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Rusk, Texas

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Songs About Rusk

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Artists From Rusk

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Johnny Horton
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Rivers & Roads in Song near Rusk

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

Angelina River 4 songs Neches River 2 songs U.S. Route 59 9 songs Trinity River 11 songs Kickapoo Creek 4 songs Interstate 20 13 songs

History of Rusk

The Railroad Built by Prisoners RoadyGoat

Right here in Rusk, you can find the southern depot of a railroad with an incredible origin story. This isn't just any old train track; it's the Texas State Railroad, and it was built by prisoners. In the late 1800s, the state operated an iron smelter at the Rusk Penitentiary, but they needed a way to haul raw materials and finished products. So, starting in 1896, they put the inmates to work building a railroad, the first five miles running west out of North Rusk. It was a grueling task, carving a path through the rolling hills of the Piney Woods. By 1909 the line ran about twenty-two and a half miles to connect with the major roads at Palestine. For decades, it served the prison system. But when the state moved to give it up in the 1970s, locals fought to save it, and on the Fourth of July, 1976, it reopened as a state historical park. Since 2007 a state railroad authority and private operators have kept the trains running—one of the most celebrated heritage railways in the country, a living monument to a strange chapter of Texas industrial history.

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The Iron Queen Who Became a Ghost RoadyGoat

Just two miles southeast of Rusk lies the ghost of a city built on dreams of industrial glory. Starting in 1887, a sewing-machine salesman named Anderson Blevins and a crowd of investors laid out a town called New Birmingham, hyping it as the 'Iron Queen of the Southwest.' They saw the rich iron ore in these hills and envisioned a new Pittsburgh. Money poured in. They raised two fifty-ton blast furnaces—the Tassie Belle and the Star and Crescent—plus a pipe works, a brick kiln, an ice plant, an electric plant, a street railway, and the three-story Southern Hotel, grand enough to put up President Grover Cleveland and Governor Jim Hogg. For a few years it boomed past three thousand people. But the dream was flawed. A million-dollar British investment was blocked by the state's Alien Land Law, one of the key backers was murdered, and then the Panic of 1893 killed the market for pig iron while an explosion wrecked the Tassie Belle. The furnaces went cold and the Iron Queen died. Today, almost nothing is left but a few foundations, some street outlines in the woods, and a historical marker.

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Luck, TX RoadyGoat

Luck, Texas, isn’t on most maps, but those who know the Hill Country know the place. It's not a town, really. More like a feeling, a memory etched into the landscape. This area, west of Austin, was always ranch land. Hardscrabble, beautiful, unforgiving. Spanish explorers passed through centuries ago, leaving their mark on the land grants and the names – Blanco, Pedernales. Later, German immigrants arrived, bringing their music, their beer, and their stubborn determination to make a life here. They built Fredericksburg, a few miles west, and their influence trickled eastward, shaping the culture of the surrounding ranches. Luck wasn't built on cotton or cattle empires, but on something more fragile: artistic freedom. Willie Nelson, drawn to the area's rugged beauty and isolation, built his Western town movie set here in the 1980s. It hosted film shoots, concerts, and a whole lot of good times. It became a haven for musicians and artists, a place where the spirit of the Old West met the counter-culture. The structures stand today, weathered and worn, a testament to a different kind of boom – a cultural one. It's a reminder that sometimes, the most valuable things aren't measured in dollars, but in the stories told and the songs sung under a Texas sky.

Durham, Joseph Idelbert

1927

Joseph Idelbert Durham, known as A. D. Lloyd, "geologist" for the oil well Daisy Bradford No. 3., the discovery well for the East Texas oilfield , was probably born in 1854. He left studying medicine and clerking in a drugstore in Cincinnati to take a job as a chemist in the Idaho gold rush, where he analyzed ore for the government. Through work in the field and self-study, mostly from books from the United States Bureau of Mines, he became a mining engineer. After that he went to the Yukon and Mexico to hunt for gold. Then he peddled medicines he had made from oil and patented, in "Dr. Alonzo Durham's Great Medicine Show," which he took around the country. Around 1906 he appeared as A. D. Lloyd, a geologist who advised Columbus Marion Joiner on locations to drill in Oklahoma. The location Lloyd advised Joiner to drill later became the Seminole and Cement fields in Oklahoma-the oil was deeper than Joiner could afford to go. In 1927 Joiner and Durham moved to Rusk County to join Walter and Leota Tucker, who planned for them to find an oil well. Durham spent considerable time studying the Rusk County area. He mapped it out and on June 15, 1927, prepared a report, "Geological, Topographical and Petroliferous Survey, Portion of Rusk County, Texas, Made for C. M. Joiner by A. D. Lloyd, Geologist And Petroleum Engineer." The report described in scientific terms all the geologic features that supported the conclusion that oil would be found. It suggested that major companies had been buying in the area. It estimated the depth at which oil would be struck (3,500 feet). But nothing in the promotional study was true. None of the structures Durham described existed, and no companies were buying in the area. As it turned out, however, Durham's assertion that the field would be "of unusual importance" was true, and Daisy Bradford No. 3 did come in at 3,500 feet. Durham had tried to get Joiner to drill two miles to the west, which would have put the well in the thickest part of the area that became the great East Texas oilfield. Durham confessed to a few that he wasn't a geologist, "in that I didn't study prescribed courses in a recognized school to acquire a degree in geology. But I've studied the earth more, and know more about it, than any professional geologist now alive will ever know." Durham and two of his sons "spudded in" a well of their own with the accompaniment of a brass band for about 1,000 witnesses. But Durham soon disappeared. Apparently his picture in the papers had brought a number of women with children who were looking for him. In 1934, he and a partner, Jimmy Cox, were convincted of mail fraud in the U.S. Western District Court of Western Texas and received sentences of three and five years in federal prison. He died in a hotel in Chicago in 1941.

Tsha Handbook →

Texas State Railroad

1884

The Texas State Railroad originated as an industrial railway serving the iron foundry operated by the Texas prison system on the penitentiary grounds near Rusk. In 1896 the first five miles of track were built west from North Rusk to haul wood and iron ore to the smelter known as the "Old Alcalde" that had been built by the state of Texas in 1884. In 1903 the prison smelter was expanded, and the railroad was extended five miles to the community of Maydelle. Governor Thomas M. Campbell conceived the idea that it would be profitable for the railroad to become a common carrier, and on April 5, 1907, the legislature approved his request to operate the railroad as a common carrier and to extend the line from Maydelle to Palestine. Regular service began on June 6, 1907, and the line to Palestine was put in service on April 15, 1909. The 22½-mile extension cost the state approximately $530,383. This gave the line a connection with the International and Great Northern Railway Company at Palestine, as well as a connection with the St. Louis Southwestern Railway Company of Texas and the Texas and New Orleans Railroad Company at Rusk. There were depots at Rusk, Palestine, and Maydelle, and the general business office, while initially at Rusk, was later moved to Palestine. Although the railroad was never chartered, it was officially named the Texas State Railroad. When opened it was controlled by the governor and the Prison Commission of the state of Texas. Convict labor was used to build the extension to Palestine just as it had been used to build the earlier sections between Rusk and Maydelle. Reformers complained about the mortality rates and working conditions that accompanied the construction of the road, describing it as "stained with the blood of some helpless convict man or boy lashed cruelly by a savage prison guard or sergeant." Although the prison foundry was closed in 1913, the railroad continued to be marginally profitable as the connecting railroads allowed liberal provisions on through rates. In 1916 the road owned two locomotives, thirty-seven freight cars, and two passenger cars. Earnings that year included $3,656 in passenger revenue, $24,024 in freight revenue, and $1,149 in other revenue. However, by 1921 the railroad had run up a deficit of $366,902, and the line was facing abandonment. State Senator I. D. Fairchild convinced the legislature to have a committee of professional railroad men examine the property to determine if it could be operated profitably. Based on the committee's report, the legislature appropriated $150,000 to rehabilitate the railroad and appointed a board of governors to oversee the operation. On November 25, 1921, the Texas State was leased to the Texas and New Orleans. Traffic consisted primarily of forest products and, until the Great Depression , such farm products as tomatoes. The Texas and New Orleans also briefly operated Pullman service over the line from Dallas, as well as through cars from points in East Texas which connected with International-Great Northern trains at Palestine bound for St. Louis. In 1962 the Southern Pacific, as successor to the Texas and New Orleans, declined to renew the lease of the Texas State. By that time the only major industries on the line were a bulk feed plant at Rusk and the Vernon Calhoun Packing Plant near Palestine, as well as some pulpwood loading. The railroad was then leased to the Texas South-Eastern Railroad Company between November 1, 1962, and December 31, 1969. After the Texas South-Eastern lease expired, the few miles from Palestine to the packing plant were leased to the Missouri Pacific Railroad Company. In early 1970 a tourist train known as the Cherokee and Southwestern Tourist Railroad Corporation attempted to operate a few miles out of Rusk. However, the operator was unable to overcome several serious problems and ran only a few trips. Once again the future of the Texas State looked bleak. In 1972 the Sixty-first Texas Legislatur

Tsha Handbook →

Merritt, Susan

1865

Susan "Susie" Merritt, freedwoman, domestic worker, and WPA Slave Narrative interviewee, was born in Rusk County, Texas. Her father, Hob Rollins, was from North Carolina and was enslaved to Dave Blakely. Her mother, Nancy Rollins, came from Mississippi and, including Susan, bore eleven children-four of whom died before reaching maturity. Susan's siblings, Albert, Hob Jr., John, Emma, Mariah Anna, and Lula, all lived to adulthood. Susan was born enslaved to Andrew Watt of Rusk County. Her interview was one of more than 300 chronicled in the late 1930s by the Texas Writers' Project as part of the larger Federal Writers' Project under the Work Projects Administration (WPA). In it she shared memories of living conditions, family, division of labor, daily life, religion, violence, intimidation, and emancipation. Susan Merritt remembered Watt living in a big log house while her family and other slaves lived in small log huts gathered together in his fields. They had handmade beds fastened to the wall with mattresses made of baling sacks and were called out to work each morning by the ringing of a bell. They were required to work the land from dawn to dusk, and after dusk they attended to the toting of water, washing of clothes, cooking, and eating. Merritt remembered the children having corn pone and milk while the adults would have "fat pork and greens and beans" most nights. On Sundays Watt would give them flour, butter, and a chicken. Watt did not have an overseer, but he did have a driver who, as Merritt recalled, was "[just] as bad." He carried a whip around his neck, and, if he determined that a slave was out of line or being lazy, he would tie them to a tree and "cowhide" them until they were bloody. Merritt explained that "slothful" women were disciplined by being forced to dig a shallow hole and lie face down in it as the driver beat them "nearly to death." Sometimes he would make slaves drag long chains throughout the day while they worked in the fields. Merritt spoke of her owner being nice to her but likened his wife, Jane Watt, to "the devil." Merritt often worked in the Watt home and was subjected to violence at the hands of Jane Watt. She was targeted, she said, because she was directly owned by Andrew Watt rather than his wife (who owned her own slaves). Merritt recalled that, on many occasions, she was tied to a stump outside and whipped until Jane exhausted herself. Jane would then go rest before returning and resuming the punishment. On one occasion, chickens got into the fire around a cooking pot, and Jane accused Susan of allowing it to happen. Her mistress made her walk over the hot coals several times as punishment. Merritt said that one of Watt's daughters liked her and tried to teach her to read and write until Mrs. Watt caught them. She hit Susan over the head with the butt of a whip and stated that slaves "don't need to know anything." Merritt remembered being given a pass on various occasions by Watts to go to George Petro's and Dick Gregg's farms. She recalled Petro's slave auctions; there was a tall scaffold on which he made slaves disrobe to the waist to show off their strength for potential buyers. There were two doctors in the area, Drs. Dan and Gill Shaw, who attended very sick slaves. The slaves followed the folk medicine practice of wearing asafetida bags around their necks to ward off illnesses. Merritt recalled hearing about emancipation in September 1865. She said that a man rode up on a horse and told them they were free, but that Watts continued to make them work for several months. He promised them twenty acres and a mule, which they never received. Merritt recalled that the practice of continuing to hold freedmen in bondage was common in Rusk County and that many were killed seeking their freedom across the Sabine River. She remembered seeing many former slaves, having been shot trying to swim across the river, hanging from trees in the Sabine River bottom. Merritt (as quoted by the WPA) sa

Tsha Handbook →

Rusk Penitentiary Building

1875

The abundance of iron ore for use in manufacturing prompted a commission appointed by Gov. Richard Coke in 1875 to select this region for a state penitentiary. In 1877 this 19,000-acre tract was purchased form T. Y. T. Jamison and his wife. Contractors Kanmacher and Denig of Columbus, Ohio, built this structure the following year. The walls are of two-and-a-half foot thick sandstone. The administrative offices, a hospital, chapel, dining area, and cells were housed here. The prisoners helped construct the Texas State Railroad from Rusk to Palestine. They built the "Old Alcalde" iron ore smelting furnace adjacent to this structure. The furnace produced iron products for construction throughout the United States and for use in the erection of many state buildings. Convict labor was used in the area at contract prices. In 1917 the Texas Legislature changed the facility to a state hospital for the mentally ill. The building was renovated and ready for occupancy by 1919 and operated under the name of Rusk State Hospital. The Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation was designated as the governing body in 1963. This structure became the administrative center for the hospital. (1979)

Historical Marker →

Mountain Home

1851

Birthplace of James Stephen Hogg, son of Lucanda McMath Hogg and Joseph Lewis Hogg. Born March 24, 1851. Died March 3, 1906. First native Texan to serve as governor. Inspirer of the passage of the Railroad Commission Law, Stock and Bond Law, Alien Land Law.

Historical Marker →

Helena Dill Berryman

1804

Helena Dill Berryman (September 8, 1804 -- March 13, 1888) first Anglo child born in Texas, according to tradition. Grew up in Nacogdoches when it was ruled by Spain. Married Lt. Henry Berryman in 1823. They moved later to the estate she inherited in present Cherokee County. Built log home in 1847, named it "Forest Hill." There entertained many noted Texans. Took active part in county development. Had 5 children; 3 lived to adulthood. After death of husband, reared 30 orphans.

Historical Marker → · 3.5 mi away

Things to Do in Rusk

day trip
Day Trip to Rusk: 🌲 Rails, Ribs & Piney Woods! (FULL EPISODE)

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

Everything Near Rusk

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

  • Cherokee County C.S.A. · Historical Marker

    As you drive through Rusk, imagine this town as a vital hub for the Confederacy during the Civil War. Cherokee County wasn't just sending soldiers; it was building the war machine. Right here, a gun factory churned out…

  • Norman Law Firm · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a law firm that's been serving Texas for over a century. It all started in 1898 when Wyatt Norman and William Shook opened their doors right here on the Courthouse Square. The firm,…

  • Rusk · Historical Marker

    You're cruising through Rusk, a town founded way back in 1846 and named for the important Texas statesman Thomas J. Rusk. This spot served as a key industrial site and supply depot during the Civil War. Keep an eye out,…

  • Hatchett's Ferry Inn · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Hatchett's Ferry Inn. In 1847, Hubbard Hatchett built a cabin here, and by 1850, he was operating the Rusk Ferry on the Angelina River. The family added a second story to their home,…

  • Lowe's Chapel Cemetery · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, near Rusk, where settlers started arriving in the late 1840s. Local legend says this cemetery, Lowe's Chapel, began in the early 1850s when a child from a passing wagon train died…

  • Sardis Baptist Church · Historical Marker

    You're driving through the Sardis community, where Baptist settlers from South Carolina organized the Sardis Baptist Church in 1854. For decades, the church served as a community hub, even housing a school in its second…

  • Bachelor Girl's Library Club · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Rusk, where in 1902, fifteen young single women started a library club with fewer than fifty books. This group, believed to be the first public library in Cherokee County, eventually donated…

  • The Rusk Cherokeean · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of the Rusk Cherokeean newspaper, a publication that can trace its roots all the way back to the Cherokee Sentinel, first published in 1850. This paper has seen some notable figures pass…

  • Cherokee County Courthouse · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Cherokee County Courthouse, the fourth one built for the county. It was constructed in 1940 and 1941 with help from the Federal Works Progress Administration. Look for its distinctive moderne…

  • Cherokee County · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, a land first explored by the Spanish and home to Native American tribes. By the 1820s, the Cherokee Nation had migrated here, only to be expelled in 1839. After its formal…

  • First Presbyterian Church of Rusk · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Rusk, where the story of this town's Presbyterian church began way back in 1847 with just four members. Two congregations eventually joined forces in 1906, and by 1913, they'd built what became…

  • First United Methodist Church of Rusk · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past First United Methodist Church of Rusk. Organized in 1849, this congregation was first served by the Rev. Henderson D. Palmer (1812-1869). A circuit riding minister, Palmer received his license to…

Show all 200 nearby places
  • Durham, Joseph Idelbert · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Joseph Idelbert Durham, known as A. D. Lloyd, "geologist" for the oil well Daisy Bradford No. 3., the discovery well for the East Texas oilfield , was probably born in 1854. He left studying medicine and clerking in a…

  • Texas State Railroad · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    The Texas State Railroad originated as an industrial railway serving the iron foundry operated by the Texas prison system on the penitentiary grounds near Rusk. In 1896 the first five miles of track were built west from…

  • Merritt, Susan · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Susan "Susie" Merritt, freedwoman, domestic worker, and WPA Slave Narrative interviewee, was born in Rusk County, Texas. Her father, Hob Rollins, was from North Carolina and was enslaved to Dave Blakely. Her mother,…

  • Barker, James J. A. · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, not far from Rusk. Right here, in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1861</say-as>, James J.A. Barker, a lawyer who’d just set up practice in town, volunteered for the Confederate…

  • Hill, Maurice Cameron · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, and right here in Rusk, Texas, a guitar legend was born. Maurice Cameron Hill, who dropped his first name, grew up around music. By the time he was a teenager in the 1930s, he was…

  • Rusk Penitentiary · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, not far from Rusk, where the state once tried to strike it rich with iron. From 1883 to 1917, the Rusk Penitentiary wasn't just a prison, it was an industrial complex. Convicts mined…

  • Young, Charles Glidden · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, Texas, a place that saw major railroad development after the Civil War. Charles Glidden Young, a businessman who moved his operations from Louisiana to Texas in 1863, was a key…

  • Houston, Sam, Site of Speeches · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Rusk, Cherokee County, where you're passing the site of two important speeches by none other than Sam Houston. The first, in 1855, was a heated debate with politician Frank Bowden. Houston, a…

  • Union Hotel/Bracken House/Acme Hotel · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Union Hotel/Bracken House/Acme Hotel. The first hotel to occupy this site was the Union Hotel, a wood frame building erected in 1849. Renamed Bracken House for a subsequent owner, it continued to…

  • Rusk, TX · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Rusk, Texas, the county seat of Cherokee County. This town owes its existence to a legislative act back on April 11, 1846. The lawmakers wanted a new county seat, named in honor of General Thomas…

  • Barron, Samuel Benton · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Rusk, Texas, a town that sent off one of the very first Confederate volunteer companies in the state. Samuel Benton Barron was there, a lawyer who joined up in May of <say-as interpret-as="date"…

  • Bonner, Thomas Reuben · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, near Rusk, where Thomas Reuben Bonner got his start. He came here from Mississippi as a boy and by age twelve, he was already an apprentice printer. After farming and serving as a…

  • Cannon, Benjamin Bartlett · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, and right here is Rusk, where Benjamin Bartlett Cannon settled in 1847. He came to Texas from Tennessee with his family, seeking land and a better climate for his wife. Cannon…

  • Henry, J. Patrick · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what is now Cherokee County, Texas, a place that was home to J. Patrick Henry. He was a prosperous farmer and slaveholder, but when the Civil War broke out, he answered the call. On April 5, 1862,…

  • Jim Hogg Park · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving past Jim Hogg Park, just outside of Rusk. This 178-acre park in the piney woods holds a piece of Texas history. It includes land from the old Mountain Home Plantation, the very birthplace of Governor…

  • Long, John Benjamin · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, near Rusk, the hometown of John Benjamin Long. He was a man of many hats: newspaper publisher, Congressman, and even president of what is now Texas A&M University. Long served with…

  • Oppenheimer, Anton · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, near Rusk, where brothers Daniel and Anton Oppenheimer started their business journey in 1858. They began as small merchants, but when the Civil War ended, they moved to San Antonio…

  • Rusk Footbridge · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Rusk's historic footbridge, a vital link for folks east of the valley. First built in 1861 to help residents reach town during the rainy season, it was rebuilt in 1889 by the engineer…

  • Perkins, James I., The, Family Home · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the former home of a prominent Rusk legal and political family. Attorney James N. Thomas built the original one-story section before 1851. Later, in 1893, James I. Perkins, a district attorney,…

  • Anderson, James Monroe · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas right now, near Rusk, where James Monroe Anderson made his home. He was a lawyer and a legislator, but in 1861, he answered the call to defend the Confederacy. He enlisted as a private…

  • Boyd, Frank Douglas · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through North Texas, maybe near Fort Worth, where Dr. Frank Douglas Boyd spent much of his career. Born on Christmas Eve, 1867, in Rusk, Boyd became a renowned eye, ear, nose, and throat specialist. He…

  • Martin, D. B. · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, near Rusk, where D. B. Martin lived before and during the Civil War. He started as a merchant, but when the war broke out, he answered the call. Martin served the Confederacy in…

  • McCord, James Iley · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Rusk, Texas, the birthplace of James Iley McCord. Born in 1919, McCord became a prominent clergyman and educator. He taught theology at Austin Seminary before heading Princeton Theological…

  • Wynne, Richard M. · 0.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Rusk, Texas, a town that saw Richard M. Wynne grow up. He was a lieutenant in the Tenth Texas Regiment during the Civil War, fighting at battles like Murfreesboro and Nashville. He was wounded and…

  • First Baptist Church of Rusk · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of the First Baptist Church of Rusk. It was organized in 1853, with early services held in a shared Union Church building. The congregation eventually moved and built new sanctuaries over…

  • 16 acres bought in 2002 · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of the First Baptist Church of Rusk's new location. In 2002, the church purchased 16 acres here, built a new sanctuary, and moved in December of 2006.

  • First Baptist Church of Rusk · 0.2 mi · Historical Marker

    In 2002, First Baptist Church purchased 16 acres at this location, built a new sanctuary and moved in December 2006.

  • Confederate Gun Factory · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a Confederate gun factory, built right here in Rusk back in 1862. John L. Whitescarver and the Campbell brothers set up shop, but they ran into trouble getting parts to make rifles. So,…

  • Frazier, I. K., Home · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the former home of Dr. I. K. Frazier, a typical Texas house built in the 1850s. Dr. Frazier served in the 3rd Texas Cavalry during the Civil War. After the war, he bought this property and became a…

  • Gregg Family Home · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past one of the oldest homes still standing in Rusk, the Gregg Family Home, built way back between 1847 and 1848. Look for that classic dog-trot style, built with local pine. This house has seen a lot of…

  • Rusk Public School No. 2 for African Americans, Site of · 0.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Rusk, and just ahead is the site of Rusk Public School No. 2, a vital educational hub for the town's African American students. Around <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1895</say-as>, a small…

  • James Stephen Hogg and Cherokee County · 0.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Rusk area where James Stephen Hogg, the first Texas-born governor, began his campaign for office. Born right here in 1851, Hogg had already served as Attorney General. But it was on April 19,…

  • Confederate Training Camp · 0.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, not far from Rusk. This stretch of road was once the site of Camp Rusk, a Confederate training ground during the Civil War. Picture this: a bare field, but with water from Pryor…

  • Site of Rusk College · 0.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Rusk College. It started as the East Texas Baptist Institute in 1894, funded by the Cherokee Baptist Association on land donated by Georgiana Bonner. The campus grew to six buildings,…

  • Cedar Hill Cemetery · 0.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Cedar Hill Cemetery, established way back in 1847 as Rusk's city burial ground. It's named for the massive cedar trees shading the north side, and it’s the final resting place for many of Rusk's…

  • Bonner Bank Building, Old · 0.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Bonner Bank Building in Rusk. Built way back in 1865 by a cotton buyer from New Orleans, this place has seen some history. For a while, it housed the law office of S.A. Wilson, a key player in…

  • Rusk Penitentiary Building · 1.1 mi · Historical Marker

    The abundance of iron ore for use in manufacturing prompted a commission appointed by Gov. Richard Coke in 1875 to select this region for a state penitentiary. In 1877 this 19,000-acre tract was purchased form T. Y. T.…

  • The Railroad Built by Prisoners · 1.7 mi

    Right here in Rusk, you can find the southern depot of a railroad with an incredible origin story. This isn't just any old train track; it's the Texas State Railroad, and it was built by prisoners. In the late 1800s,…

  • The Iron Queen Who Became a Ghost · 1.7 mi

    Just two miles southeast of Rusk lies the ghost of a city built on dreams of industrial glory. Starting in 1887, a sewing-machine salesman named Anderson Blevins and a crowd of investors laid out a town called New…

  • Luck, TX · 1.7 mi

    Luck, Texas, isn’t on most maps, but those who know the Hill Country know the place. It's not a town, really. More like a feeling, a memory etched into the landscape. This area, west of Austin, was always ranch land.…

  • The Town of Two Governors · 1.7 mi

    As you look around the Rusk town square, consider the political weight this small East Texas town has thrown. Rusk has been home to three governors — and not all of them Texas governors. The first was James Stephen…

  • Rusk, TX · 1.7 mi

    Rusk is home to the longest wooden footbridge in the nation, dating back to around 1861. This historic landmark stands as a testament to the city's enduring heritage.

  • Sardis-Edgefield Cemetery · 1.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, passing the Sardis-Edgefield Cemetery. This resting place for early settlers began around 1857, possibly during a measles epidemic. The earliest marked burial here was Rebecca…

  • Mountain Home · 1.8 mi · Historical Marker

    Birthplace of James Stephen Hogg, son of Lucanda McMath Hogg and Joseph Lewis Hogg. Born March 24, 1851. Died March 3, 1906. First native Texan to serve as governor. Inspirer of the passage of the Railroad Commission…

  • C.S.A. Prisoner of War Compound · 2.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, and right here, this spot was a Confederate prisoner of war camp. It housed over 3,000 Union soldiers captured at the Battle of Mansfield, Louisiana, back on April 8th, 1864. This…

  • Tassie Belle and Star and Cresent Iron Ore Furnaces, Site of · 2.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of New Birmingham, a boom town that exploded in the late 1880s! Built around rich iron ore deposits, it boasted two massive furnaces: the 'Tassie Belle,' named for the founder's wife, and…

  • Texas State Railroad · 2.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the birthplace of the Texas State Railroad! Back in the late 1880s, prisoners built a short line from Rusk to timber stands, making charcoal for the prison's iron furnaces. This grew into the Texas…

  • Cook's Fort · 3.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Cook's Fort, named for early settler Joseph T. Cook. Back in the day, a military company under Captain Black built a fort right here. Now, here's the kicker: it was never attacked by…

  • Caddo Mounds State Historic Site · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County right now, near Alto, past a place that was once a major ceremonial center for the Caddo people. For centuries, between about 780 and 1260 AD, this was the heart of their world.…

  • Killough Massacre · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, not far from where Old Larissa used to be. It was October 5th, 1838, and the Killough family, who had just moved here from Alabama the year before, thought it was safe to harvest…

  • Nacogdoches-Neches Saline Road · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, and right here, you're tracing the path of the ancient Nacogdoches-Neches Saline Road. This wasn't just any trail; it was the lifeline for early settlers, winding from Caddo villages…

  • New Birmingham, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    New Birmingham, once called the "Iron Queen of the Southwest," was a short-lived industrial town near the junction of U.S. Highway 69 and Farm Road 343, two miles southeast of Rusk in central Cherokee County. It was…

  • Ragsdale, Paul Burdett · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Paul Burdett Ragsdale, known as "Rags," was an African-American Texas legislator from 1973 to 1987, civil rights activist, redistricting expert, and one of the first Black legislators elected to the Texas House of…

  • Cherokee County · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, a place named for the Native Americans who once called this land home. But by the late 1830s, tensions between the Cherokee and encroaching Anglo settlers reached a breaking…

  • Daniels, Julia Francis · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what was once Cherokee County, Texas, near the area where Julia Francis Daniels spent her childhood. Born into slavery in Georgia around 1850, her family was brought to Texas by their enslaver,…

  • Hasinai Indians · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, the heartland of the Hasinai people. The name 'Texas' itself comes from their greeting, 'Tejas,' meaning 'friend.' The Hasinai Confederacy was a sophisticated society, centered in the…

  • Hogg, Joseph Lewis · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, a region shaped by men like Joseph Lewis Hogg. Born in Georgia in 1806, he moved to Texas in 1839, quickly becoming a voice in the Republic's Congress and later the Texas Senate. He…

  • Parmer, Martin · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, and right here is a place connected to Martin Parmer, a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Parmer was a man of many roles – legislator, judge, and even a colonel in the…

  • Striker Town · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what is now Cherokee County, and right here, a Cherokee village called Striker Town once stood. It was established sometime after 1819, when Cherokee refugees began arriving in East Texas. This…

  • Taylor, James Rather · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, not far from where James Rather Taylor began his Civil War service. He was born in Alabama, but came here to attend Larissa College in Cherokee County. On February 15, 1862, he…

  • Craft, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Craft, formerly known as Independence, is on U.S. Highway 69 two miles south of Jacksonville in northern Cherokee County. The community was called Craft after a local post office was established in 1891 and named Craft…

  • Larissa, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Larissa is a rural community off Farm Road 855 twenty miles northwest of Rusk in northeastern Cherokee County. The area was first settled by Isaac Killough, his wife, and the families of his four sons and two daughters,…

  • Sweet Union, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Sweet Union, also known as Hogjaw, is a farming community on Farm Road 1247 near Larrison Creek and twenty-two miles south of Rusk in southern Cherokee County. It was founded in 1865 by freed slaves from the nearby…

  • Talladega, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Talladega was an early settlement off Farm Road 855 twenty miles northwest of Rusk in northeastern Cherokee County. The area was first settled by Isaac Killough, his wife, and the families of his four sons and two…

  • Cook's Fort · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, not far from Rusk. Right here, in late 1839 or early 1840, stood Cook's Fort. Named for landowner Joseph Thomas Cook, this primitive fort and stockade was built by a military…

  • Coupland, Andrew Jackson · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, Texas, right where Andrew Jackson Coupland made his mark. He wasn't just a Presbyterian minister and judge; he was a lieutenant colonel in the Eleventh Texas Infantry during the…

  • Engledow, William Gunn · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, near where William Gunn Engledow made his home. Engledow, a farmer and merchant, raised his family right here in Knoxville. But when the Civil War called, he answered. In 1862, he…

  • Forest Hill Plantation · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, just northeast of Alto. Right here, you're passing near the site of Forest Hill Plantation. Captain Henry and Helena Berryman settled here in 1847 on land Helena inherited.…

  • Chanceville, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Chanceville, also known as Ward's Store, was five miles northwest of Maydelle in west central Cherokee County. It was established in 1886 by James and Emma Ward, who opened a general merchandise store known as Ward's…

  • Fastrill, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Fastrill, on the Neches River twelve miles south of Rusk in western Cherokee County, was established in 1922 by the Southern Pine Lumber Company as a base for its logging operations in that county. The name Fastrill is…

  • Maydelle, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Maydelle, also known as Camp Wright, is at the junction of U.S. Highway 84 and Farm Road 2138, nine miles west of Rusk in west central Cherokee County. The area was first settled during the 1840s, but a town did not…

  • Egbert, Daniel · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through what was once Cherokee County, Texas, near the community of Taos. Right here, in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1861</say-as>, a grocer named Daniel Egbert enlisted as a private in the…

  • Guinn, James Washington · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, Texas, a place that was home to James Washington Guinn, a lawyer and state legislator. He arrived here in 1858, joining his brother in Rusk. Guinn went on to serve in the Texas…

  • Dialville, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Dialville is on Farm Road 347 six miles northwest of Rusk in central Cherokee County. The area, which was part of the Beverly Pool three-league grant, was first settled in the late 1840s, but a community did not grow up…

  • Forest, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Forest is on the Old Jim Hogg Highway, better known as Farm Road 1911, ten miles south of Alto in southeastern Cherokee County. The community was established when Wiley Thompson opened the first business—a store,…

  • Gent, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Gent (Ghent) was on Gent Mountain, nine miles northwest of Rusk in northwestern Cherokee County. The area was first settled in the late 1840s and early 1850s by pioneers from Alabama and Tennessee. A church and a…

  • Ironton, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Ironton is six miles southwest of Jacksonville in northwest Cherokee County. C. H. Martin, a Jacksonville immigration agent who named the town after the nearby ruins of the Chapel Hill Iron Manufacturing Plant, began…

  • Linwood, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Linwood is at the junction of State Highway 21 and Farm Road 241, twelve miles southeast of Rusk in southeastern Cherokee County. The area was first settled around 1832 by Joseph Durst and his wife, Delilah (Dill). A…

  • Mount Selman, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Mount Selman, also known as Selman, is at the junction of U.S. Highway 69 and Farm Road 177, twenty miles north of Rusk in northern Cherokee County. The community was established after the Kansas and Gulf Short Line…

  • New Emmaus, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    New Emmaus, also known as Emmaus, is on Farm Road 856 three miles north of U.S. Highway 79 in northeastern Cherokee County. It began in the mid-1800s on a pioneer road from Griffin in Cherokee County to New Salem in…

  • Ponta, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Ponta is north of Mud Creek and just east of State Highway 110 nine miles north of Rusk in Cherokee County. A village called Donaho was begun in 1901 on the H. Donaho survey but failed when the Texas and New Orleans…

  • Reese, TX (Cherokee County) · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Reese is on U.S. Highway 175 twenty miles northwest of Rusk in northwestern Cherokee County. The area was first settled around the time of the Civil War , but a community did not develop until a logging camp was…

  • Wildhurst, TX · 3.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Wildhurst was a logging community on Farm Road 1911 and the St. Louis and Southwestern Railway one mile north of Forest in southern Cherokee County. The settlement grew up around a lumber mill owned by Milton A. Smith,…

  • Helena Dill Berryman · 3.5 mi · Historical Marker

    Helena Dill Berryman (September 8, 1804 -- March 13, 1888) first Anglo child born in Texas, according to tradition. Grew up in Nacogdoches when it was ruled by Spain. Married Lt. Henry Berryman in 1823. They moved later…

  • Gallatin School · 3.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, past the site of the old Gallatin School. It started in 1910 as a three-room building, quickly expanded, and then burned down in 1917. A new brick building went up in 1918, later…

  • Little Bean's Cherokee Village · 4.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, near Rusk. It's the winter of 1819, and Chief John Bowles is leading about sixty Cherokee families from Arkansas into East Texas. Just about here, a leader named Little Bean…

  • Sheriff Bill Brunt Murder Site · 4.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site where Sheriff Bill Brunt met his end in 1939. A young sheriff at 26, Brunt had earned a reputation for honesty, cleaning up Alto before winning the county sheriff election. His downfall came…

  • Jones Cemetery · 4.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, near Rusk. This is the Jones Cemetery, established on land bought by John and Mary Jones when they arrived from Alabama in 1853. John was the first buried here in 1857, followed…

  • Site of Ferguson-Ford Mill · 4.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of the Ferguson-Ford Mill, a testament to Cherokee County's industrial past. James Ferguson built the first mill here in 1847. Later, Charles E. Ford bought it, modernized it, and by 1880,…

  • Dialville · 6.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, passing the site of Dialville. This town owes its start to Confederate veteran John J. Dial, who settled here in 1866. For years, it was just a farm. But in 1882, the railroad…

  • Gallatin, TX · 6.6 mi

    Gallatin's history began in the late 1840s with the first settlers, but it wasn't until 1902 that a community developed when the Texas and New Orleans Railroad was built through the area. The town was named Gallatin…

  • Tomato and Peach Country · 6.6 mi

    While you might see mostly pastures and pine trees around Gallatin today, this area was once at the heart of a fruit and vegetable empire. In the early 20th century, farmers discovered that the region's sandy,…

  • Henry Cemetery · 6.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Henry Cemetery, a final resting place with roots stretching back to the 1850s. It began in 1852 when Ezekiel Henry buried his 24-year-old daughter, Parolee, right here. Just a year later, Ezekiel…

  • Slover, George Washington · 6.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Dialville, and you're passing the birthplace of George Washington Slover. Born in Tennessee in 1816, Slover wasn't just a Baptist minister and carpenter – he's also said to have built the Atlanta…

  • Rocky Springs Missionary Baptist Church · 6.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Rocky Springs Missionary Baptist Church, organized in 1848 by settlers in the home of Thomas J. Lindsey. The first pastor was the Rev. George Washington Slover, who may have built the Atlanta Hotel…

  • Horton, Johnny · 7.0 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, and right here, you're near where country music legend Johnny Horton grew up. Born in California, he moved back and forth to East Texas with his family and graduated high school in…

  • Gallatin, TX · 7.0 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Gallatin, Texas, a community born from a railroad and a desire for a market. Back in the late 1840s, this area was settled, but it wasn't until 1902, when the Texas and New Orleans Railroad pushed…

  • Cherokee Furnace Co., C.S.A. · 7.9 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Alto, and right here is the site of the Cherokee Furnace Company, a vital part of the Confederacy's war effort. In 1864 and 1865, this furnace churned out crude kettles and plow tools, essential…

  • Elm Grove Common School · 8.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Elm Grove Common School. Elm Grove, a Freedmen's community, was part of the county school system by 1884, when 69 school districts were set up by the Commissioners Court. Classes were held in a local…

  • Ponta · 8.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Ponta, a town that sprang up along the railroad tracks back in 1901. It was first called Hubb, named for the county surveyor, but was soon renamed Ponta, a nod to the Latin word for 'bridge.' This…

  • Chief Bowles' Last Homesite · 8.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, near where Chief Bowles, a prominent Cherokee leader, made his last stand. In <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1836</say-as>, he negotiated a treaty for Cherokee lands in…

  • New Summerfield, TX · 8.7 mi · Local history

    New Summerfield sits nestled in the South Central Plains of East Texas, where rolling hills meet the western edge of the Piney Woods. The land here is a tapestry of sandy loam soils, nourished by the region's abundant…

  • Maydelle · 8.9 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Maydelle, a town born from the iron horse! Back in 1906, the Texas State Railroad pushed into this timber-rich area, building a railhead called Camp Wright to feed the Rusk penitentiary's…

  • Jarratt Cemetery · 9.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, near Jacksonville. In 1850, Devereux and Polly Ann Jarratt settled here. By 1858, their sons had set aside land for this cemetery, with the first burial being a transient worker…

  • Corinth Baptist Church · 9.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Corinth Baptist Church, organized in June of 1881 with just 12 members. The congregation built its first sanctuary around 1900, and the current building was constructed in 1950. The…

  • Lee, Isaac · 9.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Alto, and just ahead is the final resting place of Isaac Lee. Born in Georgia in 1788, Lee moved around before landing in Texas in 1828. He fought in the Battle of Nacogdoches in 1832 and served…

  • Shiloh Methodist Church and Cemetery · 9.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Alto, and if you look closely, you might spot the historic Shiloh Methodist Church and Cemetery. It all started in 1850 with a single burial, that of a child named James W. Rozelle, allowed by…

  • Union Grove Cemetery · 9.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Union Grove Cemetery, established in 1868. The first soul laid to rest here was Mary Ann Patton, wife of John F. Patton. John served as Jacksonville's postmaster and fought as a Confederate officer…

  • Town of Craft · 9.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Craft, Texas, a town that was once the tomato capital of the state. It started as Independence in the 1890s, but by 1891, it was renamed Craft to honor its first postmaster. By 1917, this area was…

  • Gent Village · 9.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, not far from Maydelle. Look around you – this was once Gent Village, settled in the 1850s by families seeking good farmland. They built stores, mills, and cotton gins, making it a…

  • Craft Baptist Church · 9.9 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Craft Baptist Church, organized in 1891. Originally called the Baptist Church of Christ at Shiloh, it was renamed several times before becoming Craft Baptist Church of Christ in 1899. The…

  • A Town in Two Counties · 10.2 mi

    As you drive down Main Street in Reklaw, you might not notice it, but you're straddling a border. The town has the unique distinction of being split almost perfectly down the middle by the county line. The west side of…

  • The Iron Spine of Reklaw · 10.2 mi

    The town of Reklaw is a direct result of a major 20th-century engineering project: the Texas and New Orleans Railroad. Building a rail line through the rolling Piney Woods wasn't as simple as just laying track. First,…

  • The Roar of the Past: The Reklaw Gas-Up · 10.2 mi

    If you time your visit right, you will find this quiet town on the Cherokee and Rusk county line hosting one of the odder gatherings in East Texas. Every October, airplanes come down into a grass strip at the Flying M…

  • Rusk Tramway · 10.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the former route of the Rusk Tramway, a quirky piece of Texas industrial history. Opened in 1875, this wasn't your typical railroad. Its pine rails warped easily, and it often moved slower than a…

  • Central High, TX · 10.2 mi · Local history

    Central High sits amid the rolling hills and pine forests of Cherokee County. Its story is etched in the land, a blend of cultures woven over generations. The original settlers, primarily of Scots-Irish and Anglo…

  • Pleasant Grove Missionary Baptist Church · 10.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Pleasant Grove Missionary Baptist Church, organized way back in 1854. It's one of Cherokee County's oldest Baptist churches, with the Rev. G. W. Slover serving as its first pastor. The…

  • Berryman Cemetery · 10.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Berryman Cemetery, a resting place with roots stretching back to the early days of Texas settlement. The land here was first petitioned for by James Dill in 1802, a man who would later become the…

  • Hill, Stella Salmon · 10.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Alto, and just ahead is a marker for Stella Salmon Hill. She arrived in Texas in 1908, coming all the way from Arkansas. Stella was a teacher, a leader in her community, and a devoted champion of…

  • Mitchell, Robert F. · 10.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Alto, Texas, founded on land once owned by Robert F. Mitchell. Mitchell, an Ohio native, arrived in Texas in 1837, eventually settling in Cherokee County in 1849. His land here, on the high ground…

  • Reklaw, TX · 10.7 mi

    Reklaw sits nestled within the South Central Plains of East Texas, a land sculpted by ancient geological forces into gently rolling hills. The landscape here is a tapestry of dense woodlands and open meadows, where the…

  • Walker's Chapel Cemetery · 10.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Walker's Chapel Cemetery, named for John Walker who settled here by 1839. The oldest marked grave dates to 1879, and the cemetery includes veterans from the Civil War onward. An association formed in…

  • Camp Alto, World War II Prisoner of War Camp · 10.9 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through East Texas, and just south of here, a small, temporary community housed German prisoners of war during World War II. Camp Alto, a branch of Camp Fannin, opened in the fall of 1944 with about 100…

  • Terrell Lodge No. 83 · 10.9 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Alto, where Terrell Lodge No. 83 has been a part of the community. Organized in 1851 and chartered in 1852, this Masonic body was named for George Whitfield Terrell, a prominent attorney general…

  • An Ancient City and a Modern Storm · 11.0 mi

    Just a few miles west of Alto on Highway 21 lies one of the most important archaeological sites in Texas: the Caddo Mounds. This was no simple village. Starting around 800 A.D., it was a major political and ceremonial…

  • Alto, TX · 11.0 mi

    Alto, Texas, a small town nestled in Cherokee County, has a surprising number of notable figures who once called its tree-lined streets home.

  • When the Tomato Was King · 11.0 mi

    In the 1920s and '30s, if you were eating a fresh tomato in Chicago or St. Louis, there's a good chance it rode north out of Cherokee County. This county was tomato country — around 15,000 acres planted, roughly 3,000…

  • Gaston, Matthew Alexander · 11.0 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, near Alto, where Dr. Matthew Gaston's life took a dramatic turn. He was a farmer and a doctor, but the Civil War called him to service. Gaston enlisted as a private in the Confederate…

  • Terrell, George Butler · 11.0 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, not far from Alto, where George Butler Terrell served as Texas Commissioner of Agriculture. For a decade, from 1921 to 1931, he led the state's farming efforts. He championed laws…

  • Reklaw, TX · 11.0 mi · Local history

    Reklaw sits nestled in the rolling hills of Rusk County, part of the South Central Plains, where sandy soil supports a mix of woodlands and pastures. Unlike some neighboring towns that boomed with the discovery of oil,…

  • Alto, TX · 11.0 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Alto, Texas, a town with a name that means 'high' in Spanish. And it's true, this spot sits at the highest elevation between the Angelina and Neches rivers. It was founded around 1849, originally…

  • Central High, TX · 11.0 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, not far from Alto, and right here is Central High. This community got its start in 1916 when three local schools decided to consolidate. They formed Central High Independent…

  • Smith, Frank A., United Methodist Church · 11.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Alto, where Methodists have worshipped since circuit riders first served them in 1845. The congregation organized in 1852, built its first church in 1887, and erected the current building in 1960,…

  • Mount Zion United Methodist Church and Cemetery · 11.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Alto, and this marker tells us about Mount Zion United Methodist Church. The congregation likely formed just before the Civil War, building their first sanctuary here in 1871. Land deeded to the…

  • Myrtle Springs Cemetery · 11.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Myrtle Springs Cemetery, a final resting place for folks from the old town of Lone Star and surrounding settlements. It began in the 1860s, serving homesteaders and a union church that lasted into…

  • Lynches Chapel United Methodist Church and Cemetery · 11.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Lynches Chapel, a Methodist congregation that's been a cornerstone of this rural community for over a century. Though services might have started earlier, the first records are from…

  • Benge Cemetery · 11.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Benge Cemetery, established in 1861 by George Clinton Benge on his property. His wife Nancy was the first to be buried here after her death that year. The cemetery remains a testament to this noted…

  • Cherokee County, TX · 11.5 mi

    On October 5, 1838, a tragic event occurred when Indians massacred members of the Isaac Killough family at their farm northwest of present-day Jacksonville. This incident led to the Cherokee War of 1839 and the…

  • Site of the Delaware Indian Village · 11.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, near Alto. Look around and imagine a village that played a crucial role in Texas peace talks. This was a site of the Delaware Indians. While often overlooked, these Delawares were…

  • Lacy's Fort · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Lacy's Fort, built before 1835 by Martin Lacy. He was an Indian agent for the Mexican government and used this place as a home and trading post. But it became more than just a business.…

  • Nelson, Helena Kimble Dill · 11.9 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the area where Helena Kimble Dill Nelson lived out her later years. Born in Maryland, Helena moved to Spanish Texas in 1793 with her husband, who became a trader and mayor in Nacogdoches. After his…

  • Box's Fort · 12.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Box's Fort. John M. and Sally Box, along with John's brother Stephen F. and his wife Keziah Box and their families, came to Texas from Alabama in 1834. John and Sally's son, Roland W.

  • Ellis P. Bean · 12.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the final resting place of Peter Ellis Bean, a man who lived a life stranger than fiction. Born in Tennessee, he first came to Texas with Philip Nolan's wild mustang hunters way back in 1800. He was…

  • Old Palestine Cemetery · 12.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Old Palestine Cemetery, established on land deeded to the Old Palestine Baptist Church in 1853. Helena Berryman added more land later, which included an existing schoolhouse and graveyard.…

  • Lone Star · 12.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're passing through the site of Lone Star, a Texas town that started life with a rather unusual name: Skin Tight! It was renamed Lone Star in 1883 when the post office opened. In its heyday, Lone Star was a hub for…

  • Old Palestine Baptist Church · 12.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Old Palestine Baptist Church. Organized in 1844 by Rev. Isaac Reed, it was first called Mount Olive. Members worshipped in homes until 1854, when a small church building was erected on…

  • In the Present County of Cherokee · 12.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through what used to be the home of the exalted grand xinesi, the chief priest and keeper of the sacred fire for the Hasinai Confederacy. If the sacred fire died out, it was his solemn duty to rekindle it…

  • Tennison, Dr.William Reuben · 12.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through east Cherokee County, near New Summerfield. Keep an eye out for the marker honoring Dr. William Reuben Tennison. Born in a log cabin right here in <say-as interpret-as="date"…

  • Mewshaw State Sawmill and Maydell CCC Camp · 12.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Maydelle, and just a few years ago, this area was booming with lumber production. From 1908 to 1912, the Mewshaw State Sawmill here churned out an incredible 35,000 board feet of lumber every…

  • McDonald Cemetery · 12.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through New Summerfield, and right here is the McDonald Cemetery. It began in the 1850s on the Johnson family homestead, with the earliest documented burials in 1856 for two young daughters. After…

  • Killough Massacre · 12.8 mi · Historical Marker

    On October 5, 1838, raiders attacked the homestead of the Killough family outside present-day Jacksonville in Cherokee County, killing eighteen men, women, and children. It was the largest and last major Native American…

  • Bean, Candice Midkiff · 12.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Linwood, and just ahead is the final resting place of Candice Midkiff Bean. Born near Nashville, Tennessee, in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1802</say-as>, she was the wife of Peter Ellis…

  • Selman-Roarke Cemetery · 12.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Cherokee County, passing the Selman-Roarke Cemetery. Surveyor William Roark settled here in 1834, and his mother and brother were buried in this graveyard around 1837. The site became known as…

  • Site of Fastrill · 13.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Fastrill, a company town built by the Southern Pine Lumber Company. Established in 1922, it housed 600 employees and their families, complete with a general store, barber shop, and even a…

  • Central Baptist Church of Jacksonville · 13.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Jacksonville's Central Baptist Church. It was organized in 1906 by 22 charter members, and a revival led by the famous preacher George W. Truett added 32 more just two weeks later. The…

  • New Summerfield, TX · 13.0 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Cherokee County, heading east of Jacksonville on Highway 79. Right here is New Summerfield. It all started in 1895 when Caley Amos Summers donated land for a school. Soon after, Isaac 'Ike' Tipton…

  • Holcomb Family Reunion · 13.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Alto, and right here is a spot where a Texas tradition has been going strong for over a century! Since 1897, the Holcomb family has gathered for their annual reunion at this very location. It all…

  • First Baptist Church of Jacksonville · 13.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Jacksonville's First Baptist Church. The congregation's roots go back to the town's founding in 1872, with deacons purchasing lots for a Baptist church in 1873. The church was officially…

  • Cold Springs School and Methodist Church · 13.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Cold Springs School and Methodist Church. In 1876, land here was set aside for both a church and a public school, which served as a focal point for this rural area. The school closed its…

  • Same fields, just a new name · 13.2 mi

    As you drive through New Summerfield, you're passing through a Texas town the railroad never made. All across this state, towns lived or died by whether the tracks came through. This one grew up as a plain farm-market…

  • Poindexter, Clarence Albert [Al Dexter] · 13.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, maybe near Jacksonville, where Al Dexter was born in 1902. He wasn't just any musician; he's the guy who wrote "Pistol Packin' Mama." Released in 1943, this controversial tune sold a…

  • Site of the Mission San Francisco de los Tejas · 13.2 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through East Texas, near Alto, where history echoes from the 17th century. Look around – this was the site of Mission San Francisco de los Tejas, established way back in 1690. Franciscan missionaries…

  • Jacksonville, TX (Cherokee County) · 13.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Jacksonville, Texas, a town with roots stretching back to 1847. It all started when Jackson Smith built a home and blacksmith shop near Gum Creek. Soon after, Dr. William Jackson set up his office…

  • Love's Lookout · 13.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving near Jacksonville, and right here is Love's Lookout, a scenic ridge that's been a popular spot for over a century. Back in the antebellum days, folks from the nearby town of Larissa would come here to…

  • Stamps, Virgil Oliver · 13.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, maybe heading towards Dallas. Right here, in places like Jacksonville and Dallas, you're in the heartland of a musical revolution. V. O. Stamps, born in Upshur County back in 1892,…

  • Stamps-Baxter Music and Printing Company · 13.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, near Jacksonville, where a musical empire was born. In 1924, V. O. Stamps founded the Stamps-Baxter Music and Printing Company, becoming a titan of gospel music publishing. They didn't…

  • Jacksonville, TX (Washington County) · 13.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Washington County, and right here, you might have passed the site of Jacksonville, one of the earliest towns in this area. Founded around 1839 or 1840, it was named for one of the pioneering…

  • Rouse, Milford Owen · 13.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through North Texas, and right here in Jacksonville, Texas, a future president of the American Medical Association was born. Milford Owen Rouse, born in 1902, contracted meningitis as a child while…

  • Templeton, Samuel Moore · 13.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through East Texas, perhaps near Jacksonville, where Samuel Moore Templeton was born in 1853. He wasn't just any minister; Templeton dedicated his life to the Presbyterian church and education. He taught,…

  • Box, John Calvin · 13.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    John Calvin Box, judge, legislator, and Methodist minister, was born near Crockett, Texas, on March 28, 1871. He attended rural schools in Houston County and subsequently studied law at the Alexander Institute ( see LON…

  • Lon Morris College · 13.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Lon Morris College, the oldest junior college in Texas! It all started in Kilgore back in 1875, founded by Dr. Isaac Alexander. A few years later, the East Texas Conference of the…

  • New Summerfield Public School · 13.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through New Summerfield, a town with roots stretching back to the 1850s. Public education here started in the Union Chapel Church, serving as both a place of worship and a community hub. By 1895, a…

  • Nan Travis Memorial Hospital · 13.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Nan Travis Memorial Hospital. Originally known as the Cherokee Sanitarium, this hospital began in 1919 as a nine-bed facility in a small Jacksonville apartment house. In 1925, a larger facility was…

  • New Summerfield Methodist Church · 13.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past New Summerfield in Cherokee County. The Methodist congregation here was founded around 1878 in the Union Chapel community. It served as a union church for all denominations and even held public…

  • From Gum Creek to the line · 13.5 mi

    Imagine having to move your entire town. Not just your family, but your house, your business, your church. That's exactly what happened here in 1872. The place started in 1847 as a settlement called Gum Creek and took…

  • The Tomato Capital of the World · 13.5 mi

    Why is Jacksonville called the 'Tomato Capital of the World'? In the early 20th century, farmers here found the local sandy soil was ideal for tomatoes. The town had been a peach center up through 1914, but after that…

  • Caddoan Mounds State Historic Site · 13.5 mi · Historical Marker

    More than a thousand years before the first European set foot in Texas, a sophisticated civilization built these earthen mounds in the Piney Woods near present-day Alto. The Caddo people constructed two ceremonial…

  • The Science of the Tomato Boom · 13.5 mi

    Jacksonville's title as 'Tomato Capital' wasn't an accident. It was a convergence of soil, science, and technology. The key was the ground itself: deep, sandy, well-drained loam over a clay subsoil, exactly what…

  • The View from Love's Lookout · 13.5 mi

    Just north of town on Highway 69 you will find Love's Lookout, a bluff with one of the best views in East Texas - thirty-odd miles of rolling, pine-covered hills falling away in front of you. The name belongs to Wesley…

  • Small Town, Big Stars · 13.5 mi

    Jacksonville proves that big talent can come from small towns. Take Margo Martindale. She grew up here, was a cheerleader at Jacksonville High School, and even won the title of 'Football Sweetheart' in 1969. Today,…

  • Church Founded by Chaplain Nicholas A. Davis, C.S.A. · 13.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Jacksonville, where Chaplain Nicholas A. Davis served during the Civil War. He wasn't just a preacher; he was a caregiver, a mailman, and a published author, writing 'Campaign from Texas to Maryland'…

  • Jacksonville Independent School District · 13.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Jacksonville, a town that's valued education since its earliest days. A school was here as early as 1846, and by 1873, residents established their first public school after moving closer to the…

  • Sea Scouts Ship 400 · 13.5 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Jacksonville, where in 1936, attorney John C. Box Jr. launched Sea Scouts Ship 400. For 15 years, this program taught local boys maritime skills like knot-tying and signaling, meeting in unique…

  • Tomato Capital of the World · 13.6 mi

    Jacksonville led East Texas peach growing from the 1880s until about 1914, then went all in on tomatoes. By the 1920s and 1930s, Cherokee County farmers had nearly 15,000 acres in tomatoes, and roughly 3,000 rail cars…

  • Why the Rock Is Red and the Tomatoes Grew · 13.6 mi

    The reddish stone in the Tomato Bowl walls is not imported granite. It is local iron ore, quarried from area farms and nicknamed giraffe rock for its blotchy pattern. Cherokee County sits in the East Texas iron ore…

  • From Gum Creek to Jacksonville · 13.6 mi

    This town started as Gum Creek. In 1847 Jackson Smith built a house and a blacksmith shop on the east bank of the creek, and a post office called Gum Creek opened in 1848. When residents surveyed a townsite in 1850,…

  • Jacksonville, TX · 13.6 mi

    Jacksonville's history began in 1847 as the town of Gum Creek. Jackson Smith built a home and blacksmith shop in the area and became postmaster in 1848. Dr. William Jackson established an office near Smith's shop. When…

  • Jacksonville, Oldest Home in · 13.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past what's believed to be the oldest home still standing in Jacksonville. Construction on this Texas colonial-style house began way back in 1857. The main structure you see was added in 1874 by W. A.…

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