Lufkin, Texas

Everything Lufkin is known for

4 songs mention this city 8 artists from here

Lufkin, Texas, located in the Piney Woods region of East Texas, is home to a notable collection of musical talent. Eight artists call Lufkin home, spanning genres from country to gospel and Latin. Among them are country artists Dave Fenley and Bob Luman, as well as rock artist J. Frank Wilson. The city is also mentioned in three songs, including "Lufkin" by Truck-T and "Love from Lufkin" by Rita Bliss. Lufkin has been recognized as a Music Friendly Texas Certified Community, demonstrating a commitment to its local music economy.

Music in Lufkin

Songs About Lufkin

Lufkin
Truck-T
80%
Love from Lufkin
Rita Bliss
80%
"I'm sending you my love from here in Lufkin"
She's Crazy for Leaving
Rodney Crowell
40%
"She was long on to Lufkin by the time they cut me out of my truck"
where did you sleep last night
joey allcorn
23%

Artists From Lufkin

D
Dave Fenley
country Pop: 57
T
Tedashii
gospel Pop: 48
J
Jackson Wendell
country Pop: 37
B
Bob Luman
country Pop: 35
J
J. Frank Wilson
rock Pop: 34
L
Love & Chaos
country Pop: 19
J
Jim Murphy
country Pop: 14
J
Joe Vega
latin Pop: 8

Rivers & Roads in Song near Lufkin

Songs written about the waterways and highways that run near Lufkin.

U.S. Route 59 7 songs Kickapoo Creek 4 songs Trinity River 10 songs

History of Lufkin

Lufkin, TX RoadyGoat

Lufkin wasn't always here, of course. Before it was Lufkin, it was just East Texas forest, those endless stands of loblolly pines that define the landscape. It started with the railroad, like so many towns around here. When the Houston, East and West Texas Railway pushed through in the early 1880s, they needed a place to put a depot, a place to load and unload all that lumber coming out of these woods. They named the stop after Captain Lufkin, a railroad man. Folks started settling in, drawn by the promise of work in the timber industry. Sawmills sprang up, turning those pines into lumber to build houses and businesses all over the state. It was a hard life, but it was a life, and Lufkin was incorporated in 1890. Those early days, you can imagine, were rough and rowdy, filled with the sounds of saws and the smells of pine. The town grew, built on the back of that lumber industry, becoming the center of commerce for Angelina County. Even now, you can feel that small-town charm, that sense of community rooted in those early days, even as healthcare and manufacturing have become major employers. And though we're a good distance away, we all celebrated when the Astros won the World Series in 2017.

Lufkin, TX RoadyGoat

Lufkin, like much of East Texas, owes its character to the towering loblolly pines that blanket the region. Those trees aren't just scenery; they're the foundation of a timber industry that has shaped the town for over a century. From the early days of sawmills turning raw logs into lumber, to the modern paper mills that convert wood pulp into essential products, the forest has provided livelihoods for generations. The gentle, rolling hills and abundant rainfall create the perfect conditions for these pines to thrive, ensuring a steady supply of timber. While healthcare and other industries have diversified the economy, the legacy of the timber industry remains deeply embedded in Lufkin. You can see it in the names of local businesses, hear it in the stories passed down through families, and smell it in the air, especially after a fresh rain. It’s a connection to the land and a heritage of hard work that still resonates in this East Texas town.

Lufkin, TX RoadyGoat

Lufkin sits nestled in the Piney Woods of East Texas, a landscape sculpted by time and ancient seas. The gentle, rolling hills, rising just over 300 feet, are a testament to the region's geological past – remnants of coastal plains that once stretched much further inland. Beneath the surface lies a foundation of sedimentary rock, a silent record of the epochs when this land was submerged. The dominant trees, loblolly pines, thrive in the sandy, acidic soil, their towering presence defining the horizon. This land, so abundantly forested, has shaped Lufkin’s identity. The timber industry has long been a cornerstone of the local economy, just as healthcare and manufacturing are today. The people here have a deep connection to the woods, a resource that has sustained generations. Maybe that's why there's a certain groundedness to the town, a quiet resilience that echoes the strength of those towering pines. And while the world changes, with Houston Astros winning the World Series and Brookshire Brothers expanding beyond the county line, the spirit of Lufkin remains rooted in this East Texas soil.

Lufkin Daily News

1907

THE FIRST NOTICE FOUND OF THE DAILY NEWSPAPER IN LUFKIN IS IN THE FEB. 14, 1907 NACOGDOCHES SENTINEL: “LUFKIN HAS AN AFTERNOON DAILY PAPER, THE NEWS. WHILE A COPY OF THE NEWSPAPER HAS NEVER REACHED THIS OFFICE, IT IS SAID TO BE A RIGHT NEWSY LITTLE SHEET.” CHARLES L. SCHLESS, OF CHICAGO, STARTED THE PAPER AND RAN IT ON HIS OWN FOR ITS FIRST TWO YEARS OF PRODUCTION BEFORE SELLING PART OF THE OWNERSHIP TO SHAREHOLDERS. THE PAPER WAS THEN SOLD TO GEORGE WATFORD IN 1913. THE NEWS WAS PUBLISHED TWICE WEEKLY UNTIL 1915 WHEN THEN-OWNERS WATFORD, BINION, AND KURTH PURCHASED A MERGENTHALER LINOTYPE MACHINE. THE NEW MACHINE SPED UP THE PRODUCTION PROCESS BY MECHANIZING TYPESETTING AND THE NEWSPAPER HAS PUBLISHED DAILY EVER SINCE. OWNERS OF THE LUFKIN DAILY NEWS HAVE PRIORITIZED A COMMITMENT TO INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY, WHICH HAS ALLOWED THE NEWS TO BREAK PUBLISHING RECORDS AND PLAY A SUPPORTING ROLE IN LOCAL INDUSTRY. ON JANUARY 14, 1940, THE NEWS PUBLISHED A RECORD-SETTING 288-PAGE EDITION TO MARK THE COMPLETION OF SOUTHLAND PAPER MILLS INC. IT WAS PRINTED ON THE MILL’S FIRST 1,445-POUND ROLL OF WHITE PAPER FROM THE FIRST RUN OF COMMERCIALLY PRODUCED SOUTHERN PINE NEWSPRINT IN THE WORLD. IN 1959, THE NEWS MOVED TO ITS CURRENT FACILITY THAT IS A SHORT WALK FROM ITS ORIGINAL LOCATION ON COTTON SQUARE. THE NEWS MADE ANOTHER FIRST FOR THE AREA WHEN IT COMPUTERIZED ITS PRODUCTION PROCESS IN 1974. THE LUFKIN DAILY NEWS RECEIVED THE PULITZER PRIZE IN JOURNALISM FOR COMMUNITY SERVICE IN 1977. FOR MORE THAN A HUNDRED YEARS, THE NEWS HAS PROVIDED RESIDENTS OF LUFKIN AND THE SURROUNDING AREA WITH NEWS OF LOCAL INTEREST AND HAS UPHELD ITS POSITION AS AN IMPORTANT RESOURCE TO THE COMMUNITY. 175 YEARS OF TEXAS INDEPENDENCE * 1836-2011

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Wilson, Charles Nesbitt [Charlie]

1979

Charles Nesbitt (Charlie) Wilson, Texas state representative, Texas state senator, and United States representative, was born on June 1, 1933, in Trinity, Texas. He was the son of Charles Edwin Wilson and Wilmuth (Nesbitt) Wilson. He attended local schools and graduated from Trinity High School in 1951. While a student at Sam Houston State Teachers College (now Sam Houston State University), he received an appointment to the United States Naval Academy and graduated from the Academy in 1956. Wilson recalled that he first became interested in politics when his dog died in 1946. A neighbor, who happened to be a local elected official, was upset that Wilson's dog had apparently soiled his garden and had put finely-grained glass into the dog's food to kill it. Wilson, in an act of revenge, doused his neighbor's yard in gasoline and set it on fire. Wilson then borrowed his family's car, drove voters to the polls, and told them that while he didn't want to tell them how to vote, they should know that this particular local official had killed his dog. The man who killed Wilson's dog lost the election. Wilson confronted the man and suggested that he shouldn't be harming anyone else's dogs. While in the United States Navy from 1956 to 1960, Wilson served on a destroyer and later as a staff officer at the Pentagon. He achieved the rank of lieutenant. It was during his Pentagon service that Wilson volunteered for the presidential campaign of John F. Kennedy and decided himself to seek elected office as a Democrat to the Texas House of Representatives from his East Texas district. His family and friends campaigned hard for Wilson, who won the election and took office in 1961. As a state representative, Wilson was the sponsor of the original 2 percent sales tax. Wilson was elected to the Texas Senate in 1966 and served until 1972, when he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from the Second Congressional District, which was centered around Lufkin and much of East Texas. Wilson was often called "Good Time Charlie." Divorced for much of his political career, he enjoyed the company of attractive women and was known to enjoy his share of alcohol. He was also at one time investigated for cocaine use by then United States Attorney Rudy Giuliani, later the mayor of New York City. Yet he won a spot on the powerful House Committee on Appropriations and hired a staff that earned respect for attention to constituent issues with Social Security, Veterans Administration benefits, and other federal government services. His local accomplishments included the establishment of the Big Thicket Preserve and a United States Veterans Administration clinic in Lufkin, which today bears his name. On a larger scale, Wilson is best remembered for his leadership in securing funding and support for the resistance to the Soviet Union invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. Working with CIA agent Gust Avrakatos, Houston socialite Joanne Herring, his congressional colleagues, and the Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush presidential administrations, Wilson secured U.S. government funding for supplies and weapons used to fight the Soviet Army. The efforts were successful, and the Soviet Army withdrew from Afghanistan in 1989. Wilson's work on this issue was chronicled by CBS News on its 60 Minutes program. The CBS News producer of that story, George Crile, conducted further research on the story with Wilson's support, and wrote a book, Charlie Wilson's War . The book was the basis for a 2007 movie of the same name. The actor Tom Hanks portrayed Wilson. In a television interview, Wilson said he loved the movie and thought it was loyal to Crile's book. However, a friend and former colleague said the book and movie did Wilson a disservice by unfairly characterizing Wilson as a playboy. Wilson retired from Congress in October 1996 and became a lobbyist for Pakistan before retiring to Lufkin. He donated his congressional papers to Stephen F. Austin State University. In 199

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Wilson, Mary Louise Roberts

1944

Mary Louise Roberts Wilson, U. S. Army nurse and first woman to receive the Silver Star, was born on September 18, 1914, in Hollyridge, Louisiana. The daughter of Charles Maury Roberts and Mary Lee (McCommon) Roberts, she was the eldest of six children and grew up mostly in East Texas after her family moved there when she was very young. She attended Lufkin High School in Lufkin, Texas, and graduated in 1930, the same year her father died. Her mother moved their family to Mississippi to be closer to relatives, and, in order to support them, Mary went to work in a local laundry. The owners dismissed her when they discovered that she was only sixteen years old, but fortunately her mother was able to take the job in her place. In 1932 she decided to go to nursing school. She attributed her choice to the fact that nursing was one of the few job choices for women at that time, and she needed money to help her family. The Hillman Hospital School of Nursing in Birmingham, Alabama, was a three-year nursing program she was able to pay for with a Kiwanis Club loan. After she graduated in 1935, she worked in several hospitals across the South. The 1940 census recorded her as a nurse working at Valley View Hospital in Chickasaw, Oklahoma. She soon went to work for Dallas's Methodist Hospital and was eventually named operating room supervisor. She sent money back to her family and ultimately invited them to move to Dallas, where all members lived with her in a small apartment. With the U.S. entry into World War II , Mary Louise Roberts volunteered for service and was assigned to the U.S. Army Fifty-sixth Evacuation Hospital , which had been activated on March 29, 1942. She later commented, "I thought it was my patriotic duty to do it." Commissioned a second lieutenant on May 19, 1942, she trained at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio and was named operating room supervisor. She served overseas from April 15, 1943, to October 4, 1945. The Fifty-sixth Evacuation Hospital initially landed at Casablanca, Morocco, and followed the Thirty-sixth, Eighty-eighth, and Ninetieth Infantry divisions, Fifth Army, through North Africa and then Italy. She was promoted to first lieutenant on November 5, 1943. Roberts landed in Anzio after the Allied invasion there began on January 22, 1944. She later recalled that patients were brought in "straight from the battlefield," and medical teams worked in twelve-hour shifts. Chief nurse and operating room supervisor, Roberts became known as the "Angel of Anzio." When asked if she and her fifty nurses wanted to be evacuated, she declined. On February 10, 1944, German shrapnel tore into the operating tent where she was in charge. Through approximately thirty minutes of constant shelling, Roberts calmly continued their surgeries and encouraged other medical staff. For her bravery under fire, along with two other nurses, Second Lt. Rita Virginia Rourke and Second Lt. Elaine Arletta Roe, First Lt. Mary Roberts received the Silver Star in a brief field ceremony on February 22, 1944. Because she had seniority rank, she was designated first and thus became the first woman to receive the Silver Star, but in her humility, she later stated, "Everybody in our group deserved the medal." Another Fifty-sixth Evacuation Hospital nurse, Second Lt. Ellen Ainsworth, who was killed in the shelling, was posthumously given the Silver Star. After combat at Anzio was over, her unit followed the Fifth Army north through Italy and provided medical support. She was in Bologna when the announcement came that the war in Europe had been won by the Allies. During the course of her twenty-nine months stationed with the Fifty-sixth Army Evacuation Hospital, Roberts nursed more than 73,000 wounded soldiers. She also received an EAME (European-African-Middle Eastern) Campaign Ribbon with Four Bronze Service Stars for her work in North Africa. She was promoted to captain on December 29, 1945, and was honorably discharged from active duty on January 18

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Birthplace of Allan Shivers

1907

Born here, in now-razed house, Oct. 5, 1907, to Robert A. and Easter C. Shivers, pioneer East Texas family. As youth, worked at odd jobs to earn own pocket money. Was State Senator 12 years; Lieutenant Governor for two. A strong, progressive Governor, his term (longest in state history) was marked by reforms in state hospitals and special schools, prison and highway improvement, protection of natural resources and historic sites, and creation of agencies on alcoholism and for higher education. In private life, one of Texas' outstanding business leaders. (1971)

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Vicente Micheli

1770

Italian-born Vicente Micheli (c.1755-1848) came to North America around 1770 via New Orleans and moved to the Spanish territory of Texas by 1793. He settled first in Nacogdoches and later received a grant of land near this site. His grant was the first patented by the Spanish Crown in what became Angelina County. In an unusual business deal, he acquired more than 24,000 acres from a member of the Bidais Tribe in exchange for several items, including a blue petticoat, a white shirt, eight brass bracelets, a handful of vermillion and a “fathom” of red ribbon. Between 1798 and 1812, Micheli worked as a merchant for Barr & Davenport, a trading firm authorized by the Spanish Crown, doing business with Native Americans. Prior to 1806, he moved to Bexár, present-day San Antonio, while continuing his business dealings in Nacogdoches. Micheli complied with orders in 1806 to move to Santísima Trinidad de Salcedo, a newly-established Spanish settlement on the Trinity River. Six years later, he fled to Louisiana because of the Magee-Gutiérrez Insurrection, a failed rebellion against Spanish rule in Mexico. Receiving a royal pardon, Micheli was one of only two individuals who returned to Texas. In 1815, Micheli purchased additional land in the La Villita district of San Antonio. He continued to work as a businessman, referring to himself as “the merchant of Venice.” In his later years, he was an astute speculator, indian trader and merchant with landholdings in at least nine modern-day Texas counties. Dying in San Antonio at the age of ninety-three, Micheli left a profound legacy of pioneer business development prior to the Texas Tevolution of the 1830s.

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Kurth, Ernest Lynn

1940

Ernest Kurth, East Texas lumberman, was the second of five sons of Hattie Martin Glenn and Joseph Hubert Kurth, Sr. He was born at Kurth Station in Polk County on July 25, 1885, and attended local schools and Southwestern University, from which he graduated in 1905. He then joined the family business, the Angelina County Lumber Company . Working in various capacities to learn all phases of the business, he served as clerk, bookkeeper, sales manager, and then as general manager of the corporation. Upon his father's death on 1930 he advanced to vice president and took over the direction of the company when Eli Wiener retired in 1936. He married Isla Kinsolving of Corsicana, and the couple had two children. Kurth took a well-established but modest company and expanded it into a great complex of enterprises. He acquired additional timberlands in neighboring counties and constructed new mills at choice locations in East Texas and Louisiana. He supported the Texas Forestry Association and favored the establishment of the Texas State Department of Forestry (now the Texas Forest Service ). Under his direction the company experimented with direct seeding to reforest its cut-over lands in 1925, scattering some 100 pounds of longleaf pine seed. In 1929 Kurth served as president of the Texas Forestry Association, and he was president of the Southern Pine Association from 1935 to 1937. During the New Deal Kurth joined National Recovery Administration efforts to promote business recovery and conservation. He served on the lumber-code authority for the southern pine industry and tried, without success, to bring some order out of the chaos in the lumber industry . Like most southern lumber entrepreneurs, he welcomed the demise of the NRA and the lumber codes in 1935. While many companies closed their mills during the Great Depression , Kurth took the lead in planning for the future; the company continued operations, and Kurth followed state forest-service recommendations to develop selective cutting and sustained-yield programs. In 1937 the company employed Paul Hursey, the first graduate industrial forester in the state of Texas, as company forester. Kurth's greatest business venture was his decision to manufacture quality newsprint from southern yellow pine, a process that had never been attempted commercially. He brought together fellow lumbermen, publishers, and other paper users to organize the Southland Paper Company, the first factory to use the laboratory process developed by Georgia chemist Charles H. Herty. The newsprint mill, located near Lufkin, began operation in 1940 and soon grew into a multimillion-dollar corporation. The original mill expanded and additional paper mills sprang up in Texas and other parts of the South. Eventually as much southern pine timber went into wood pulp for paper products as into saw logs. As a result of the success of the "Herty gamble" the press hailed Kurth as a leading industrial statesman, and many organizations heaped honors upon him. One governor addressed him as "Mr. East Texas." Kurth was an aggressive business leader who dominated the southern lumber industry during the decades before and after World War II . Like his father, he was active in a variety of civic affairs and philanthropies. He served as Southwestern University trustee, president of local and regional chambers of commerce, Texas Planning Board member, and Lufkin hospital and radiation center founder; he was awarded the Order of the Aztec Eagle by the Mexican government. He died on October 26, 1960, and was buried in Lufkin. His son, Ernest L. Kurth, Jr., then served as president of Angelina County Lumber Company until 1966, when Owens-Illinois Corporation bought the company and its supporting land and timber base.

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Things to Do in Lufkin

historical 18.8 mi away
Battle of Nacogdoches 1832

On August 2 1832 a group of East Texas settlers had finally had enough of Mexican military rule. They grabbed their hunting shotguns and squirrel rifles and…
historical 18.9 mi away
Sam Houstons Cherokee Betrayal

In 1836 Sam Houston sat down with Cherokee Chief Bowles right here in Nacogdoches and signed a treaty promising the tribe a permanent homeland in East Texas.…
historical 20.0 mi away
The Republic of Fredonia

In the winter of 1826 an empresario named Haden Edwards got into a land dispute with the Mexican government and decided the reasonable response was revolution.…
historical 17.9 mi away
Texas Oldest Town - Founded 1779

Long before Austin or San Antonio were anything more than frontier outposts the Caddo people had been living on the red hills of East Texas for nearly a…
historical 18.8 mi away
First Texas Oil Well

Everyone knows the story of Spindletop — the 1901 gusher near Beaumont that launched the Texas oil boom. But thirty-five years before that famous blowout a man…
historical 18.8 mi away
Adolphus Sterne - Revolution Spy

Adolphus Sterne ran a respectable mercantile shop in Nacogdoches but behind the bolts of cloth and barrels of flour he was running one of the Texas Revolutions…
historical 18.9 mi away
The Old Stone Fort

Built in 1779 as a simple trading post the Old Stone Fort in Nacogdoches became the most politically fought-over building in Texas. It served as rebel…
historical 18.8 mi away
City of Nine Flags

Most Texans know the six flags that flew over their state but Nacogdoches raises that number to nine. Beyond the familiar six this town also flew the banner of…
day trip
Day Trip to Lufkin 🛶(FULL EPISODE) S5 E8

Featured on The Daytripper — a full-episode local travel guide.

Sports in Lufkin

⭐ HOMETOWN LEGENDS Class 5A · Football

Lufkin Panthers — Lufkin — a college & pro athletic pipeline

3 alumni who reached major-college or pro sports

Lufkin High School, a Class 5A powerhouse, has a proud tradition of developing athletes who excel beyond high school. The Panthers have sent numerous talented individuals on to compete at major collegiate programs and in professional sports. This consistent pipeline of talent reflects the dedication of both the student-athletes and the Lufkin coaching staff, fostering an environment where athletic potential can be realized at the highest levels.

Among Lufkin's notable alumni are several names familiar to football fans. Dez Bryant went on to play as a wide receiver for Oklahoma State University and later for the Dallas Cowboys. Keke Coutee, another wide receiver, played for Texas Tech University and is currently with the Houston Texans. Reggie McNeal, a former Texas A&M University quarterback, also played wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals and spent time as both a wide receiver and quarterback in the Canadian Football League.

Pro/D1 alumni
3
Class
5A
Founded
1905
Key Players
  • Dez Bryant — former Oklahoma State University football player; former Dallas Cowboys Wide receiver
  • Keke Coutee — former Texas Tech University football player; current Houston Texans wide receiver
  • Reggie McNeal — former Texas A&M University quarterback; former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver; former C
The moment

Reggie McNeal played as a wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Sources: Wikipedia · SI High School (ScoreBook Live)

Everything Near Lufkin

318 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.

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