In the early 1870s, a group of freedmen and their families led by the Rev. John Henry Winn relocated here from Webberville and began this community. The original fourteen families purchased about 2,000 acres of land to establish a town and family farms. First called Winn's Colony in honor of John H. Winn, it was renamed Saint John Colony after he organized Saint John Missionary Baptist Church in 1873. The community grew steadily and at its peak included homes of about 100 families, farms, stores, a school, cotton gin, and grist mill. A post office named Mackiesville opened in 1890 with Lewis Mackey as postmaster. Other churches included Zion Union Missionary Baptist and Landmark Missionary Baptist, and the colony's boundaries extended into Bastrop County. The post office closed in the 1920s, and the school was consolidated with Lockhart schools in 1966. The churches remain active, the community graveyard known as Saint John Cemetery or Zion Cemetery holds many of the area's pioneers, and descendants of some founding families still live in Saint John Colony.