In the midst of the Civil War, Decatur, Texas, witnessed a dark chapter in its history. In October 1862, Unionist sympathizers were arrested by Confederate troops and taken to Gainesville for trial on charges of treason and insurrection. A 'Citizens Court' was hastily assembled, leading to the execution of 42 men, an event known as the Great Hanging at Gainesville, believed to be the largest single incident of vigilante violence in U.S. history. This tumultuous period left a lasting impact on the community and its development.

Decatur, TX RoadyGoat

Decatur's strategic location as part of the Dallas metropolitan area and its historical role as a county seat have made it a significant spot in Texas. The town's early development on high ground for defensive purposes, its establishment as a center of governance with the construction of a courthouse, and its integration into key transportation routes, such as the Fort Worth and Denver Railway, have all contributed to its distinctive identity and importance.

Decatur, TX RoadyGoat

Decatur's geography has been shaped by its strategic high ground, which mirrors ancient hill towns in Europe. Settlers chose this elevated location for defensive purposes, allowing them to spot and ward off potential attacks or raids by Native Americans. This terrain not only influenced the layout of the town but also played a role in its early survival and development.

Terrell, Charles Vernon

1886

A leading public man in Texas, 1896-1939. Born in Wise County to early (1854) settlers. After two years at Texas A & M, read law and began practice in 1886. Served 1888-92 as Decatur City attorney; 1892-96 as county attorney; 1896-1901 and 1909-13 from Denton-Montague-Wise counties, in Texas Senate. There he sponsored act creating North Texas State University. He was state treasurer of Texas from 1921 to 1924. Appointed in 1924 to the Texas Railroad Commission (chairman 2 terms), he served during landmark years when Texas was catapulted into role of a major world energy supplier. Through regulation of oil and gas shipping, the Railroad Commission became the agency for making production rules. When East Texas in the 1930s began to produce oil in volumes such as the world had never known, and the state invoked martial law to quell strife there, Commissioner Terrell and associates pioneered in conservation without the sacrifice of industrial leadership. After his retirement in 1939, his native county had an oil discovery at Park Springs, in 1942. The Chico field came in with larger yields in 1947. C. V and Etta (May) Terrell were parents of Tully Vernon, John Preston, and Margaret (Mrs. F. . Ward). (1972)

Historical Marker →

Vesey, Randolph

1861

(1832-1908) Respected Negro citizen and homeowner. Champion pioneer fiddler, popular at Forts Belknap, Griffin and Richardson and over county. Once when he was an Indian captive, held in Kansas, Texans sent ponies to ransom him. He is buried in Oaklawn, Decatur. Born in Georgia. He served during the Civil War as body servant and voluntary battle aide to General W. L. Cabell of the Confederate army. Vesey's courage and loyalty were typical. Hundreds of slaves went to war with masters. Many operated farms and ranches of soldiers away at war, producing cotton and food for the Confederacy. Others did work for hire, with wages supporting the master's family. On patrol duty they protected homes from Indians, bandits, outlaws. During War years, 1861-1865, some 30,000 to 50,000 Negros - free and slaves - aided Confederate armies. They served with the Nitre and Mining Bureau and departments of medicine, engineers, quartermaster general, ordnance and commissary general. They built fortifications on coasts from Brownsville, Texas, to Norfolk, Virginia, and at inland points. Many were army teamsters, wheelwrights, blacksmiths, butchers, shoemakers, cooks, and nurses. Texas and other states later provided land grants and pensions for many. (1965)

Historical Marker →

Colonel Absalom Bishop

1852

COLONEL ABSALOM BISHOP ABSALOM BISHOP (1804-1883) BEGAN HIS MILITARY SERVICE AS A CAPTAIN OF MILITIA IN THE SEMINOLE WAR IN FLORIDA. HE LATER ATTAINED THE RANK OF COLONEL. BISHOP LIVED IN SEVERAL STATES BEFORE ARRIVING IN HOPKINS COUNTY, TEXAS, IN 1852, AND THEN IN WHAT WOULD BECOME WISE COUNTY IN 1855. ONE YEAR AFTER HIS ARRIVAL, HE WAS SUCCESSFUL IN CONVINCING THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE TO CREATE WISE COUNTY OUT OF COOKE COUNTY. BISHOP WAS ONE OF THE FIRST SETTLERS TO ACQUIRE LAND AT THE TOWNSITE HE HELPED CONVINCE VOTERS TO SELECT AS COUNTY SEAT. HE ORIGINALLY WANTED THE TOWN TO BE CALLED TAYLORSVILLE AFTER GENERAL AND PRESIDENT ZACHARY TAYLOR. HOWEVER, WHEN TAYLOR SWITCHED TO THE WHIG PARTY, BISHOP, A PASSIONATE DEMOCRAT, PERSUADED THE LEGISLATURE TO NAME THE TOWN DECATUR IN HONOR OF U.S. NAVAL HERO STEPHEN DECATUR. BISHOP BUILT A MERCANTILE STORE WHICH WOULD EVENTUALLY BE USED AS A TEMPORARY POST OFFICE AND STAGE STOP ON THE BUTTERFIELD OVERLAND STAGE LINE. THE COLONEL ALONG WITH OTHER WISE COUNTY RESIDENTS CONVINCED THE BUTTERFIELD OVERLAND STAGE LINE OWNERS TO RELOCATE THEIR ROUTE TO RUN THROUGH DECATUR AND ON TO BRIDGEPORT. IN ORDER TO DO SO, THEY OVERSAW THE BUILDING OF BRIDGES OVER DENTON CREEK, SANDY CREEK AND THE WEST FORK OF THE TRINITY RIVER. BY DOING SO, COMMERCE INCREASED AND STAGE TRAVEL FROM DECATUR TO AUSTIN ALSO BECAME A REALITY. COLONEL ABSALOM BISHOP PASSED AWAY ON NOVEMBER 30, 1883, AND WAS BURIED ALONGSIDE HIS WIFE IN OAKLAWN CEMETERY. BISHOP, CALLED “THE FATHER OF WISE COUNTY AND DECATUR,” WAS A COLORFUL FIGURE WHO BROUGHT TO TEXAS A BROAD RANGE OF EXPERIENCE THAT ALLOWED HIM TO HELP MOLD A RAW AND WILD LAND INTO A BUSTLING TOWN AND NEW COUNTY. (2014)

Historical Marker →

Bishop, Absalom

1855

Absalom Bishop, town founder and Texas legislator, was born on May 4, 1804, in Pendleton District, South Carolina. As a young man he married Mary Tippen, also of Pendleton District; they had six children before her death in 1879. Following his marriage Bishop moved to Spring Place in Murray County, Georgia, and became active in local business and politics following the Cherokee land lottery. Absalom Bishop along with his brother William was a member of the Georgia Guard and was involved in both the Seminole Wars in Georgia and the forced removal of the Cherokee Indians . In 1835 Absalom Bishop was with the contingent of troops that captured and detained "Home, Sweet Home"- songwriter John Howard Payne, who had been traveling with Cherokee chief Joseph Vann. Bishop was later mentioned in Payne's memoirs. William Bishop evicted Vann from his Georgia home and gave the house to Absalom, who was forced to vacate it in favor of the Georgian who won the house in the Cherokee land lottery. During his service in the Seminole Wars and with the Georgia Guard during Indian removal Absalom Bishop acquired the rank of colonel, a title he would carry throughout his life. While in Georgia Absalom Bishop became a notable pro-slavery agitator and was an acquaintance of Sen. Robert Toombs. Inspired by the issue, Bishop may have become too extreme for Georgia politics; his biographer notes that Bishop's activities "became so radical as to necessitate his removal from Georgia," and Absalom Bishop never returned to the state. Bishop traveled north, working for a time in Washington, D.C., on behalf of Georgia land claimants, and later as a goldsmith in New York City, apparently known for his gold pens. In 1849 in Rochester, New York, Bishop and his partner, Thayer Codding, are credited by some sources with the invention of the fountain pen. In 1852 Absalom Bishop came to Texas, settling in Hopkins County and operating a sawmill there. In 1855 he became one of the first settlers in Wise County, settling on Sweetwater Creek about four miles east of what would become the county seat, Decatur. Bishop quickly became an important force in local politics. The first elections in Wise County were held in May 1856, and Bishop's choices were elected to several posts, while Bishop himself claimed the title of county clerk. In 1857 he was elected to the Texas Legislature as the representative for Wise, Denton, Collin, Cook, and Montague counties. Bishop was a powerful force behind the organization of the county and chose both the name of the county and the hilltop site of the town which would become the county seat. The town, originally named Taylorsville for Zachary Taylor, was renamed when Bishop decided that Taylor's Whig politics made him an inappropriate namesake, and introduced a bill to have the name changed to Decatur, for Stephen Decatur of the Revolutionary Navy. Bishop also played a large role in planning the town's layout, which he decided should resemble the town of McKinney in Collin County, a place Bishop had visited and admired. As the Civil War loomed, Bishop became a fiery advocate for secession , speaking before the county secession convention and inspiring Wise County's high enlistment rates. An outspoken advocate and supplier of the Confederacy, Bishop's political career was ended by the surrender in 1865. Bishop lived out his life in Wise County and died on November 30, 1883. Col. Absalom Bishop is buried in Oaklawn Cemetery under the epitaph, "Father of Decatur and Wise County."

Tsha Handbook →

Waggoner, Daniel

1854

Daniel Waggoner, rancher, son of Solomon and Elizabeth (McGaugh) Waggoner, was born in Lincoln County, Tennessee, on July 7, 1828. He moved with his family to Blackjack Grove (now Cumby) in Hopkins County, Texas, about 1848. His father, a successful farmer and cattleman who traded in horses and slaves, died in 1849. Shortly thereafter Daniel married Nancy Moore, daughter of William Moore of Hopkins County. Their only child, William Thomas Waggoner , was born on August 31, 1852. Nancy died the following year. In 1854 Daniel purchased a herd of longhorn cattle and together with his son, mother, brothers, sisters, and a fifteen-year-old slave boy, moved to a small farm of 160 acres located on Catlett Creek in Cooke County (now in Wise County). During the 1850s and 1860s western Wise County was a frontier area frequented by hostile Indians and marauding cattle thieves. In 1856 Waggoner purchased 320 additional acres close to Cactus Hill, eighteen miles west of Decatur. His family lived near Decatur until 1859, when Daniel married Scylly (or Sicily) Ann Halsell, the sixteen-year-old daughter of Electious and Elizabeth J. Halsell. Daniel then moved his family into his log house at Cactus Hill, where they lived until after the Civil War . Waggoner was a member of the local militia and often chased after raiding Indians while Sicily and W. T. concealed themselves in the cornfield. In order to protect his family Waggoner relocated seven miles east of Decatur on Denton Creek. In 1883 he built a $50,000 Victorian mansion, El Castile, on a rocky hill overlooking Decatur. Daniel Waggoner carefully trained his son to handle stock and supervise the ranch. By 1870 they were partners operating under the title of D. Waggoner and Son. That spring a successful cattle drive to Kansas netted a profit of $55,000 and provided the financial impetus for the Waggoner empire. During the next thirty years D. Waggoner and Son heavily invested in land and cattle in Wise, Wilbarger, Foard, Wichita, Baylor, Archer, and Knox counties. Their single D brand was changed to the triple reversed D, which became the Waggoner trademark. Eventually the longhorn cattle were phased out and replaced by Hereford and Durham stock which increased the weight and value of the herds. Although he had no formal education, Waggoner was a shrewd businessman whose investments included not only land and livestock, but also five banks, three cottonseed oil mills, and a coal company. As the Waggoner holdings increased, W. T. moved the ranch headquarters to the Zacaweista Ranch south of the Red River near Vernon; Daniel, however, remained in Decatur. When he died of kidney disease in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on September 5, 1902, Daniel Waggoner owned approximately 80,000 cattle, 525,000 acres of land, and leases on more than 100,000 acres in Indian Territory. The 500,000-acre Waggoner Ranch , administered by Daniel's great-great-grandchildren in 1986, was the largest family-owned block of land in Texas.

Tsha Handbook →

Mitchell Energy and Development Corporation

1952

Mitchell Energy and Development Corporation, with headquarters at the Metro Center in the planned community of the Woodlands just north of Houston in the 1990s, was a major independent producer of natural gas, natural-gas liquids, and oil. In the early 1990s the company was involved in gas transmission and oil and gas exploration and production. It was also involved in real estate development in the Houston-Galveston area. At that time the firm had assets of more than $2 billion, including roughly 1.7 million acres of mineral leases and 60,000 acres of real estate. It owned fifty-seven gas-processing plants and a network of 5,000 miles of intrastate pipeline. By the end of fiscal year 1993 the corporation annually produced 58 billion cubic feet of natural-gas and more than 19 million barrels of natural-gas liquids, crude oil, and other products from holdings variously in North Texas, Limestone County in East Texas, and southeastern New Mexico. In the 1990s, Mitchell began construction of an underground salt-dome natural-gas storage facility in East Texas and developed a plant to produce MTBE, an environmentally cleaner gasoline additive mandated by the 1990 Clean Air Act. The company's 2,800 workers enjoyed a stock purchase and savings plan, health and retirement benefits, and a company Wellness Center at headquarters. Mitchell Energy and Development grew out of Roxoil Drilling, an enterprise incorporated and renamed Oil Drilling in 1946. Among its stockholders was George Phydias Mitchell , the son of a Greek goatherd named Savas Paraskivoupolis, who, to simplify his name, renamed himself Mike Mitchell, after his paymaster when he worked for the railroad. In 1905 Paraskivoupolis settled in Galveston, where his son George was born in 1919. George Mitchell grew up in the immigrant neighborhood of Galveston known as the League of Nations, living in the building that housed his father's dry-cleaning shop. He attended Texas A&M, where he operated a laundry concession and sold stationery to pay his way through. He graduated in 1940 with a degree in petroleum engineering and geology. After working briefly for Amoco and serving with the United States Army Corps of Engineers in World War II , Mitchell entered a newly-formed wildcatting partnership called Christie, Mitchell, and Mitchell with his brother, Johnny, and H. Merlyn Christie. This firm bought out other Oil Drilling shareholders, while Johnny Mitchell and H. Merlyn Christie attracted important investors, including oilman Robert Everett (Bob) Smith , Woolworth heiress Barbara Hutton, members of the Oshman and Weingarten merchant families, and Galveston gambling magnate Sam Maceo. In 1952 the partners drilled their first well in North Texas, in an area known as the "Wildcatters' Graveyard," and made one of the biggest gas strikes in industry history in Wise County near Fort Worth with the discovery of the rich gas resources of the Boonsville field. In 1953 the Christie, Mitchell and Mitchell Company, a subsidiary of Oil Drilling, was formed and began acquiring leases and drilling in North Texas. In 1954 the company arranged to supply natural gas to the Chicago metropolitan area through the Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America. Company headquarters for Oil Drilling were in Houston from 1955 to 1971. In 1957 the firm diversified into gas processing with the construction of its GM&A Gas Products Plant at Bridgeport, Texas. George Mitchell became company president and chief executive officer of Oil Drilling in 1959, and around 1962 H. Merlyn Christie retired from the company, leaving the brothers to split their shares seventy-thirty, with George taking the bigger slice. Known subsequently as Mitchell and Mitchell Oil and Gas Corporation, the enterprise, which by this time employed 225 workers and drilled up to 197 wells a year, consolidated its holdings under the control of George Mitchell. After 1955 the firm began to diversify into real estate. When George Mitchell became presi

Tsha Handbook → · 4.0 mi away

Things to Do in Decatur

quirky 19.9 mi away

Chewbacca's Grave — May the 4th

May the 4th be with you — and with the Wookiee. Peter Mayhew the seven-foot-three British actor who brought Chewbacca to life in every Star Wars film from 1977…

quirky 19.2 mi away

Springtown Dinosaur Tracks

A family went out hunting arrowheads along Walnut Creek in 2017 and found something about 110 million years older than they expected. Pressed into the creekbed…

quirky 19.9 mi away

Chewbacca's Grave

The seven-foot-three British actor who played Chewbacca in every Star Wars film from 1977 to The Force Awakens is buried right here at Azleland Memorial Park.…

quirky 23.5 mi away

The Azle Earthquake Swarm

Starting in November 2013 the ground beneath Azle started shaking and it did not stop for 84 days. Twenty-seven earthquakes rattled windows cracked foundations…

historical 23.6 mi away

WWII Marine Glider Base at Eagle Mountain

In 1942 the United States Marines bought 2931 acres of ranchland on Eagle Mountain Lake for a purpose that sounds almost unbelievable now — training pilots to…

historical 19.3 mi away

Comanche Raids at Springtown

For twenty years the settlers of Springtown slept with one eye open. The Comanche considered this land theirs and they were not subtle about making the point.…

historical 19.4 mi away

Springtown's Civil War Frontier Collapse

When the Civil War called the Texas Rangers east to fight for the Confederacy they left behind an unguarded frontier. The Comanche knew it immediately. They…

historical 19.6 mi away

Parker County and Quanah Parker's Legacy

The county Springtown calls home carries a name tangled up in one of the most dramatic stories in Texas history. Parker County was named for Isaac Parker whose…

Sports in Decatur

🏆 STATE CHAMPIONS Class 4A · Girls Basketball · 2025–2026

Decatur Regal Eagles — UIL 4A Girls Basketball State Champions — 2 titles

Most recent: 2026 4A Division 1

The Decatur High School girls' basketball program, a standout in Class 4A, has brought significant pride to the community with their impressive record. The Lady Eagles have secured two UIL State Championships, claiming the 4A Division 1 title in both 2025 and 2026. These achievements highlight a period of sustained excellence and competitive spirit on the court.

Located in the heart of Wise County, Decatur rallies behind its athletic programs. The success of the girls' basketball team reflects the dedication and hard work fostered within the school and supported by local fans. The back-to-back state titles are a source of considerable hometown honor, showcasing the high level of play Decatur High School has achieved in Texas high school basketball.

State titles

2 (2025–2026)

Most recent

2026

Class

The moment

The 2026 4A Division 1 state championship was a particularly memorable moment for Decatur High School.

Sources: Wikipedia · UIL State Championship Archives · SI High School (ScoreBook Live)

🏆 STATE CHAMPIONS Class 4A · Volleyball · 2018–2025

Decatur Regal Eagles — UIL 4A Volleyball State Champions — 5 titles

Most recent: 2025 4A Division 1

Decatur High School, nestled in the heart of Wise County, boasts a remarkable record in Class 4A volleyball. The Eagles have soared to multiple state championships, demonstrating consistent excellence on the court. Their impressive run includes UIL 4A Division 1 titles in 2025 and 2024, alongside 4A championships in 2021, 2020, and 2018.

The community of Decatur rallies behind its Eagles, creating a vibrant atmosphere for high school sports. The team's success reflects a strong program, bringing pride to the town. While no specific alumni have been noted for professional or major-college careers, the tradition of winning at Decatur High School continues to define its athletic story.

State titles

5 (2018–2025)

Most recent

2025

Class

The moment

The 2025 4A Division 1 state championship marked a significant achievement for Decatur High School volleyball.

Sources: Wikipedia · UIL State Championship Archives · SI High School (ScoreBook Live)

Everything Near Decatur

287 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the nearest 200 are listed here — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.

Decatur, TX
In the midst of the Civil War, Decatur, Texas, witnessed a dark chapter in its history. In October 1862, Unionist sympathizers were arrested by Confederate troops and taken to Gainesville for trial on charges of treason…
Terrell, Charles Vernon · Historical Marker
A leading public man in Texas, 1896-1939. Born in Wise County to early (1854) settlers. After two years at Texas A & M, read law and began practice in 1886. Served 1888-92 as Decatur City attorney; 1892-96 as county…
Vesey, Randolph · Historical Marker
(1832-1908) Respected Negro citizen and homeowner. Champion pioneer fiddler, popular at Forts Belknap, Griffin and Richardson and over county. Once when he was an Indian captive, held in Kansas, Texans sent ponies to…
Sponsored North Texas State University · Historical Marker
You're driving through Wise County, the birthplace of Charles Vernon Terrell. He started as a lawyer here in 1886, then served in the Texas Senate, even sponsoring the act that created North Texas State University. But…
Wise County, C.S.A. · Historical Marker
You're driving through Decatur, the heart of Wise County, a place that saw some serious action during the Civil War. <break time="400ms"/> Even though the county voted against secession, its men were eager to fight,…
Captain George Stevens · Historical Marker
You're driving through Wise County, where Captain George Stevens carved out a life on the Texas frontier. Born in Alabama in 1830, Stevens moved here in 1855 and quickly became a leader in defending settlers from Native…
Colonel Absalom Bishop · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker
COLONEL ABSALOM BISHOP ABSALOM BISHOP (1804-1883) BEGAN HIS MILITARY SERVICE AS A CAPTAIN OF MILITIA IN THE SEMINOLE WAR IN FLORIDA. HE LATER ATTAINED THE RANK OF COLONEL. BISHOP LIVED IN SEVERAL STATES BEFORE ARRIVING…
Stone Prison, Old · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Decatur, and right here is the Old Stone Prison. Built around 1859 using prison labor, this wasn't just a jail – the main part was the sheriff's home! The basement served as the jail cells, with…
Wise County Messenger · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Decatur, and right here is the birthplace of a Texas newspaper that's seen it all. The Wise County Messenger started in 1880, bouncing between Paradise and Alvord before settling in Decatur in…
Decatur First United Methodist Church · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Decatur's oldest congregation, organized way back in 1862. Services started in a vacant store, and early members even used their home and pump organ for worship. The first sanctuary was…
First National Bank of Decatur · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Decatur's First National Bank, a financial pillar for over a century. Organized in 1883 by local businessmen, it was led for decades by W. T. Waggoner, a Texas legend in cattle and oil.…
Gose Trees · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the last remnants of a historic hedge, right here near Decatur. These aren't just any trees; these are bois d'arc, planted back in 1861. They formed a natural, spiny fortress around the log cabin of…

Show all 200 nearby places

Tilghman, S. W., House · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the S. W. Tilghman House in Decatur. Born in Tennessee, Tilghman arrived in Wise County in 1870. He married a local woman, Eliza Miller, and they had four children. Tilghman was a master builder, and…
Episcopal Mission of the Ascension · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Decatur, and look to your left for the Episcopal Mission of the Ascension. This little church, consecrated by Bishop A. C. Garrett, was built way back in 1889, facing Main Street. It earned the…
Waggoner Mansion · 0.5 mi · Scraped Hmdb
Imagine a time of cattle barons and sprawling Texas ranches – that's the world surrounding the Waggoner Mansion. Built in 1883 by the prominent Waggoner family, this sixteen-room mansion, also known as El Castile, was a…
Bishop, Absalom · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Absalom Bishop, town founder and Texas legislator, was born on May 4, 1804, in Pendleton District, South Carolina. As a young man he married Mary Tippen, also of Pendleton District; they had six children before her…
Waggoner, Daniel · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Daniel Waggoner, rancher, son of Solomon and Elizabeth (McGaugh) Waggoner, was born in Lincoln County, Tennessee, on July 7, 1828. He moved with his family to Blackjack Grove (now Cumby) in Hopkins County, Texas, about…
Texas Tourist Camp · 0.6 mi · Scraped Hmdb
Before interstate highways and fancy hotels, there were tourist camps like this one! They offered a safe and affordable place for early automobile travelers to rest. The Texas Tourist Camp in Decatur, Texas, was built…
Williams, Guinn Terrell, Jr. [Big Boy] · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Decatur, Texas, the hometown of Guinn "Big Boy" Williams, Jr. He was born here in 1899 and headed to Hollywood in 1919, drawn by the new motion picture business. His good looks and horsemanship…
Wise County · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Wise County, a place that was once a vital frontier outpost. Established in 1856, this region was home to Wichita and Delaware Indians before settlers arrived. But life here wasn't always…
East Side Elementary School · 0.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Decatur, and to your right, you might have passed the site of East Side Elementary School. In 1882, Decatur's African American community, concentrated east of the railroad tracks, established this…
Decatur, TX · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Decatur, the county seat of Wise County. This town was established in 1856, originally named Taylorsville. But just two years later, in 1858, a state legislator changed the name to Decatur to…
Dallas Baptist University · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Wise County, and right here is where Decatur Baptist College got its start back in 1891. It was founded by the Northwest Texas Baptist Association, who chose Decatur for its central location and…
Lang, John J. · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Decatur, Texas, a town that owes much of its early financial success to a man named John J. Lang. After fighting in the Civil War, losing an eye at the Battle of Seven Pines, and even trying his…
Pickett, George Bibb · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Wise County, Texas, right near Decatur. Back in 1854, a man named George Bibb Pickett was drawn to this area by the promise of wide-open pastureland. He settled here, building his life and raising…
Terrell, Charles Vernon · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Wise County, perhaps near Decatur, where Charles Vernon Terrell got his start. Born in a log cabin in 1861, Terrell's life was a testament to Texas grit. He worked as a store clerk, drove ox…
Williams, Guinn Terrell · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through North Texas, not far from Decatur. Right here, you're passing through the heart of land once shaped by Guinn Terrell Williams. He wasn't just a local banker and rancher; Williams rose to represent…
Texas Tourist Camp Complex · 0.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the old Texas Tourist Camp Complex, a relic from the early days of road trips. Businessman E. F. Boydston bought this spot in 1927, turning a feed lot into a gas station and cabins for travelers. By…
Terrell, John James · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through what was northeastern Wise County, near where John James Terrell was born on January 28, 1857. He grew up in Decatur after his family moved there for protection from intensified Indian conflicts.…
Woodruff, Henry Grady · 0.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Wise County, not far from Decatur, the hometown of Henry Grady Woodruff. He wasn't just any lawyer; Woodruff served in the Texas Legislature for over a decade. He started in the House of…
St. John Missionary Baptist Church · 0.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Decatur, passing the site of St. John Missionary Baptist Church. Organized in the spring of 1882 by a group of women led by Missouri Brown, this church has served the community for over a century.…
Decatur, TX · 0.7 mi
In October 1862, several Unionist sympathizers from Decatur were arrested by Confederate troops and taken to nearby Gainesville for trial on charges of treason and insurrection. This event, known as the Great Hanging at…
The 'Free State of Wise' · 0.7 mi
Standing in the heart of Texas, it's hard to imagine a time when this area was a hotbed of anti-Confederate suspicion. But few Wise County settlers owned slaves, and when the Civil War came, opinion here was badly split…
The Revolution Beneath Your Feet · 0.7 mi
As you drive around Decatur, you're passing over the heart of a technological revolution that changed the global energy map. Deep beneath you lies the Barnett Shale, a layer of rock containing vast amounts of natural…
The Pink Granite Palace · 0.7 mi
You can't miss the building that dominates downtown Decatur. The Wise County Courthouse, with its towering clock tower and distinctive pink granite, is the heart of the city. But it's actually the fourth courthouse to…
When the Cowboys Came to Town · 0.7 mi
Picture the town square you see today in the late 1860s, with the eastern fork of the Chisholm Trail running just past the edge of town. From the late 1860s to the 1880s, Decatur lived off that trail. Drovers pushing…
Butterfield Overland Stage Line · 0.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Decatur, folks, and right here is where a legendary piece of American history blazed a trail. Imagine, if you can, semi-weekly stagecoach service connecting St. Louis all the way to San Francisco!…
Decatur Baptist College · 0.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Decatur, and right here is a spot with a claim to fame in higher education. In 1898, Decatur Baptist College was planned as the world's very first institution designed from the ground up as a…
Perrin Log Cabin · 1.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Perrin Log Cabin. William Perrin and his wife, Charlotte, along with two other families, left Rock Castle, Kentucky in the fall of 1853, arriving forty days later in the Peters Colony near Dallas.…
First Baptist Church of Decatur · 1.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Decatur's First Baptist Church. Organized in 1856, it first met in a log cabin. The church has a long history of community involvement, including working with Northwest Texas Baptist…
Oak Lawn Cemetery · 1.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Oak Lawn Cemetery, established in 1878 when William T. Perry deeded land for a public burial ground. However, at least one grave, Eli Lindley, dates back to 1867, and others from 1857 may have been…
Vesey, Randolph (Uncle Ran) · 1.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Wise County, passing the life story of Randolph Vesey, better known as Uncle Ran. Born into slavery in Georgia around 1832, Vesey served as a body servant to Confederate General William Lewis…
Wise County Poor Farm & Cemetery, Site of · 1.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving near Decatur, and you're passing the site of the old Wise County Poor Farm. From 1885 to 1962, this 320-acre farm was home to dependent citizens and county convicts who worked out their fines. The first…
Wise County Reunion · 2.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Decatur, and you might just be passing the site of one of Texas's oldest public events! It started as informal gatherings for Confederate veterans in the 1860s and 70s. By 1881, it grew into a…
Battle of the Knobs · 2.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the Battle of the Knobs, a fierce clash that happened on November 10, 1837. A small company of eighteen Republic of Texas soldiers, led by Lt. A. B. Benthuysen, found themselves…
Oak Grove United Methodist Church · 3.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Oak Grove United Methodist Church, organized in 1878 by Reverend Jim Smith and Reverend E. C. Fullingim. Its first sanctuary was moved to this site in 1902, and the current building has been in use…
Preskitt Cemetery · 3.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Preskitt Cemetery, established in 1886 on land originally deeded for the Lee School Community. The earliest marked grave is for infant Pearl Hobbs, who died in June 1890. The cemetery is the final…
Mitchell Energy and Development Corporation · 4.0 mi · Tsha Handbook
Mitchell Energy and Development Corporation, with headquarters at the Metro Center in the planned community of the Woodlands just north of Houston in the 1990s, was a major independent producer of natural gas,…
Owens, Ruby Agnes [Texas Ruby] · 4.0 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Wise County, Texas, the birthplace of Ruby Agnes Owens, better known to country music fans as Texas Ruby. Born in 1908, she grew up in a musical family, with a brother who became a radio cowboy.…
Crafton, TX · 4.0 mi · Tsha Handbook
Crafton is on Farm Road 2127 some two miles east of the Jack county line in northwestern Wise County. Settlement of the community began in the late 1870s after the removal of Comanche Indians from the area. A post…
Slidell, TX · 4.0 mi · Tsha Handbook
Slidell is on Hickory Creek twenty miles from Decatur in northeastern Wise County. The surrounding terrain, a treeless plain, is part of the Grand Prairie region of North Texas and is drained by the Elm Fork of the…
Greenwood, TX (Wise County) · 4.0 mi · Tsha Handbook
Greenwood is on Farm Road 1204 fourteen miles northeast of Decatur in Wise County. It was established when two cowboys camped in the area in the 1870s. The two men, named Hart and Greenwood, decided to begin a new…
Sherman, Shreveport and Southern Railway · 4.0 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through North Texas, and right here is a piece of railroad history. The Sherman, Shreveport and Southern Railway was chartered in 1893, aiming to connect McKinney all the way to Decatur, and Jefferson to…
Cottondale, TX · 4.0 mi · Tsha Handbook
Cottondale is on Farm Road 2123 ten miles southwest of Decatur in south central Wise County. Its settlement began in the early 1850s, and it is one of the oldest communities in the county. B. F. Banks, a local…
New Salem Freewill Baptist Church · 4.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the New Salem Freewill Baptist Church, organized in April 1893 by Reverend Josephus Wesley Ford and other families. Reverend Ford pastored here until his death in July 1898, and the…
Long, Ira - Texas Ranger Captain · 4.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the Decatur area, the former stomping grounds of Texas Ranger Captain Ira Long. Born in Indiana and wounded twice fighting for the Confederacy, Long joined the Texas Rangers in 1874. He quickly rose…
Sand Hill Community · 4.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Sand Hill, a place that was the heart of pioneer culture in North Texas. Folks gathered here at a good spring, right near the hill that gave this community its name. Back in 1854, the first…
Waggoner Cemetery · 4.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the Waggoner Cemetery, a final resting place with roots stretching back to the earliest days of settlement in Wise County. The story begins in 1849, when Reverend Henry Fullingim and his large family…
James, Jesse and Frank, Old Campsite of · 5.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Decatur, and you might be looking for a ghost of the Old West. This area, and much of Texas, was a hideout for some of America's most notorious outlaws. Think Jesse and Frank James, Cole Younger, and…
Renshaw, Dr. William · 5.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Decatur, where Dr. William Renshaw became the very first doctor to permanently settle in Wise County. Born in Illinois and practicing in Tennessee, he first came to Texas in 1853 to claim a land…
Trimble Cemetery · 5.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Trimble Cemetery, the main burial ground for the tiny community of Flatwood, also known as Davis City, in the late 1800s. Named for James W. Trimble, who bought land here in 1877, it was formally…
Mount Zion Baptist Church & Jonestown Cemetery · 6.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Mount Zion Baptist Church and Jonestown Cemetery. Andrew Jackson Jones deeded land here back in 1833 for the church and cemetery, with the earliest marked grave dating to that same year.…
Flat Rock Cemetery · 6.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Flat Rock Cemetery, a place that began with a tradition of unmarked graves. Settled in the 1850s by pioneers like Moses Ball, the earliest burials here are said to be an unknown Native…
Stevens, Captain George · 6.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Flat Rock, Texas, a place that remembers Captain George Stevens. He arrived here in 1855, a man known as the champion of the defenseless. Stevens was deeply involved in protecting pioneer families…
Hopewell Cemetery · 6.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Hopewell Cemetery, established in 1872. It was recognized as a Historic Texas Cemetery in 2010.
Anneville School · 7.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the Anneville School. This community, likely named for early settler Annie Davis, got its start when land was donated in 1883 for a school, church, and cemetery. The original school…
Hopewell Baptist Church · 7.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Hopewell Baptist Church, organized in 1874 with 35 charter members. The congregation moved to this location in 1887 and built a new sanctuary in 1899. Initially meeting one Sunday a…
The Urschel Kidnapping - Shannon Ranch near Paradise · 8.0 mi · Historical Marker
In the summer of nineteen thirty-three, a five-hundred-acre farm outside Paradise, Texas, became the center of one of the most famous kidnapping cases in American history. On July twenty-second, George Machine Gun Kelly…
Sam Woody's Cabin · 8.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Decatur, and just ahead is the site of Sam Woody's Cabin. Woody, a pioneer from Tennessee, brought his family to Wise County in 1854 and built this cabin near Deep Creek. It was the very first…
Matthews, Mansell Walter · 8.3 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through North Texas, and right here, in what is now Wise County, you might be passing near Paradise. That's where Mansell Walter Matthews, a preacher, doctor, and legislator, spent the last years of his…
First Christian Church of Paradise · 8.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the First Christian Church of Paradise. Members held services in 'Old Town' in the late 1800s, but moved here when the railroad arrived. Merchant M. D. Cansler, school superintendent S. L. Atkins,…
Ramsdale, George Lafayette · 8.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Wise County, passing the spot where George Lafayette Ramsdale lived out his days. Born in England in 1820, Ramsdale came to Texas as a teenager, enlisting in the army by 1836 to fight for Texas…
Matthews, Dr. M. W. · 8.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Paradise, Texas, and you're passing the site of a man who saw some of the most pivotal moments in Texas history. Dr. M. W. Matthews was a pioneer physician and preacher, but he also served as an…
Texas HS Baseball Playoff Leaders 2026: Paradise (Paradise) · 8.7 mi
Paradise put 6 players on the statewide leaderboards of the 2026 Texas high school baseball playoffs. Camden Walker had 20 stolen bases (1st in the state), 18 hits (6th in the state), and 17 runs (4th in the state).…
Texas HS Baseball Playoff Hits 2026: Paradise (Paradise) · 8.7 mi
Paradise, TX placed on the Texas high school baseball PLAYOFF HITS leaderboard for the 2026 postseason: Carter Mara (19 hits, #3 in TX); Camden Walker (18 hits, #6 in TX); Madden Taylor (17 hits, #8 in TX); Cash Watson…
Clearing the Road Ahead of the Chase · 9.0 mi
This piece of State Highway One Fourteen, from Twelfth Street in Bridgeport to County Road Thirty Three Thirty, is the Sergeant Randy D. White Memorial Highway. Randy White served five years with the Bridgeport Police…
Deep Creek Community · 9.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through what used to be Deep Creek, settled around 1854 by folks like Sam Woody and Tom McCarroll. They farmed cotton and corn, raised cattle, and built a church that also served as a schoolhouse. But…
Huff Family Massacre · 9.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Wise County, near Alvord. It's 1874, and this area is seeing one of its last Indian raids. While C.W. Huff and his son were working the far fields of their new homestead, tragedy struck the home.…
Site of Old Town Paradise · 9.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Old Town Paradise, a community that literally moved! Settled in 1858 and initially called Eldorado, this town grew around a central square and a community well. It even got a post office…
Republic of Texas' Santa Fe Expedition in Wise County · 9.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Wise County, following in the footsteps of a failed Republic of Texas expedition. In 1841, President Lamar sent 321 men on a mission to Santa Fe, hoping to expand Texas's influence. They struggled…
St. John the Baptizer Catholic Church · 9.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Bridgeport, home to St. John the Baptizer Catholic Church. Established in the 1890s as a mission served by a traveling priest, it was the first Catholic church in Wise County. The original wooden…
Hunt, Col. William Hudson · 9.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Bridgeport, Texas, and just passed the final resting place of Colonel William Hudson Hunt. Born in New York in 1815, Hunt came to Texas in 1836, fighting in the War for Independence and later…
First United Methodist Church of Bridgeport · 9.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Bridgeport's First United Methodist Church. Organized in 1893, the same year the railroad arrived, the congregation started meeting under brush arbors and in the Masonic Lodge. They built…
First Presbyterian Church of Bridgeport · 9.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Bridgeport's First Presbyterian Church. The congregation officially organized in 1898, meeting in a school before completing their first building that same year. Descendants of charter…
First Baptist Church Bridgeport · 9.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the First Baptist Church of Bridgeport. It started in 1882 with Reverend Alpheus Hawkins and 23 charter members in Old Town Bridgeport. After meeting in the schoolhouse and two other…
Bridgeport Lodge No. 587, A.F. & A.M. · 9.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Bridgeport Lodge No. 587, chartered in 1884. Its original twenty-seven members were mostly local coal miners, ranchers, and businessmen. The lodge has been active in community affairs…
Bridgeport Coal Mines · 10.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Bridgeport, a town built on coal. Back in the late 1800s, miners digging for water stumbled upon a rich coal vein just sixty feet down. This discovery led to the formation of the Wise County Coal…
Ball Knob Cemetery · 10.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Ball Knob Cemetery in Wise County. Originally owned by pioneer James Ball, Sr., it served as a burial ground for family and friends. The land was deeded to the Audubon community in 1890 and…
Greasy Bend, Then Parkhurst, Then Boyd · 10.4 mi
Boyd worked through two other names before it settled on this one. Farmers settled in the early 1890s in a curve of the West Fork of the Trinity, in rich bottomland where hogs were turned loose to fatten, so the place…
Chewbacca Lived Here · 10.4 mi
Of all the places for a movie legend to settle down, the actor who played Chewbacca in the Star Wars films chose a quiet ranch in Boyd. Peter Mayhew, the seven-foot-two Englishman behind the famous furry character,…
A Pink Memorial Southeast of Boyd · 10.4 mi
Southeast of Boyd, along a rural road in Wise County, there is a memorial rebuilt in bright pink. It stands where the search for seven-year-old Athena Strand ended. Athena disappeared from outside her father's home near…
Sallie Bowman's Ride for Home · 10.4 mi
Between Boyd and Decatur, half a mile down a dirt lane off County Road forty-two twenty-seven, the Deep Creek Cemetery holds a headstone with a whole frontier story cut into it. It belongs to Sallie Bowman. Her father…
Barbecue in Melon Country · 10.4 mi
For its first half-century Boyd was a cotton-and-livestock town, but after the 1940s the farms here turned to a sweeter crop and the area became known as melon country. Those farm roots still flavor the place. For a…
Boyd's Two Trips to the Top · 10.4 mi
Boyd High School baseball has won two state championships at the Dell Diamond in Round Rock. On June tenth, two thousand twenty three, the Yellowjackets beat Wall six to four there for the first state baseball…
Boyd, TX (Wise County) · 10.4 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Boyd, Texas, a town with a name that changed almost as fast as the railroad lines! Originally settled in the early 1890s and known as Greasy Bend because farmers fattened hogs here, the community…
Watermelon Country · 10.5 mi
In its early decades Alvord was a busy farm trade center, and the country around it was known for two things: cattle and watermelons. The sandy soil of this stretch of Wise County grew melons well, and the town thrived…
The Bend in the River · 10.5 mi
Boyd sits right in a bend of the West Fork of the Trinity River, and that bend explains a lot about the town. When a river rounds a curve, the water on the inside of the bend slows down and drops the silt it is…
Wise County, TX · 10.5 mi · Local history
The rolling hills of Wise County, part of the Cross Timbers region, offered early settlers a mix of prairie and woodland, ideal for ranching and farming. Unlike the flatter plains to the west, the varied terrain…
A Star in the Window, a Marker by the Road · 10.5 mi
This road carries a Blue Star Memorial Highway designation, one of a string of them across Texas. The name comes from a family tradition. When someone in a household was serving in the armed forces, the family displayed…
The Boy From Alvord Who Set the Price of Oil · 10.6 mi
One of the most powerful oil regulators in American history was born in this little Wise County town in 1892. Ernest Thompson served on the Texas Railroad Commission for thirty-three years, the longest tenure in its…
Covington, Weldon Joseph · 10.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through North Texas, and right here in Alvord, a young Weldon Covington was already making music. At just nine years old, he was the pianist for the local Baptist church. Then, in his junior year of high…
The Forest Belt That Blocked the Pioneers · 10.6 mi
Alvord sits right on a natural seam in the Texas landscape. Wise County is split between open grassland prairie to the east and a band of woodland called the Western Cross Timbers to the west, and the town straddles the…
Indian Captives Dot and Bianca Babb · 10.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Chico, and we're flashing back to 1865. Imagine this: two kids, 13-year-old Dot Babb and his 9-year-old sister Bianca, playing near their home. Suddenly, a Comanche raiding party of nearly 40…
Once Called Nina, and Not Named for an Outlaw · 10.7 mi
Alvord almost had a completely different name. The settlement started in the early 1880s as a community called Nina. When the Fort Worth and Denver Railway arrived in 1882, the town renamed itself Alvord, in honor of…
Alvord Lodge No. 512, A.F. & A.M. · 10.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the Alvord Lodge No. 512, a Masonic organization. It began in 1879 near Audubon, moved to Alvord in 1886, and built this new stone hall in 1991. The Masons continue their tradition of community…
First United Methodist Church Alvord · 10.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the First United Methodist Church in Alvord. Originally organized in 1884 as the Methodist Episcopal Church, south, it has served the community for 130 years. The original 600-pound bell from 1884 is…
The Toll Bridge That Named the Town · 10.8 mi
Bridgeport is named for exactly what you would guess: a bridge. In 1860 a man named Colonel Hunt got a charter to build a span across the West Fork of the Trinity, redirecting the great Southern Overland stagecoach mail…
The Town That Moved to Coal City · 10.8 mi
In 1893 the railroad came, but not quite where the town was. The Rock Island line was routed through the coal fields about two miles from the old Bridgeport, so the coal company gave land for a depot and a brand-new…
Five Hundred Miners, and the Slow End of Coal · 10.8 mi
At its peak just after 1900, the Bridgeport coal operation employed around five hundred men, and many of them were immigrants from Mexico and other Latin American countries, who lived in rows of miners' cottages right…
Stagecoaches and a Lake · 10.8 mi
Bridgeport leans into its frontier roots harder than most towns. The Texas legislature officially named it the Stagecoach Capital of Texas, and the town displays a real Concord stagecoach and throws an annual…
Masonic Lodge #479 · 10.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Boyd, Texas, and if you look closely, you might imagine a whole town on the move! This building, originally constructed in 1877, was the heart of Old Aurora, just two miles east of here. The ground…
City of Alvord · 10.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Alvord, a town that owes its start to the railroad and an old Indian trail. By 1882, this agricultural community was already growing, but the arrival of the Fort Worth & Denver Railroad that year…
Drilling for Water, Striking Coal · 10.9 mi
Bridgeport's biggest break came by accident. Sometime around 1880, workers digging a water well on the merchant Cates's property struck something far more valuable about sixty feet down: a thick seam of bituminous coal.…
One Rock, Two Industries · 10.9 mi
The coal under Bridgeport is deep time made useful. It formed in the Pennsylvanian period, around three hundred million years ago, when this part of Texas cycled endlessly between swampy land and shallow sea, burying…
Mexican Americans and Repatriation · 10.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through North Texas, maybe near Bridgeport, and it's hard to imagine this place was once at the center of a massive exodus. During the Great Depression, hundreds of thousands of Mexicans and Mexican…
Audubon · 10.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Audubon, a town that vanished right here in Wise County. Settled in 1865 by D. D. Shirey, it was named for the famous naturalist John J. Audubon. Shirey's farm became a stagecoach inn,…
Bridgeport, TX · 10.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Bridgeport, a town whose very existence began with a bridge. Back in 1860, folks organized to build a span across the West Fork of the Trinity River, hoping to cash in on the Butterfield Overland…
Lake Bridgeport · 10.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Wise County, not far from Bridgeport. Right here is Lake Bridgeport, completed back in December of 1931. It was built as part of a massive plan to canalize the Trinity River, costing around two…
Thompson, General Ernest O. · 11.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're cruising through Alvord, Texas, the birthplace of a true oil titan, General Ernest O. Thompson. He left college during World War I to earn a battlefield commission, becoming one of the youngest lieutenant…
The Gas Boom Beneath Your Feet · 11.1 mi
As you travel through Alvord, one of the biggest economic and technological stories of the last half century is playing out, completely unseen, about a mile and a half beneath your feet. This area sits atop the Barnett…
Alvord, TX · 11.1 mi
In 1882, the town that was originally known as Nina adopted its present name, Alvord, in honor of the president of the Fort Worth and Denver Railway. By 1890, Alvord had become a retail center for area farmers. The…
Boyd Yellowjackets — 3A DI State Champions 2026 (def. London 9-8) · 11.2 mi
Boyd High School (Boyd, TX — Wise County, northwest of Fort Worth) won the 2026 UIL Class 3A Division I state baseball championship, beating London (Corpus Christi) 9-8 in the final.
Texas HS Baseball Playoff Hits 2026: Boyd (Boyd) · 11.2 mi
Boyd, TX placed on the Texas high school baseball PLAYOFF HITS leaderboard for the 2026 postseason: Keelan Clary (16 hits, #15 in TX).
Texas HS Baseball Playoff Leaders 2026: Boyd (Boyd) · 11.2 mi
Boyd, TX placed on the 2026 Texas high school baseball PLAYOFF leaderboards (H=hits, HR=home runs, RBI, R=runs, SB=steals, K=strikeouts, H/IP=hits per inning): Will McIntire — 47 K (#3), .440 H/IP (#12); Lane Beacham —…
Dallas, Pacific & Southeastern Railway · 11.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Wise County, where a ghost of a railroad runs alongside you. The Dallas, Pacific & Southeastern Railway was planned way back in 1889 to connect Dallas all the way to Albuquerque. They graded a…
Cattle Trail Crossing · 11.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Decatur, and just ahead, you're crossing a ghost highway of the Old West. This area was a vital feeder branch of the famous Chisholm Trail, the superhighway of cattle drives! Blazed in 1865 by Jesse…
Rhoads Family Cemetery · 11.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Wise County, heading towards Alvord. Look to your right, and you'll see the Rhoads Family Cemetery. Originally from Tennessee, Abner and Chloe Rhoads arrived here in 1870 with their family,…
The Bank That Rolled to the Tracks · 11.7 mi
The Bridgeport you’re in right now is actually Version 2.0. The original town, founded in the 1860s, was about a mile southwest of here. It was doing just fine as a stagecoach stop until 1893, when the Chicago, Rock…
The Making of Lake Bridgeport · 11.7 mi
The biggest landmark in the area, Lake Bridgeport, isn't natural. It's a massive feat of engineering that permanently changed this region. By the 1920s the growing city of Fort Worth desperately needed a reliable water…
When Coal Was King · 11.7 mi
For a generation, the sound of Bridgeport wasn't cattle; it was the clang of mining equipment and the whistle of the coal train. Coal turned up here late in the 1800s when men drilling for water hit a vein instead, and…
The Butterfield Stage's River Crossing · 11.7 mi
Before there was a town, there was a trail. The Butterfield Overland Mail, the most famous stagecoach line in American history, ran some twenty-eight hundred miles from Missouri to San Francisco between 1858 and 1861,…
The Engineering of Lake Bridgeport · 11.7 mi
Lake Bridgeport is a powerful example of Depression-era civil engineering. To create it, the Tarrant County Water Control and Improvement District Number One had to tame the West Fork of the Trinity River. Work began in…
Toll Bridge & Old Bridgeport · 11.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Bridgeport, a town that owes its existence to a river crossing. Back in the late 1850s, the Butterfield Overland Mail needed a way across the West Fork of the Trinity. Colonel W. H. Hunt got a…
Bridgeport, TX · 11.7 mi
Bridgeport is located in Wise County, Texas, and is characterized by its proximity to the West Fork of the Trinity River. The river played a significant role in the city's early history, as the original bridge built in…
Rhome, TX · 12.0 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Rhome, a town with roots stretching back to the 1850s as Prairie Point. It was once the second-largest settlement in Wise County, boasting a hotel and businesses. But the Civil War brought…
Greenwood · 12.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Greenwood, a town that sprung up in the Texas frontier. As early as the 1850s, pioneer families like the Greenwoods and Harts settled here, giving the town and its creek their names. By the early…
Greenwood Masonic Lodge #779 · 12.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Decatur, where the Greenwood Masonic Lodge #779 was established in 1895. Chartered on December 4th, its first home was the second floor of a building on Main Street, which amazingly survived two…
From Greasy Bend, Named Twice · 12.1 mi
The existence of Boyd is a story of farming and railroad politics. Farmers settled here in the early 1890s, in a curve of the Trinity's North Fork, and called the place Greasy Bend -- the bottomland was used to fatten…
Gunslinger from Boyd · 12.1 mi
This town is where an NFL gunslinger got his start. Billy Joe Tolliver grew up right here, and his athletic talent was obvious early on at Boyd High School. He went on to become a record-setting quarterback for Texas…
Boyd, TX · 12.1 mi
In 2011, the new Boyd High School was completed, which is three times the size of the former high school building. This expansion was necessary to accommodate the growing population of the town.
Athena Strand and the Paradise Alert · 12.3 mi
Paradise is a rural town in Wise County, near Fort Worth. On November thirtieth, two thousand twenty two, seven-year-old Athena Strand disappeared from outside her father's home there. A contract delivery driver for…
The Transformation of a Farm-to-Market Road · 12.3 mi
The road you're likely driving on, Farm to Market 407, is a perfect piece of engineering history. The 'FM' road system was a massive Texas infrastructure project started in the 1940s with a simple goal: get agricultural…
The Iron Horse Arrives · 12.3 mi
Imagine this spot in 1893. Paradise had been here for twenty years already -- Bill Anderson's general store, a post office since 1876, a place folks first called Eldorado and then Paradise Prairie for the wildflowers.…
Engineering a Town's Future · 12.3 mi
The Paradise you see today was fundamentally re-drawn by a 19th-century engineering project: the railroad. This was not open country before it came -- there had been a store here since the early 1870s and a post office…
The Battle for Rural Character · 12.3 mi
As you drive along Farm to Market Road 407, look at the street sign — along part of its length this road is Illinois Lane, and that is the oldest thing here. New Fairview grew out of a settlement called Illinois…
A Tale of Two Counties · 12.3 mi
One of the oddest things about New Fairview is that it lives a double life. The city sits in Wise County, but a slice of it reaches across into Denton County, and that line has real consequences for the people who live…
New Fairview, TX · 12.3 mi
Once known as Illinois Community, the main highway through the city, Texas Farm to Market Road 407, is named Illinois Lane in remembrance. The city was called Fairview until 1999, when the name was changed to New…
East Mount Cemetery & School · 12.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past East Mount Cemetery and the former site of its school, a community named for a 19th-century lookout point. In 1876, W. C. Ellis set aside land for this public space, with the cemetery opening by…
Thurmond-Fairview Cemetery · 12.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the Thurmond-Fairview Cemetery. This burial ground began in 1883 when J. F. Thurmond asked neighbors to select a spot for a graveyard after his infant daughter died. He donated land for the church,…
Aurora UFO Crash Site · 12.8 mi · Historical Marker
Fifty years before Roswell, this tiny Wise County town made a claim so strange that people are still arguing about it. On April 17, 1897, according to a report in the Dallas Morning News, a mysterious airship crashed…
Brown Hotel · 12.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Chico, and right here is the site of the old Brown Hotel. Colonel J.T. Brown, who founded this town back in 1876, built this hotel in 1888. Now, this place saw some real history. Imagine standing…
Siddons-Barnes Log Cabin · 12.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the Siddons-Barnes Log Cabin, a structure built in the early 1870s. This humble cabin was more than just a home; it was the very first place of worship for Methodists in the area and also served as…
Draco · 12.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Draco, a Texas town that vanished as quickly as it appeared. Settled in the early 1880s and originally called Tylewater, it got a post office in 1883 and a new name: Draco. It boomed with…
The Roswell of Texas · 12.9 mi
Aurora's claim to fame is a story that's literally out of this world. On April 19, 1897, the Dallas Morning News reported that a mysterious airship had crashed two days earlier on the property of a local judge, J.S.…
Aurora, TX · 12.9 mi · Local history
Aurora, Texas, stands as a quiet testament to a singular, dramatic event that etched its name into the annals of local lore. Unlike its agricultural neighbors, born from fertile land or strategic trade routes, Aurora's…
Aurora alien grave legend · 12.9 mi
Fifty years before anybody said the word Roswell, a little town north of Fort Worth had already buried its alien. April of 1897 — the local newspaperman, S.E. Haydon, filed a story in the Dallas Morning News. A…
Engineering a Ghost Town · 12.9 mi
Aurora died in two blows, and the first one wasn't the railroad. Late in 1888 spotted fever broke out here, and by 1889 the fear of it had emptied a town that had counted somewhere between 750 and 3,000 people, with two…
The Town Built on Crushed Stone · 12.9 mi
Drive into Chico from the south and the roadside tells you what this town does: quarry after quarry lining the highway. After oil was found nearby in the 1940s, Chico briefly called itself the oil capital of Wise…
The Town That Almost Was · 12.9 mi
Before the UFO story, Aurora had a much more grounded tragedy. By the mid-1880s this was a real town: two schools, two cotton gins, two hotels, fifteen businesses, and a population somewhere between seven hundred fifty…
Hanna-Robinson-Richey Drugstore · 12.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the Hanna-Robinson-Richey Drugstore, built in 1893 by A.V. Hanna. This native sandstone building was more than just a pharmacy; it housed Chico's first telephone switchboard, plus a doctor, a lawyer,…
First Baptist Church of Chico · 12.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Chico, where the First Baptist Church was organized in 1874. Starting with just five members, the congregation met in homes and a brush arbor before building several structures over the years,…
The Methodist Church in Chico · 12.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Chico, where the Methodist Church was founded back in May of 1872. Robert Calvin Mount and his wife, along with three other pioneers, held their first worship service in a log schoolhouse. Over…
Named by a Single Vote · 13.0 mi
Chico, Texas, got its name by the narrowest margin imaginable. In the mid-1870s a man named J.T. Brown, who had come from Chico, California, settled here and opened a general store. When it came time to name the new…
Babb Cemetery · 13.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Babb Cemetery, established September 5th, 1866. On that day, Mrs. John S. Babb was killed by Comanche Indians. Her children, Dot and Bianca, were captured and held for two years before their father…
The Stone Drugstore Where the Phones Began · 13.0 mi
One of Chico's oldest buildings is a sturdy little drugstore built of native sandstone in 1893, and in its early days it was practically the whole downtown under one roof. Inside that single stone building you could…
Robert Calvin Mount · 13.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Wise County, where Robert Calvin Mount arrived in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1855</say-as>. He was elected the first assessor-collector of taxes here in <say-as interpret-as="date"…
Chico, TX · 13.0 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Chico, a town that owes its start to a man named J. T. Brown, who hailed all the way from Chico, California. He arrived in the mid-1870s, setting up a general store near Dry Creek. This little…
Stephens, Ira Kendrick · 13.0 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Wise County, maybe not far from Chico, the birthplace of Ira Kendrick Stephens. Born in 1887, Stephens overcame early health issues and taught in country schools before earning degrees from…
The Governor's Pardon on the Hotel Porch · 13.1 mi
The man who founded Chico, Colonel J.T. Brown, lived a life with one very dramatic scene. A frontier figure described in his own obituary as a Mexican War veteran and pioneer Indian fighter, Brown built the Brown Hotel…
Aurora, TX (Wise County) · 13.1 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Wise County, near Aurora. Back in 1897, this quiet town became the center of a bizarre statewide sensation. A local cotton buyer, S. E. Haydon, wrote a story for the Dallas Morning News about a…
The Cemetery on the Hill · 13.1 mi
The Aurora Cemetery is a real, still-used graveyard with graves dating back to the 1860s, on land a settler donated to the local Masonic lodge in 1877. It would be a quiet country cemetery like a thousand others in…
How Do You Test a Legend? · 13.1 mi
Aurora's airship legend turns out to be a neat little case study in how science tests an extraordinary claim. Over the years, investigators have come at it with real tools. They swept the cemetery with metal detectors,…
Mount, R.C., House · 13.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the R.C. Mount House, a testament to early Texas grit and resourcefulness. Mount, a surveyor, preacher, and the first tax assessor-collector for Wise County, started building this home in 1872. He…
Rush Creek Community Cemetery · 13.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the Rush Creek Community Cemetery, a resting place named for the very stream that once defined this area. It's a quiet reminder of a community that once thrived here, complete with a school and two…
Aurora Cemetery · 13.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the Aurora Cemetery, a place with more stories than you might expect. The oldest graves here go back to the 1860s, belonging to the Randall and Rowlett families. But this 3-acre plot was officially…
Cottondale, TX · 13.5 mi · Local history
Cottondale sits nestled in the rolling hills of Wise County, where the Eastern Cross Timbers transitions into prairie. This North Texas region is characterized by its mix of post oak and blackjack oak forests,…
Bledsoe, George Lawton · 13.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Aurora, and right here, you're passing the final resting place of George Lawton Bledsoe. Born in Georgia in 1805, Bledsoe came to Texas in 1834, just in time to fight for its independence. He was…
The Two Blows That Emptied the Town · 13.5 mi
The real reason Aurora faded has nothing to do with spacemen. Two ordinary disasters did it. First, around 1888, a spotted-fever epidemic, now thought to have been a form of meningitis, swept the town, and so many…
Pleasant Grove No. 2 Cemetery, School and Church · 13.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Pleasant Grove, home to one of three communities with that name in Wise County. This spot has been a center of life since the late 1870s, when the earliest graves were marked here. In 1879, a…
Keeter Cemetery · 13.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the Keeter Cemetery, serving this community for over a hundred years, starting in 1882. The oldest grave is Ida Mae Ryan, who lived from 1881 to 1882. Albert Lafayette Keeter, the namesake of the…
The Spaceman Buried in Aurora · 13.6 mi
In April 1897, the Dallas Morning News ran an astonishing story out of Aurora. A local writer reported that a mystery airship had sailed over town at dawn, clipped a judge's windmill, and exploded in his yard. The…
Grave of Machine Gun Kelly - Cottondale Cemetery · 13.6 mi · Historical Marker
Somewhere in Row 11 of the Cottondale Cemetery, under a small headstone that reads George B. Kelley, 1954, lies George Machine Gun Kelly, one of the most notorious gangsters of the Prohibition era. The misspelled name…
"Machine Gun" Kelley · 13.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past "Machine Gun" Kelley. During the Prohibition Era, organized crime increased. Big-name gangsters like Al Capone ruled the streets while public enemies such as Bonnie and Clyde swept across the…
Named for the Goddess of Dawn · 13.6 mi
Long before the airship story, Aurora got its name from something hopeful. Settlers arrived in the late 1850s, and the man credited with naming the place chose Aurora, after the Roman goddess of the dawn, by one account…
Cottondale · 13.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Cottondale. Area's oldest settlement. Platted by landowner B. F. Banks, who also gave lots for public use named, 1875, for lush growth of cotton planted by John Bridges, blacksmith, to finance a trip…
The Great Railroad Race · 13.8 mi
The tracks you see in Rhome are the reason there's a town here at all — but the name on the town isn't the railroad's. The Fort Worth and Denver City Railway had its line laid past this spot by 1882, pushing north out…
Before the Rails, the Trail · 13.8 mi
Before Rhome was Rhome, it was Prairie Point, a stagecoach crossroads settled by Missourians in the late 1850s and laid out by Samuel Sheets in 1858. By the early 1860s it was the second-largest place in Wise County,…
Slidell · 13.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Slidell, a community named for a Confederate diplomat caught up in a Civil War scandal. The post office opened in 1884, and soon after, Garrett Fletcher donated land for a church and cemetery. He…
Teague Cemetery · 14.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Aurora, and just off the road is the Teague Cemetery. It's named for John Teague, who came here from Missouri in 1858 with his family. He fought in the War with Mexico and served on the frontier…
First National Bank in Rhome · 14.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Rhome's First National Bank. It all started in 1904, not as a national bank, but as a private venture by prominent businessman Dan Waggoner, who also ran a bank in nearby Decatur. His…
United Methodist Church of Rhome · 14.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Rhome, where the United Methodist Church was organized in the 1880s. Early services were held in a schoolhouse, under brush arbors, and in a tent before their first building was finished in 1903. The…
Wise County, TX · 14.4 mi · Local history
Wise County, nestled in the rolling terrain of the North Texas Cross Timbers, finds its identity rooted in agriculture and community. This land, characterized by its mix of woodlands and prairie, proved ideal for…
A Real Thread Back to Rome · 14.5 mi
We have said clearly that this town is named for a rancher and not for Rome, Italy. But here is a genuine little twist that ties the two together in a way you would never guess. The Hereford cattle that made Byron Rhome…
The Bull Named Harkaway · 14.5 mi
The man this town is named for did not just raise cattle. He raised champions. Colonel Byron Rhome was known across the Southwest as the finest breeder of purebred Hereford cattle, the sturdy red animals with the clean…
No, It Is Not Named for Rome · 14.5 mi
Say the name out loud and your ear plays a little trick on you. Rhome. It sounds exactly like Rome, the ancient capital of Italy, home of emperors and gladiators. So let me clear this up right now, because it is a fair…
When in Rome: Roads and Water · 14.5 mi
Rhome was actually named for Colonel Byron Rhome, a local rancher remembered for bringing the first Hereford cattle to Wise County, so the resemblance to ancient Rome is pure coincidence, right down to the extra letter.…
cottondale, TX · 14.5 mi
A notable event in Cottondale's history is the burial of the infamous American gangster Machine Gun Kelly in the Cottondale Cemetery. He passed away of a heart attack at Leavenworth Prison on July 17, 1954, in…
The Rancher Behind the Name · 14.5 mi
Here is the honest story of how this town got its name, and it has nothing to do with any city across an ocean. You are rolling through Rhome, Texas, spelled with an H, and it is named for a man: Colonel Byron Crandall…
The Original Big Arena · 14.5 mi
Your ear heard Rome, but the truth is closer to home: this town was named in eighteen eighty-three for Colonel Byron Crandall Rhome, a Wise County rancher, and the echo of the ancient city is pure coincidence. Still,…
Why the White Face? · 14.5 mi
Those white-faced red cattle that made Byron Rhome famous did not start in Texas. They came from a green county in western England called Herefordshire, right on the border with Wales. And here is how a breed like that…

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