Now for the strangest thing this town ever built, and it has nothing to do with sulfur, though it fits a town that always knew how to turn heads. Right on the courthouse square sit two public restrooms made entirely of mirrored glass. From the outside they look like shiny reflective boxes. But step inside, and the walls turn transparent. You can see every single person walking by out on the sidewalk, while they see nothing but their own reflection staring back. It is not magic, it is light. The trick works because the outside is kept brighter than the inside, and one-way glass always lets you see from the darker side toward the brighter one. Keep the light inside dim, and you become invisible. The town spent about fifty-four thousand dollars building them back in twenty twelve, the first of their kind in the country. The next year they entered a national contest for America's Best Restroom and finished third, walking away with the bronze. There are even security cameras watching the square, just in case someone tries to ruin the illusion. A town named for the honesty of its springs, offering the least private-looking, secretly most private restrooms you will ever find.

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The Town That Traded Bright Star for Rotten Eggs RoadyGoat

Here is a name with a real backstory. This town was not born as Sulphur Springs. Its first name was Bright Star, and there was a Bright Star post office serving folks here as far back as eighteen fifty-four. So what happened to that lovely, hopeful name? Money happened. In eighteen seventy-one, right after the town became the seat of Hopkins County, the leaders looked down at the sulfur-smelling mineral water bubbling up out of the ground all around them and made a marketing decision. They renamed the whole town Sulphur Springs, because in that era, water that smelled faintly of rotten eggs was not an embarrassment. It was a selling point. People believed those mineral springs could heal you, and a town named for its springs could pull in visitors from all over. Trading a name like Bright Star for one built around sulfur takes nerve, but it worked. Even after the switch, the local Odd Fellows lodge stubbornly kept the old Bright Star name alive for decades. Two names, one town, and the winner was the one you could bottle and sell.

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Why This Town's Water Smells Like Breakfast Gone Wrong RoadyGoat

The name says sulfur, so let me tell you why sulfur water smells the way it does. That unmistakable rotten-egg odor is a gas called hydrogen sulfide, and the surprising truth is that tiny living creatures make it. Deep underground, in water with no oxygen, live bacteria we call sulfate-reducing bacteria. Here is the neat part. Just as you and I breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide, these bacteria breathe in sulfate, a mineral dissolved in the rock, and breathe out hydrogen sulfide. That exhaled gas rides the water up to the surface, and the moment it hits the open air, your nose catches it. It does not take much either. Just one or two parts per million is enough to make water smell strongly of eggs. So when the springs here perfumed the whole area with that scent, it was not pollution and it was not decay in the usual sense. It was the exhaust from an entire underground community of microscopic life, quietly breathing sulfate down in the dark long before anyone thought to build a town on top of it and name the place after the smell.

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Sulphur Springs Loan and Building Association

1890

Chartered on August 13, 1890, the Sulphur Springs Loan and Building Association is the oldest surviving savings association in the state of Texas. Charter members of the association included local business leaders Phil H. Foscue, W. F. Henderson, T. F. Gafford, L.. H. Avinger, M. G. Miller, O. M. Pate, John D. Williams, S. D. Crittenden, and R. F. Blythe. T. F. Gafford served as the first managing officer. Originally located in a two-story building southeast of the town square, the association responded to economic growth and development in the area brought about by the arrival of the railroad. Supporting both urban and rural building projects and home construction, the association has played an important role in Hopkins County history. Many of the area's businesses trace their roots to loans made by the association in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The association moved to new offices at this site in 1961. Among its public contributions are the support of numerous charitable and civic organizations through monetary assistance and the donation of meeting space. Benefits of the association's business practices can now be seen beyond the boundaries of Hopkins County in a number of northeast Texas communities.

Historical Marker →

Hopkins County Courthouse

1882

The third Hopkins County Courthouse, built in 1882, was destroyed on Feb. 11, 1894 by a fire that also burned the jail and several nearby structures. Plans were soon made for a new court building to be erected on this corner rather than in the middle of the block where the first edifice stood. The site is unusual because most Texas courthouses are located in the center of the public square, not facing it. The new structure was designed by James Riely Gordon (1864-1937), popular courthouse architect from San Antonio, and constructed by the Dallas firm of Sonnefield and Emmins. Austin architect A. O. Watson was hired to inspect the work. He admired the plans but suggested bracing to strengthen the stonework. The building was completed on Aug. 22, 1895, at a final cost of $75,000. A clock for the tower was requested by some citizens, but county commissioners refused to provide funds for it. Made of red granite with contrasting sandstone trim, the Hopkins County Courthouse is a fine example of the massive Richardsonian Romanesque style which Gordon often used. The quarter-circular porches at the northwest and southwest corners mark entrances to the three-story edifice. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1975

Historical Marker →

Union Stockade

1868

The Reconstruction era which followed the Civil War (1861-65) was a time of unrest in texas. In this area a gang of outlaws whipped and killed blacks and harassed other citizens. On August 10, 1868, Capt. T. M. Tolman brought Federal troops here to restore order. Despite protests the army moved the county seat from Tarrant (4 mi. N) to Sulphur Springs. After the hotel where officers were staying was set afire, a stockade was built. Surrounded by a split log fence, it served as post quarters, hospital, jail, stable, and kitchen. It was abandoned in 1870 when Federal troops withdrew.

Historical Marker →

Flowers, William Knox, Sr.

1918

William Knox Flowers, Sr., was an African-American physician born in Raleigh, Mississippi, on July 8, 1886. He was the son of Jordan and Mary Flowers. The death of his sister motivated him to pursue a medical degree. He attended Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, after graduating from Alcorn A&M College in Mississippi. He graduated from Meharry in 1913 and left for Chicago to engage in postgraduate work. After completing his studies, Flowers eventually traveled to Terrell, Texas, where he met Lee G. Pinkston , a prominent black surgeon in Dallas and founder of the Pinkston Clinic Hospital. Pinkston encouraged Flowers to move to Sulphur Springs to begin his medical practice. In 1918 while he was practicing medicine in Sulphur Springs, an influenza epidemic broke out and became widespread. Hoping to find a remedy for this illness, Flowers proceeded to develop a treatment for black patients; because other physicians were unsuccessful in their attempts to treat the disease, they referred their patients to Flowers. Flowers and Bonnie Pearl Perry married in 1916 in Mississippi. They had four children— William K. Flowers, Jr. ; Perry J. Flowers; Madelyn M. Flowers; and Edwina L. Flowers. In 1924 Flowers moved his family to Dallas where he hoped to establish a private practice. Prior to opening his own practice he worked with Dr. Walter McMillan. In 1925 he constructed a two-story office building called the Flowers Building on 2317 Hall Street. He also leased office space to other businesses such as the Atlanta Life Insurance Company, Universal Life Insurance Company, Dr. A. E. Hughes, and attorneys Dwayne and Roger Mason. Flowers was a charter member of the Dallas Negro Chamber of Commerce (now Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce ) and in 1926 he chaired its executive committee. He was also active in the Moorland branch of the Dallas YMCA. During World War II he provided volunteer medical services to the draft board. Toward the end of his career Flowers shared his offices with his two sons, W. K. Flowers, Jr., a medical doctor, and P. J. Flowers, a dentist. In 1956 his son, William Jr., was one of the first black physicians admitted to the staff of St. Paul’s Hospital. Flowers Sr. practiced medicine at his office building until his death. He died on August 30, 1957, while on the way to St. Paul’s Hospital after having a heart attack. He was buried at Carver Memorial Park in Dallas.

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Shelton Brothers

1920

The Shelton Brothers, a country group, consisted initially of Robert (Bob) Attlesey (b. July 4, 1909) and Joe Attlesey (b. January 27, 1911), but later other musicians joined, including a third brother Merle Attlesey (b. March 1917), in the late 1930s. All three brothers, part of a family of ten children, were born on a cotton farm in Reilly Springs, Texas. During the 1920s two brothers (Bob and Joe) played locally to help earn money for the family and styled themselves after such artists as Peg Moreland and Jimmie Rodgers , with Bob singing and playing guitar and fiddle, while Joe also sang and played mandolin and guitar. Bob, known as the “Hopkins County Firecracker,” often included comedy in his approach. The brothers sang in Longview in 1929 and performed for tips at local venues, including Clint Aycock’s café. They then relocated to Tyler, where they added another member, guitarist Leon Chappelear, who was with the group when it recorded under the name of the Lone Star Cowboys for the Bluebird label in 1933. The brothers also recorded with Jimmie Davis, who was elected governor of Louisiana in 1944, for RCA-Victor Records. By the mid-1930s the group had relocated to New Orleans and played regularly on radio station WWL. In 1935 the Attlesey brothers began their prodigious recording career with Decca Records. They began calling themselves the Shelton Brothers (Shelton was their mother’s maiden name) at the behest of record producer Dave Kapp, who believed the group needed a more commercially recognizable name. The Decca label became successful because of its low-priced records and its aggressive recording efforts in the Southwest, and the Shelton Brothers soon became one of Decca’s most prolific Texas groups, recording some 150 sides for the label. The band recorded traditional country music generally reflective of hillbilly styles, but also incorporated blues and eventually some swing. With a wide-ranging repertoire which included such songs as “Just Because,” “Deep Elem Blues,” “Sitting On Top of the World,” “Matchbox Blues” and numerous others, the Shelton Brothers also represented the nascent honky-tonk sound that was developing at the time. In addition to recording for Decca, the band also made regular appearances at radio stations in Shreveport and the Dallas-Fort Worth area. At the time the Shelton Brothers mostly played on KWKH Shreveport, where they also went by the name of the Sunshine Boys, and on WFAA in Dallas, which became a mainstay for the group after 1941 for nearly a decade. It was also during the late 1930s that the third brother, Merle, joined the band on guitar. For nearly a decade the group, which included Bob, Joe, Merle, Joe Molina, Preacher Harkness, and Bernie Harkness, remained popular with radio audiences. However, by the end of the 1940s the band’s popularity had waned, and it eventually stopped recording altogether, although Bob and Joe continued performing on KWKH in Shreveport (made famous by its association with the Louisiana Hayride ). Bob later went into comedy, but both Joe and Merle continued to play music in the Dallas area. Bob died in November 1986 in Savoy, Texas. Joe passed away in December 1980 in Yantis, Texas, and Merle died in June 1997 in Dripping Springs, Texas.

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Thirty-Second Texas Cavalry

1862

The Thirty-second Texas Cavalry Regiment (Andrews's), also incorrectly called the Fifteenth Texas Cavalry Regiment, was organized in May 1862 at Corinth, Mississippi, from several companies of Crump's Texas Cavalry Battalion. Company G of the unit had fought at Chustenahlah in the Indian Nations on December 26, 1861, and later at Elk Horn, or Pea Ridge, Arkansas, on March 6–7, 1862. The Thirty-second Texas Cavalry compiled an extensive combat record while fighting in the Army of Tennessee. The regiment elected Julius A. Andrews as colonel. Andrews, a native of Georgia, was only twenty-one years old when the war began. He originally enlisted as sergeant major in the First Louisiana Battalion. Having secured his discharge, he went to Texas where he enlisted as adjutant of Crump's Battalion and, at the organization of the Thirty-second, was elected colonel. The unit's lieutenant colonel was James A. Weaver of Hopkins County, and the major was William E. Estes of Bowie County. Strangely enough, each of these men occupied the same position at the time of the surrender in May 1865 as they did in May 1862. After its organization, the regiment suffered severely from a host of ailments in the filthy camps around Corinth, including pneumonia, measles, and chronic diarrhea. More than 150 men died, and many others had to be discharged. In July 1862 the Thirty-second was dismounted and placed in the brigade of Brig. Gen. Joseph Hogg who died soon after and was replaced by Col. T. H. McCray. Other regiments in the brigade were the Tenth , Eleventh , and Fourteenth Texas Cavalry, all dismounted. They were assigned to the command of Gen. E. Kirby Smith and soon went into Kentucky. On August 29–30, 1862, at the battle of Richmond, Kentucky, Confederate forces, including the Thirty-second, achieved a decisive victory. Richmond was fought mainly by McCray's brigade against a much larger Federal force. In the Thirty-second at least five were killed, including Captain W. C. Bostick of Company C and Capt. W. W. Ponder of Company E. At least six were wounded and thirteen captured. Following the battle of Richmond, the Thirty-second was assigned to Col. Matthew D. Ector 's Brigade. For the remainder of the war, the unit would be referred to as Ector's Texas Brigade . In the early morning of December 31, 1862, John McCown's Confederate division, containing Ector's Brigade and the Thirty-second Texas, advanced on Maj. Gen. William S. Rosecran' s Union Army at Murfreesboro. After exchanging a few volleys, the Confederates changed and broke the Union lines. For more than three miles, Ector's Texans chased the fleeing Union soldiers and killed and captured hundreds. Colonel Andrews officially reported his losses as five killed, thirty-six wounded, and three missing. After Murfreesboro, the Thirty-second camped at Shelbyville for the next four months and remained largely inactive but prepared for the upcoming campaign. In May 1863 the brigade was sent with Gen. Joseph E. Johnston to the relief of Vicksburg. However, the unit never made it to the besieged city. The brigade participated in sharp fighting at Jackson, Mississippi, before the city fell to Union forces. On September 19–20, 1863, the battle of Chickamauga was fought. Once again, the Thirty-second Texas was called upon to be in the initial assaulting force. In about thirty minutes, the regiment lost more than half of its strength. Every single mounted officer's horse was shot from underneath him, and Colonel Andrews suffered a severe wound to his thigh. The battle of Chickamauga was the worst fight of the whole war for the officers and men of the Thirty-second Texas Cavalry. The unit's losses were reported as 13 killed, 65 wounded, and 40 missing—a total of 118 out of the 217 officers and men engaged. In May 1864 Andrews's Thirty-second Texas Cavalry was the smallest regiment in the smallest brigade in the second smallest division of the Army of Tennessee. Over the next few months, they fought alm

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Things to Do in Sulphur Springs

day trip

Day Trip to Sulphur Springs 🥛🐮 (FULL EPISODE) S7 E7

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

Sports in Sulphur Springs

⭐ HOMETOWN LEGENDS Class 4A · Football

Sulphur Springs Wildcats — Sulphur Springs — a college & pro athletic pipeline

3 alumni who reached major-college or pro sports

Sulphur Springs High School, a proud Class 4A institution, has a history of producing athletes who have gone on to compete at significant levels. The community has watched as former Wildcats have advanced from local fields to major college and professional sports. This tradition reflects the dedication found within Sulphur Springs athletics.

Among those who have represented Sulphur Springs High School are Damione Lewis, a former professional football player, and Caleb Miller, also a former professional football player. Colby Suggs, a professional baseball coach and former player, currently serves as the bullpen coach for the Texas Rangers, further highlighting the diverse athletic paths taken by Sulphur Springs alumni.

Pro/D1 alumni

Class

Key Players

Damione Lewis — , former professional football player
Caleb Miller — , former professional football player
Colby Suggs — , professional baseball coach and former player, current bullpen coach for the Texas Range

The moment

Colby Suggs is currently the bullpen coach for the Texas Rangers.

Sources: Wikipedia · SI High School (ScoreBook Live)

Everything Near Sulphur Springs

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

The See-Through Bathrooms on the Square
Now for the strangest thing this town ever built, and it has nothing to do with sulfur, though it fits a town that always knew how to turn heads. Right on the courthouse square sit two public restrooms made entirely of…
The Town That Traded Bright Star for Rotten Eggs
Here is a name with a real backstory. This town was not born as Sulphur Springs. Its first name was Bright Star, and there was a Bright Star post office serving folks here as far back as eighteen fifty-four. So what…
Why This Town's Water Smells Like Breakfast Gone Wrong
The name says sulfur, so let me tell you why sulfur water smells the way it does. That unmistakable rotten-egg odor is a gas called hydrogen sulfide, and the surprising truth is that tiny living creatures make it. Deep…
The Mule Who Helped Build the Courthouse
The springs may have named this town, but the courthouse on the square is its crown jewel, and there is a wonderful story buried in its stones. The building you see today went up in eighteen ninety-four and eighteen…
When People Paid to Bathe in Rotten-Egg Water
Picture Texas in the eighteen eighties, and this town in the middle of a genuine boom, all because of the water in its name. Back then there was a national craze called taking the waters. People truly believed that…
Where a Spring Actually Comes From
The word springs is right there in the name, so here is what a spring really is, because most folks picture it wrong. A spring is not water shooting up from some hidden fountain. It is simply an aquifer that has filled…
From Healing Springs to the Dairy Capital of Texas
The springs gave this town its name and its first fame, but what put it on the map for a whole other generation was milk. Hopkins County, where Sulphur Springs sits, proudly calls itself the Dairy Capital of Texas. This…
Sulphur Springs, TX
Sulphur Springs' founding is marked by the arrival of European-American settlers like Eli Bib, who ran a store from his cabin, selling staples and beverages. Dr. and Mrs. Davis moved into the area in 1849, with Dr.…
Sulphur Springs, TX
Sulphur Springs has been significantly shaped by its transportation infrastructure. The construction of a railroad line from Mineola in 1872 was a key factor in the city's growth, attracting settlers with the promise of…
Sulphur Springs Used to Be Called Bright Star
Sulphur Springs didn't start with that name. The town grew up around a teamster camping spot, where wagon drivers rested near more than a hundred natural springs. The first post office, opened in 1854, was called Bright…
Hopkins County Courthouse · Historical Marker
The third Hopkins County Courthouse, built in 1882, was destroyed on Feb. 11, 1894 by a fire that also burned the jail and several nearby structures. Plans were soon made for a new court building to be erected on this…
General W. H. King · Historical Marker
You're driving through Sulphur Springs, home of General W.H. King, a true Texas Confederate hero. Born in Georgia in 1839, King moved to Texas in 1861 and quickly rose through the ranks of the 18th Texas Infantry. He…

Show all 200 nearby places

City National Bank · Historical Marker
You're driving through Sulphur Springs, and right here on the town square, you're passing the site of the City National Bank. Organized way back in 1889, it's the oldest banking institution in town. Led by W. W. Jones,…
Union Community · Historical Marker
You're driving through what was once Union Community, a farming settlement that grew up around the Union Church, founded about 1850. This rural hub boasted a school, post office, and store over the years. The earliest…
James Selen Stout · Historical Marker
You're driving through Hopkins County, near where James Selen Stout settled. Born in Arkansas in 1818, Stout served three months in the Republic of Texas cavalry in 1836, earning a land grant. He was a frontier scout…
Pine Forest Church and Cemetery · Historical Marker
You're driving past Pine Forest Church and Cemetery, founded around 1855 in the Stout Creek neighborhood. It started on land deeded by attorney Thomas Willison, with James S. Stout, a major landowner, serving as one of…
The Public Restrooms You Can See Out Of · 0.1 mi
On Celebration Plaza in downtown Sulphur Springs stand two of the strangest public restrooms in Texas. Built in 2012, they're made entirely of two-way mirror glass, the same kind used in interrogation rooms. Step inside…
Why Sulfur Springs Smell Like Rotten Eggs · 0.1 mi
Here's a fact that trips up almost everyone: pure sulfur doesn't smell. The element is a bright-yellow solid, and on its own it's completely odorless. So what's that rotten-egg stench at a sulfur spring? It's hydrogen…
Sulphur Springs Loan and Building Association · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker
Chartered on August 13, 1890, the Sulphur Springs Loan and Building Association is the oldest surviving savings association in the state of Texas. Charter members of the association included local business leaders Phil…
A Museum Shaped Like a Dairy Farm · 0.1 mi
Sulphur Springs sits in the heart of Texas dairy country, and its Southwest Dairy Museum wears that history on the outside. The ten-thousand-square-foot building is shaped like a dairy farmstead, right down to a…
Union Stockade · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker
The Reconstruction era which followed the Civil War (1861-65) was a time of unrest in texas. In this area a gang of outlaws whipped and killed blacks and harassed other citizens. On August 10, 1868, Capt. T. M. Tolman…
The World Champion Stew Contest · 0.1 mi
Every fourth Saturday in October, Sulphur Springs fills with woodsmoke for the World Champion Hopkins County Stew Contest. More than a hundred and fifty four-person teams set up cast-iron pots over open wood fires and…
Hopkins County Echo-Daily News-Telegram · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Sulphur Springs, where news has been a business for over a century. Back in 1854, the "Texas Star" was the first paper in Hopkins County. Then, in 1855, William Wortham bought the presses, moved…
First United Methodist Church of Sulphur Springs · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Sulphur Springs' first Methodist church, established way back in 1850. They erected their first building around 1852, eventually sharing it with the Baptists. This congregation has…
First Christian Church · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the First Christian Church in Sulphur Springs. This congregation was organized in 1870 by evangelists Charles Carlton and J. M. Baird. Over the years, the church built multiple…
First Presbyterian Church of Sulphur Springs · 0.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the First Presbyterian Church of Sulphur Springs. Organized in 1852 with just eight members, this congregation faced challenges, including a sanctuary fire in 1873. They rebuilt at this…
Morning Chapel Missionary Baptist Church · 0.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Morning Chapel Missionary Baptist Church in Sulphur Springs. African-American residents began meeting for worship in 1868, establishing Old Tarrant Baptist Church. The congregation moved…
Atkins House · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're passing the site of a true Texas original, the Atkins House! Built in the late 1870s by Sarah Hamilton Crouch Atkins, this wasn't just any house. It's believed to be the very first brick building constructed in…
Volunteer Fire Department and Fire Bell of 1889 · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Sulphur Springs, and just ahead is a piece of the town's history that rang loud and clear. Back in 1889, this 500-pound brass bell was the high-tech alarm system for the volunteer fire department.…
Ashcroft House · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the Ashcroft House, a beautiful example of Colonial Revival architecture in Sulphur Springs. Commissioned in 1938 by civic leaders Charles and Ruth Ashcroft, this home was designed by prominent…
George and Myra Wilson · 0.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the heart of Sulphur Springs, where George and Myra Wilson started making their mark back in 1880. George and his brother's brick plant built many of the town's prominent structures, like the City…
The See-Through Bathrooms of Celebration Plaza · 0.6 mi
If you find yourself needing a restroom in downtown Sulphur Springs, prepare for a unique experience. On the corner of the town square, known as Celebration Plaza, sit two cubes of mirrored glass. These are the public…
The Iron Horse that Reshaped the Town · 0.6 mi
For its first forty years, Sulphur Springs was a remote health spa, difficult to reach by muddy wagon roads. That all changed in 1887 with an engineering marvel: the arrival of the St. Louis, Arkansas & Texas Railway,…
The Saratoga of the South · 0.6 mi
Imagine this town at the turn of the twentieth century. Instead of pickups and SUVs, the streets are full of visitors in Victorian dress, and they are all here for one reason: the water. This place used to be called…
Forrest Gregg: The Toughest Man in Football · 0.6 mi
Vince Lombardi, the legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers, was famously hard to please. But of all the Hall of Fame players he coached, he called one man the finest player he ever coached. That man was Forrest Gregg,…
Flowers, William Knox, Sr. · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
William Knox Flowers, Sr., was an African-American physician born in Raleigh, Mississippi, on July 8, 1886. He was the son of Jordan and Mary Flowers. The death of his sister motivated him to pursue a medical degree. He…
Becton, Edwin Pinckney · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Northeast Texas, and right here, you're passing through the area where Dr. Edwin Pinckney Becton lived and worked. Born in Tennessee in 1834, Becton moved to San Augustine County, Texas, with his…
King, Wilburn Hill · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hopkins County, near Sulphur Springs, where a Confederate officer named Wilburn Hill King made his home. King started as a private in the Civil War, but his bravery saw him rise to colonel. He was…
Weaver, James A. · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hopkins County, Texas, near Sulphur Springs, where James A. Weaver made his mark. Born in Georgia in 1826, Weaver moved his family to Texas in 1855. When the Civil War broke out, he enlisted as a…
Green, Turner Lundy · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Northeast Texas, and right here in what is now Hopkins County, you're passing through Sulphur Springs, the final home of Turner Lundy Green. Green was a lawyer and politician who served in both…
Sulphur Springs, TX (Hopkins County) · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Sulphur Springs, a town that started life as Bright Star. Back in the 1850s, this was a popular camping spot for teamsters hauling goods west from Jefferson. A post office opened, and the…
Cranford, John Walter · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hopkins County, Texas, near Sulphur Springs, where a young John Walter Cranford arrived in 1865. His parents died here within years, leaving him orphaned at thirteen. But Cranford didn't just…
Nelson, Hudson William · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hopkins County, Texas, where Hudson William Nelson made his mark. Nelson, a farmer and businessman, came to Texas from Alabama in 1861. He settled near Bright Star, investing heavily in local real…
Putnam, John Abram Bryant · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Sulphur Springs, the oldest town in Hopkins County. Right here, John Abram Bryant Putnam, a lawyer and Confederate soldier, helped shape this community. After serving in the Civil War, he returned…
Sulphur Springs News-Telegram · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Sulphur Springs, the heart of Hopkins County, where the local newspaper has been a constant companion for generations. It all started back in 1854 with the Texas Star. Just a year later, William…
Wortham, William Amos · 0.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hopkins County, heading toward Sulphur Springs. Right here, you're passing through the stomping grounds of William Amos Wortham, a man who traded his printing press for a soldier's rifle during…
St. Philip's Episcopal Church · 1.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of St. Philip's Episcopal Church in Sulphur Springs. Episcopal missionaries first preached here in the 1860s, and the church was officially founded in 1872. For over twenty years, the…
Shelton Brothers · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
The Shelton Brothers, a country group, consisted initially of Robert (Bob) Attlesey (b. July 4, 1909) and Joe Attlesey (b. January 27, 1911), but later other musicians joined, including a third brother Merle Attlesey…
Thirty-Second Texas Cavalry · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
The Thirty-second Texas Cavalry Regiment (Andrews's), also incorrectly called the Fifteenth Texas Cavalry Regiment, was organized in May 1862 at Corinth, Mississippi, from several companies of Crump's Texas Cavalry…
Dial, Hamilton C. · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through what was once a hotbed of Confederate activity. Hamilton C. Dial, a farmer from Hopkins County, answered the call to arms in 1861. He enlisted as a third lieutenant in the Ninth Texas Cavalry,…
Hopkins County · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hopkins County, a place settled by pioneers seeking a new life after conflicts with Native American tribes. In 1839, General Kelsey H. Douglass led troops that defeated the Cherokees in this area,…
Moore, Mary Polly Madden Hamilton · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Northeast Texas, a land that was once home to the Caddo and Cherokee people. It was here, between 1834 and 1835, that Mary Polly Madden Hamilton Moore and her first husband, John, arrived from…
Harman, Lewis Given · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through what was once Tarrant, a town in Hopkins County, where Lewis Given Harman lived. He was a surveyor, a judge, and a state senator who served in the Eighth Texas Legislature from 1859 to 1861.…
Tarrant, TX (Hopkins County) · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Tarrant, the first county seat of Hopkins County, was near the junction of State Highway 19/154 and Farm Road 1537, four miles north of Sulphur Springs in the central part of the county. The area was first settled by…
White Oak Junction, TX · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
White Oak Junction, also known as White Oak, a farming community in eastern Hopkins County eight miles east of Sulphur Springs on Interstate 30 and U. S. Highway 67, was established at Veal's store on the old Jefferson…
Burkham, James · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hopkins County, near Sulphur Bluff. This area was settled by pioneers like James Burkham, who arrived here from Kentucky with his family in 1816, moving into the Red River Valley. Around 1820, the…
Grant, Isaac A. · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hopkins County, Texas, where Isaac A. Grant lived a complicated life. He was a surveyor, a husband to three wives, and a father to three children. But when the Civil War broke out, Grant answered…
McKenney, Elnathan Durkee · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through what is now Hopkins County, and right here is a story about Elnathan McKenney, a lawyer and legislator. In 1854, McKenney and other citizens tried to help a freed man named Europe stay in Hopkins…
Birthright, TX · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Birthright, also known as Lone Star, on Farm Road 71 ten miles northeast of Sulphur Springs in north central Hopkins County, began about 1870 as a store in the ranchhouse of E. C. Birthright. A post office was…
Dike, TX · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Dike is on Farm Road 69 ten miles northeast of Sulphur Springs in northeastern Hopkins County. The site was first settled around 1850, when Michael and Elizabeth Miller built a mill and a small log schoolhouse; the…
Peerless, TX · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Peerless, also known as Gay's Mills, Hilldale, and Fairyland (Fairy Land), was a farming community on Farm Road 71 eleven miles northwest of Sulphur Springs in northwestern Hopkins County. Eli Lindley moved to the area…
Pickton, TX · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Pickton, at the junction of State Highway 11 and Farm Road 269 fifteen miles southeast of Sulphur Springs in southeastern Hopkins County, was first settled around 1856 by M. D. Jackson. A small settlement grew up in the…
Reilly Springs, TX · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Reilly Springs (Reily Springs), a rural community nine miles southeast of Sulphur Springs at the junction of Farm roads 1567 and 2560 in southeastern Hopkins County, was named for James Reily , who in 1841 and 1842…
Ridgeway, TX · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Ridgeway, on State Highway 11 and the St. Louis Southwestern Railway ten miles west of Sulphur Spring in western Hopkins County, was named for a pioneer family named Ridgeway and because of its location on a drainage…
Saltillo, TX · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Saltillo is at the junction of U.S. Highway 67, Farm Road 900, and the St. Louis Southwestern Railway, sixteen miles east of Sulphur Springs in far eastern Hopkins County. It was first settled around 1850 by John…
Sherley, TX · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Sherley, previously known as Barker Springs and as Frazier, is a farming community on State Highway 19 eight miles southwest of Sulphur Springs in southwestern Hopkins County. It was first settled around 1870 and was…
Sulphur Bluff, TX · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Sulphur Bluff, at the junction of Farm roads 69 and 71, eighteen miles northeast of Sulphur Springs in northeastern Hopkins County, was settled by Robert and Hesakiah Hargrave in 1842 on a bluff overlooking the Sulphur…
Weaver, TX (Hopkins County) · 2.2 mi · Tsha Handbook
Weaver, on U.S. Highway 67 twelve miles east of Sulphur Springs in eastern Hopkins County, was established in the late 1880s as a station on the newly constructed St. Louis Southwestern Railway. In 1887 C. W. Bryant,…
Tarrant · 4.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Tarrant, the original county seat of Hopkins County. Eldridge Hopkins donated this land back in 1846, and it was named for General Edward H. Tarrant, a Texas Ranger and Mexican War…
Shooks Chapel Methodist Church · 4.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Shook's Chapel Methodist Church. Area settlers organized a congregation here in 1886, naming it for the Rev. W. A. Shook, who held the first revival. The church met in temporary locations…
North Liberty Baptist Church · 5.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past North Liberty Baptist Church. Records don't show its exact founding date, but the fellowship was reorganized in 1875. The original building went up in the 1890s, and the congregation moved here in…
Richland Cemetery · 6.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Richland Cemetery, a resting place that may hold unmarked graves dating back to 1872. That's the same year the Richland Baptist Church bought this site and established the Richland School. The…
Forest Academy Cemetery · 7.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Forest Academy Cemetery, a place that started as a family burial ground around <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1847</say-as>. Thomas Ticer died just a year after settling here,…
Confederate Refugees in Texas · 7.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Hopkins County, a place that offered refuge during the Civil War. While the war raged, many families fled the conflict, seeking safety in Texas. Imagine the Stone family, from Louisiana, facing a…
The Town That Sold Its Name for TV · 8.5 mi
In 2005, if you'd driven through here, the sign would have said 'Welcome to Clark, Texas.' But the town's 55 households were about to make a decision that would land them in newspapers around the world. EchoStar…
Ground Zero of the Fracking Wars · 8.5 mi
This small town became an unlikely battlefield in a national war over energy. When natural gas companies began drilling in the Barnett Shale beneath DISH, they also built a network of industrial compressor stations to…
The Science of a Sound War · 8.5 mi
The fight in DISH wasn't just about drilling; it was about engineering and chemistry. To move natural gas through thousands of miles of pipelines, you need immense pressure. That pressure is created by compressor…
DISH, TX · 8.5 mi
In June 2000, a community in Denton County, Texas, was established and originally named Clark after its founder Landis Clark. However, in a unique turn of events, the town accepted an offer in November 2005 to rename…
The Ranger From Yantis · 9.0 mi
State Highway One Fifty Four, from Yantis north to Sulphur Springs, is the Sergeant Tanner Stone Higgins Memorial Highway. Tanner Higgins was a Yantis native and a two thousand seven graduate of Sulphur Springs High…
Como, TX · 9.1 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Como, Texas, a town with a name that's been changed more times than a highway exit sign! It started around 1846 as a simple teamsters camp. By 1870, it had a post office named Bacchus, then…
Texas HS Baseball Leaders 2026: Como-Pickton (Como) · 9.2 mi
Como-Pickton (Como, TX) placed on the 2A Texas high school baseball stat leaderboards for the 2026 season: Dane Oud (0.491 avg, 3 HR).
Greenview Community and Cemetery · 10.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Greenview, a community that started as a pioneer settlement back in 1839. Reverend Green Weaver, a traveling minister and merchant, settled here with his sons, building a log cabin near…
Oakland Cumberland Presbyterian Church · 10.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Hopkins County, and you're passing the site of the Oakland Cumberland Presbyterian Church. After the Civil War, the Stewart family fled Alabama when their church was burned. In 1882, they settled…
Plunkett School · 11.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of what was once Plunkett School in Hopkins County. Back in 1867, the county Commissioners Court set up 32 school districts. Fast forward to 1903, and this spot became District Number 30,…
Stewart Cemetery · 11.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving by the old Stewart Cemetery, known earlier as Birdwell's Graveyard. The earliest marked grave dates to 1879, though the site was used as early as 1870. The last burial here was in 1915.
Engineering a Railroad Town · 11.3 mi
The town of Cumby had a name and a post office long before it had a railroad. Settlers arrived in 1842 and called the place Black Jack Grove, after a stand of blackjack oaks. Then, in 1880, came the surveyors of the…
Cumby, TX · 11.3 mi
Cumby was originally known as Black Jack Grove as early as 1848. It went through several name changes, including Theodocias, before being renamed Cumby in 1896. The city was named in honor of Confederate army veteran…
The Lignite Coal Mines · 11.3 mi
Long before oil and gas dominated Texas, parts of this state ran on lignite, a soft brown coal, and Hopkins County sits on deposits of it. But that isn't the story people around here tell. This place started in 1842 as…
Drawing a Line in the Forest · 12.6 mi
The birth of Pine Forest as an official city wasn't marked by a gold rush or a railroad boom, but by a quiet vote. As you drive through, imagine the year is 1960. The communities scattered here among the pines were…
Cumby, TX · 13.7 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Cumby, Texas, a town with a wild past. It started in 1842 as Black Jack Grove, named for the oak trees that shaded Texas Rangers and weary travelers. By 1860, it was known as a tough frontier…
Hurley, Henry · 13.7 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hunt County, maybe near Cumby, and right here is where Henry Hurley, a pioneer preacher and farmer, settled his family in 1844. They traveled by oxcart from Missouri, seeking land in the Mercer…
Cumby, Robert H. · 13.7 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Cumby, Texas, named for Robert H. Cumby, a man who went from planter to politician to soldier. Elected to the Texas Legislature in 1859, Cumby then answered the call of the Confederacy. He raised…
Tira, TX · 13.7 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hopkins County, near Tira. This place started out in 1850 as Chapman Arm, named for early settler Jimmy Chapman. Just after the Civil War, a Methodist church popped up. Then, in 1898, the post…
Cumby, TX · 13.8 mi
Cumby, Texas, has a rich history that dates back to 1848 when it was known as Black Jack Grove. The town underwent several name changes, including Theodocias from 1857 to 1858, before finally becoming Cumby in 1896. It…
Cumby · 13.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Cumby, which started life as Black Jack Grove. This spot was chosen by settlers because of a prominent grove of black jack oaks atop the highest point in Hopkins County. It was a sacred Native…
Nelta Cemetery · 13.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Nelta Cemetery, a burial ground that's seen Texas history unfold for nearly two centuries. It started in August 1843 with the burial of William Hargarve's son. Over time, different family plots and…
Long Cemetery · 14.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Hopkins County, near Cumby, where a community called Black Jack Grove sprang up in the late 1830s. Texas Rangers camped here for protection. Later, settlers moved south along Turkey Creek.…
Texas HS Baseball Leaders 2026: Cumby (Cumby) · 14.1 mi
Cumby (Cumby, TX) placed on the 2A Texas high school baseball stat leaderboards for the 2026 season: Jace Evans (0.517 avg, 6 HR).
Mt. Zion Churches and Cemetery · 14.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Cumby, and right here is the site of Mt. Zion, a place where two churches once stood side-by-side. The Methodist Episcopal Church organized here way back before Hopkins County was even created, in…
Miller Grove Methodist Church · 14.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the Miller Grove Methodist Church. Organized in 1870, the congregation met in the schoolhouse before building their own sanctuary here in 1900. The church was renamed Miller Grove United…
Miller Grove Cemetery · 14.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Miller Grove Cemetery, serving the community since before Hopkins County was formed in 1846. The oldest known burials here date to 1869, and the cemetery features monuments for Woodmen of the World…
Yantis, TX · 14.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Yantis, a community named for its very first postmaster, George R. Yantis. He arrived and by 1890 was running a gristmill and gin right here. By the late 1800s, Yantis was a bustling hub with…
When Como Was a Coal Town · 14.7 mi
For about thirty years, Como wasn't just a farm town; it had an industrial edge. Lignite coal was found on the property of J. F. Smith, and by 1900 mining had become one of the town's leading industries. A settlement of…
Fuel from an Ancient Swamp · 14.7 mi
The story of Como's greatest boom is a story of geology and energy. The ground here belongs to the Wilcox Group, a formation laid down in the Eocene Epoch, roughly fifty million years ago, when this was a swampy coastal…
How the Machine Emptied the Fields · 14.7 mi
The quiet around Toco is the sound of a technology that worked. For decades cotton farming here needed hands — planting, chopping weeds, and above all picking, which is why this country supported so many families on so…
Black Oak Baptist Church · 15.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the Black Oak Baptist Church, named for the trees around it. The congregation was organized in 1856 by Elders John J. D. Davis and Daniel Ramsey, with eight charter members. The current…
Engineering a Bass Fishing Paradise · 15.2 mi
Lake Fork, the reason modern Yantis thrives, is a masterpiece of ecological engineering. When the Sabine River Authority planned the reservoir in the 1970s, they did more than just build a dam. Their goal was to create…
Yantis, TX · 15.2 mi
Yantis, Texas, has a rich history that dates back to the early settlement by Harry M. Matthews in 1860. The town's development accelerated with the operation of a gristmill and cotton gin by J. Singleton by 1870. In…
Sunny Point Cemetery · 15.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Sunny Point Cemetery, a place that's been a final resting spot for Hopkins County families since the 1880s. In 1881, A.J. Weathers deeded this land for both a cemetery and a school. The first known…
DeSpain Bridge · 15.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Delta County, and just a few miles southwest of here, a vital crossing once stood: the DeSpain Bridge. Built before <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1850</say-as> by landowner Brig DeSpain…
County Line School · 15.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through what was once County Line Prairie, settled by John Garrett in 1842. In 1897, this area got its third school district, and Lige Garrett designed a new two-story building. The second floor hosted…
Rattan, Hiram · 15.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Delta County, where the Rattan family put down roots in 1839. Hiram Rattan, born way back in 1805, was a pioneer who first settled in Texas in 1835. He and his brother Larkin initially received a…
Klondike Cemetery · 16.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Klondike, and just ahead is the Klondike Cemetery. This burial ground started with a tragedy in 1852, when a neighbor child named Eliza Armstrong died. John and Nancy Hunt, who had come to Texas from…
Little Indiana School · 16.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Wood County, near Quitman, where a community called Little Indiana sprung up around 1900. Indiana families, led by John M. Hart and Roland Alexander, came here seeking timber and rich soil. But…
Mildred McMillan Garrett of Emory · 16.3 mi
The State Highway Nineteen bridge over Lake Fork Reservoir, north of Emory, is the Mildred McMillan Garrett Memorial Bridge. Mildred McMillan was born in Emory on September fifth, nineteen twenty three, one of seven…
Oaklawn Cemetery · 16.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Oaklawn Cemetery in Cooper. The first burials here were on a hill west of Dr. Blackwell's home, but the site became undesirable. In 1891, Asa White donated five acres for this new cemetery, and most…
Lambeth, Thomas A. · 16.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Cooper, Texas, and you might just pass the legacy of Thomas A. Lambeth. This wasn't just any lawman; Lambeth joined the Confederate Army at just sixteen, even serving as captain in the escort for…
Sam B. Turbeville · 16.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Cooper, where Sam B. Turbeville lived and served. Born in Mississippi in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1856</say-as>, he moved to Texas in 1879, settling in Delta County in 1884.…
Delta County · 16.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Delta County, Texas's smallest county by land area. It was officially formed on July 29, 1870, and organized just a few months later in October of that same year. Its name, Delta, perfectly…
Yates and Methodist Protestant Cemeteries · 16.6 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the Yates and Methodist Protestant Cemeteries. The Yates family settled here in 1846, and their daughter Mary, who died in 1855, marks the origin of this family graveyard. Later, land was…
Texas HS Baseball Leaders 2026: Cooper (Cooper) · 16.7 mi
Cooper (Cooper, TX) placed on the 2A Texas high school baseball stat leaderboards for the 2026 season: Jace Meeks (3 HR).
White, Robert Leon · 16.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Delta County, near Cooper, the birthplace of Robert Leon White. He was an architect who shaped the University of Texas campus for decades. After serving in World War I, White returned to Texas and…
Cooper Lake · 16.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving near Cooper Lake, a massive reservoir on the South Sulphur River. But getting this lake built was a decades-long battle! It all started back in the late 1930s when locals first proposed a reservoir.…
Mount Joy Cemetery · 16.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Mount Joy, a settlement that thrived in the 1800s with cotton gins, a gristmill, and even stagecoach service. The community's story continues here at the Mount Joy Cemetery, first recorded with the…
Dougherty Community Homeplace · 16.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving near Emory, where the Dougherty family has a long history. Robert Newberry Dougherty took over his father's farm in the 1860s and by 1870 owned it outright. He built this home between 1880 and 1881, and…
Cooper, TX (Delta County) · 16.9 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Cooper, the county seat of Delta County. This town owes its existence to a legislative act! It was founded back in 1870, named for L. W. Cooper, one of the sponsors who helped organize this very…
Dougherty Community Cemetery · 16.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Rains County, near Emory. This cemetery began in 1877 when Robert N. Dougherty donated one acre for public burial. The cemetery association later acquired two more tracts of land in 1935 and 1964.
First National Bank · 17.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Cooper, the heart of Delta County. Right here, you're passing the site of the First National Bank, the oldest bank in the county. It started humbly in 1889, operating out of a grocery store. It…
Cooper, TX · 17.0 mi
Once a thriving agricultural hub, Cooper has witnessed its fair share of economic ups and downs. Founded around 1870, the city quickly became the center of local events, with its economy primarily relying on agriculture…
The Millionaire's Son and the Railroad · 17.1 mi
In the 1890s, Cooper was desperate for a railroad to ship its cotton. The town found an unlikely savior in Edward H.R. Green, one of the most colorful characters in Texas history. Green was the son of Hetty Green, the…
Taming the Sulphur River · 17.1 mi
For over a hundred years the Sulphur River was both a blessing and a curse, giving water but also bringing devastating floods. By the mid-twentieth century leaders knew a dam was the only answer. Congress authorized the…
Engineering Cooper Lake · 17.1 mi
The Cooper Lake you see today is a marvel of civil engineering, designed to solve the age-old problem of the Sulphur River's flooding. The heart of the project is the dam itself, a massive earthen embankment stretching…
The Delta County Triangle · 17.1 mi
Take a look at a map of Texas, and you’ll find that most of its 254 counties are simple squares or rectangles. But not Delta County. It’s a distinct triangle, and the reason is written on the landscape. The county is…
Cooper, TX · 17.1 mi
The city was named after Leroy Cooper, the chairman of the Texas House Committee on Counties and Boundaries, who played a pivotal role in establishing Delta County. The community was selected as the seat for the newly…
Texas Livery Stable · 17.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Cooper, and right here, where the courthouse now stands, used to be the heart of transportation for this town. Before cars, livery stables were the Uber, Lyft, and horse trailer all rolled into…
Cooper Rail Depot · 17.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're cruising through Cooper, and right here is a rare survivor: the old Texas Midland Railroad Depot, built in 1913. This wasn't just a stop for passengers on the 130-mile line between Paris and Ennis; it was a…
Morgan, Abel · 17.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Cooper, and right here is the story of Abel Morgan, born Thomas Smith in North Carolina back in 1792. He arrived in Bexar in late 1835, joining Captain Blair's company. After being discharged, he…
Pine Hill Cumberland Presbyterian Church and Cemetery · 17.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving by the site of the Pine Hill Cumberland Presbyterian Church, organized in 1864 by J. G. L. Davis and charter members. The property was acquired in 1883, and several church buildings have stood here, the…
Stewart Cemetery · 17.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Stewart Cemetery, a final resting place for some of Hunt County's earliest settlers. John and Ellen Stewart arrived around 1843, with John reportedly building the very first pioneer home in eastern…
Harmony Methodist Church and Cemetery · 17.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Pickton, and just ahead is Harmony Methodist Church and Cemetery. It all started in 1877 when landowner Jesse Odom convinced a traveling preacher to hold a revival. A congregation formed, and by…
Lebanon Cemetery · 17.5 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Lebanon Cemetery, a burial ground used since the 1860s. Rebecca Hart Williams Little deeded this land for church and school in 1871. The adjacent Lebanon School stood here until 1945.
Darwin, James Lewis · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Delta County, and right here, you're passing through the community of Darwin. It wasn't named for the famous scientist, but for James L. Darwin, a farmer and philanthropist who settled here around…
Charleston, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Charleston is on Farm Road 895 some nine miles east of Cooper in southeastern Delta County. It is bordered by Evans Branch on the east and McGuyer Branch on the west. The area, originally part of the D. A. Sey Survey,…
Granny's Neck, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Granny's Neck, also known as Old Granny's Neck and Harper's Crossing, was six miles southeast of Cooper and one mile west of State Highway 154 where the Bonham-Jefferson road crossed the South Sulphur River in south…
Camp Rusk · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Delta County, near Ben Franklin, and right here is where Camp Rusk once stood. Established in the fall of 1861, this was the bustling training ground for the Ninth Texas Infantry, preparing to…
Ben Franklin, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Ben Franklin is on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad and Farm roads 38 and 128 four miles northeast of Pecan Gap in northwestern Delta County. The settlement was located on Benjamin Simmons's land grant and…
Mount Joy, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Mount Joy is a small church community at the intersection of Farm Road 1742 and a dirt road in extreme north central Delta County. Jeremiah and Nancy DeWitt settled in the area in 1854, when they arrived from Virginia…
Cedar Creek, TX (Delta County) · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Delta County, near Cooper Lake. Right here, a community called Cedar Creek once thrived. Settled in the 1840s and 50s, early families like the Dawsons and Wrights first called it Daisy Mission.…
Cooper Lake State Park · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through East Texas, heading toward Cooper Lake State Park. This park is actually made up of two separate units, Doctors Creek and South Sulphur, spread across Delta and Hopkins counties. It all started in…
Delta County · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Delta County, out here in northeastern Texas. It's a place defined by two rivers, the North and South Sulphur, which meet to form its eastern border. For years, settlers found themselves traveling…
Giles, TX (Delta County) · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through what was once Giles, Texas, a community founded in 1857 by families arriving from Giles County, Tennessee. They settled just south of the North Sulphur River, in what is now Delta County. By 1859,…
Enloe, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Enloe is at the junction of Farm roads 2949 and 198, three miles north of Cooper in north central Delta County. It is bordered on the southwest by Brushy Creek. The area was settled by 1888, when local residents…
Gough, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Gough, also known as Bess, is just south of the intersection of Farm roads 2068 and 1528, six miles southwest of Cooper in southwestern Delta County. It was probably named for Lycurgus Gough, a minister who helped…
Horton, TX (Delta County) · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Horton is at the intersection of Farm roads 71 and 1531, between the South and Middle Sulphur rivers six miles southwest of Klondike in southwestern Delta County. The area was settled by 1867, when the Horton School was…
Jot 'Em Down, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Jot 'Em Down, also known as Mohegan, Muddig Prairie, and Bagley, is at the intersection of Farm Roads 904 and 1532, in extreme western Delta County. The area was part of the James H. Larabee survey and was occupied by…
Klondike, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Klondike, also known as Pleasant Grove, Old Pleasant Grove, New Prospect, and Kate, is at the junction of Farm Roads 1528 and 2890, three miles southwest of Cooper in southwestern Delta County. The area was settled as…
Lake Creek, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Lake Creek is on Lake Creek at the intersection of Farm Roads 198 and 1335, six miles northeast of Cooper in north central Delta County. The area, originally part of the George W. Cox survey, was settled as early as…
Liberty Grove, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Liberty Grove was a small farming community at the junction of Farm Road 1880 and a dirt thoroughfare, on Doctors Creek and the South Sulphur River, south of Cooper in south central Delta County. The area was originally…
Needmore, TX (Delta County) · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Needmore, also known as Jernigan, Pecan, Pecan Branch, and Eureka, is a small farming community at the intersection of Farm Road 3132 and a dirt road, between Barnett Creek and the West Fork of Jernigan Creek 1½…
Prattville, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Prattville is on dirt roads 1½ miles south of the town of Lake Creek and just west of Post Oak Creek in central Delta County. The area was inhabited by 1881, when William B. Pratt opened the post office, which he named…
Rattan, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Rattan is at the intersection of Farm roads 1530 and 3388, between Doctors and Giles creeks three miles southeast of Pecan Gap in western Delta County. The area was inhabited as early as the 1820s, when a man named Blue…
Shiloh, TX (Delta County) · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Shiloh (Shilough) is a small farming community at the intersection of State Highway 24 and Farm Road 1531, four miles southwest of Klondike in southwestern Delta County. The area, originally part of the John Hamilton…
Unitia, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Unitia was just west of Farm Road 1742, a mile northeast of Enloe, and 1½ miles southwest of Mount Joy in north central Delta County. The area had been settled by 1878, when the Unitia School opened. Early…
Yowell, TX · 17.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Yowell is at the junction of Farm roads 904 and 2068, between Barnett Creek and the West Fork of Jernigan Creek five miles west of Klondike on the Hunt county line in extreme western Delta County. It was named for J. W.…
Littleton Rattan · 17.7 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Cooper, Texas, and right here is where Littleton Rattan made his home. Born in Illinois, Rattan fought in the Black Hawk War before heading to Texas in 1839. He farmed this land in Delta County…
Sulphur Bluff · 17.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Sulphur Bluff, a settlement that got its start way back in the Republic of Texas era. The first known settlers here were the family of John Gregg, with a marker in their cemetery dating to 1837. Not…
Hastings, Capt. F. Marion · 18.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the home of Captain F. Marion Hastings, a Confederate veteran who served in raids across Missouri, Arkansas, and Louisiana before surrendering in 1865. He moved to Franklin County, Texas, that same…
Pleasant Hill Methodist Church and Cemetery · 18.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Franklin County, near Mt. Vernon. Back around 1850, settlers held Methodist camp meetings near a spring, and a lady's remark about it being a 'pleasant place' led to the name Pleasant Hill. The…
Brushy Mound · 18.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Tira, but this area was once known as Brushy Mound. It got its name from the dogwood brush that covered the land. By 1885, a school was founded here with Miss Mollie Wood as the first teacher, and…
Rock Hill Baptist Church · 18.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Quitman, where the Rock Hill Baptist Church was organized in 1870. It started in a schoolhouse on Coke Road, and the first church building wasn't constructed until 1892. The congregation has…
John T. Knight · 18.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Commerce, where John T. Knight arrived way back in 1878. For decades, he was a powerhouse here, serving on the school board for over thirty years, running a grocery store, and heading up local banks.…
Union Cemetery · 18.3 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past Union Cemetery, which served the farm and ranch communities of Gough, Yowell, and Antioch. The earliest burial here was in 1859, and the last recorded burial was in 1946. It contains over 90 marked…
Jackson, Josiah Hart · 18.4 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, but this area owes its start to Josiah Hart Jackson. Born in Kentucky, he arrived in Texas back in 1839. By the 1850s, he opened Jackson's store just a mile northeast of here.…
Flying Tigers · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, hometown of Claire Lee Chennault. He was a retired U.S. Army Air Corps captain who, in the lead-up to World War II, organized and commanded the First American Volunteer Group of…
Mantle, Mickey Charles · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Mickey Mantle, major-league baseball star, was born in Spavinaw, Oklahoma, on October 20, 1931, the son of Elvin Clark "Mutt" and Lovell (Richardson) Mantle. Baseball was part of Mickey Mantle's heritage; Mutt Mantle…
Chennault, Claire Lee · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, the birthplace of Claire Lee Chennault. He was a Texas aviator who became a legend in World War II, organizing the famous Flying Tigers in China. Despite disagreements over…
English, Clarence T. · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving near Commerce, Texas, the birthplace of Clarence T. English, a transportation pioneer who started his freight business with just one truck in 1933. By 1937, he had grown that fleet to 108 trucks, and by…
La Mond, Stella Lodge · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Right here in Commerce, you're driving past a place with a connection to a pioneering Texas artist and educator, Stella La Mond. In 1940, La Mond helped found the Printmakers Guild, a group that was originally limited…
Mayo, William Leonidas · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hunt County, near Commerce, the home of Texas A&M University-Commerce. But this campus has a dramatic origin story, all thanks to William Leonidas Mayo. He arrived in Pecan Gap in 1886, nearly…
Austin, Mary Carroll Nurre · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, and right here is where Mary Carroll Austin, the eighth First Lady of East Texas State University, left her mark. She arrived in 1982 with her husband, the new university…
Texas A&M University-Commerce · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, the birthplace of a unique educational experiment. It all started back in 1889 in nearby Cooper, when William L. Mayo founded his 'democratic school.' But disaster struck when the…
Commerce, TX · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, a town whose very name tells its story. Back in 1872, pioneer merchant William Jernigin opened a store right here, on the corner of what's now the town square. He needed a place…
Ferguson, Claire Rush · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, a town that owes a lot to the leaders of its educational institutions. Right here, Claire Rush Ferguson served as president of the Woman's Culture Club from 1949 to 1951. This…
Neu, Charles Ternay · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, the home of Charles Ternay Neu, a historian who dedicated his life to preserving the past. Born in Brenham in 1885, Neu earned degrees from the University of Texas and later a…
Whitley, Lucie Braden Love · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
You're driving through Hunt County, perhaps near Commerce, Texas. Right here, Lucie Braden Love Whitley lived a life dedicated to education and heritage. She was the first lady of East Texas State Teachers College,…
McDowell, Martha Jo Lee · 18.6 mi · Tsha Handbook
Martha Jo Lee McDowell, educator and civic leader, was well-known for her position within East Texas State University (now Texas A&M University-Commerce) as a teacher, administrator, and wife of the seventh president of…
Commerce, TX · 18.8 mi
Commerce, Texas, is situated on the eastern edge of North Texas and the western edge of East Texas, within the Texas Blackland Prairies. The city is located on the rich, black gumbo prairie in northeast Hunt County,…
Commerce Schools · 18.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past where Commerce's schools have been educating kids for over a century. By 1883, the town's first public school was already too small. So, the Commerce Educational Association bought land right here…
Jernigin's Store · 18.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, a town that owes its very name to a merchant named William Jernigin. He arrived here in 1856, a former legislator from Tennessee. After establishing himself as a pioneer merchant…
Bruce B. Williams American Legion Post No. 1 · 18.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the very first American Legion Post in Texas! It was established right here in Commerce back in 1919, the same year the national organization got its start. The idea came after the…
Commerce Post Office · 18.8 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the old Commerce Post Office, a building that went up during World War I. Construction started in July 1917 and finished in August 1918, facing delays because of the war. It served as the city's main…
Commerce · 18.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, a town that owes its name and existence to a shift in traffic and a vote in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1885</say-as>. It all started back in <say-as…
First Christian Church of Commerce · 18.9 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, and right here is the site of the First Christian Church. Back in the 1850s, families from the Christian Church, also known as the Disciples of Christ, started settling in this…
President's House · 19.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the President's House in Commerce, a building with a story stretching back to 1927. Designed by Greenville architects, this home showcases a subtle Georgian revival style with its dark red brick and…
Erected in the Centennial Year to Commemorate Founding of Delta County · 19.0 mi · Historical Marker
As you drive through Cooper, look around – you're in the heart of Delta County! It wasn't always called Delta. The land here, shaped like the Greek letter Delta, sits where the North and South Sulphur Rivers meet. Back…
First Baptist Church of Commerce · 19.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving through Commerce, Texas, where this First Baptist Church started back on November 15th, 1883. Nine charter members kicked things off as the Missionary Baptist Church of Commerce. They met in a shared…
Pleasant Grove School & Cemetery · 19.0 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of the Pleasant Grove School. Land for this community school and its cemetery was donated in the 1870s, and the school grew from a log cabin to larger buildings. Professor D. Speer named it…
Chennault, Claire L. · 19.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the birthplace of Claire Chennault, the legendary commander of the Flying Tigers. In 1937, this Commerce native was asked by China's Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek to build an air force to fight off…
Commerce Churches · 19.1 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of several churches that have occupied this land. The Missionary Baptist Church built here in 1893, followed by the Commerce Church of Christ in 1913. Later, Baptist congregations from Paris…
First Presbyterian Church of Commerce · 19.2 mi · Historical Marker
You're driving past the site of Commerce's First Presbyterian Church, organized way back in November of 1888. Seventeen charter members, led by Reverend J.C. Grow, got together to start the congregation. They met in the…

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