Ely, Bill Faubian, Dan Fowler, J. C. Lister, C. C. Moore, Dr. John Porter, Frank Thomas, and T. L. Watts. Churches were organized, a Masonic Lodge was chartered, and the county's first independent school was established there. Later, good highways, mechanized farming, and the decline of railroading halted commerce, but Gause survived as a residential community for descendants of the pioneers and for commuters to nearby industrial plants and businesses.