In 1882, Salado’s women employed a unique protest to close the town’s only saloon, using knitting, patience and presence to uphold community morals.
SALADO, Texas — Long before protests had hashtags or boycotts went viral, a group of determined women in Salado shut down the town’s only saloon using nothing more than knitting needles, patience and quiet resolve.
The historic Rock Building at the center of the story was constructed in 1860 as part of the James B. Anderson home next door. Built of hand-cut limestone, the structure still features its original fireplace, ceiling rafters and front doors. A side room, added in 1985 using old lumber, blends into the building’s frontier character.
Anderson, who served as Salado’s justice of the peace, first used the building as his office. Over the decades, it housed a variety of businesses and services, including stores, a law office, a bootmaker shop, a stagecoach stop and a livery stable. In 1882, it took on a new role — becoming the first and only saloon in Salado’s history.
That decision immediately raised concerns among women in the deeply religious and culturally conservative community. Many feared a saloon would undermine Salado’s moral foundations. While some residents objected, many of the town’s men saw no issue and declined to intervene.
The women responded with a strategy as quiet as it was effective.
When the saloon opened, two women at a time stationed themselves directly outside the entrance and spent the day knitting. They rotated shifts and returned day after day, creating a silent but unmistakable presence. No signs were posted. No words were exchanged.
The result was swift. Patrons refused to enter, and the saloon reportedly never served a single drink.
Frustrated, the owner eventually abandoned Salado altogether, later opening a new establishment in nearby Holland — pointedly naming it the “Salado Saloon.”
Today, the Rock Building still stands as a reminder that in the Texas frontier, not every showdown was settled with six-shooters — some were settled stitch by stitch.