Near Nevada in Collin County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
Empire College
Photographed by Jeff Leichsenring, May 3, 2024
1. Empire College Marker
Inscription.
Empire College. . Near this site operated an important early area school. North Carolina native J.E. "Tarheel" Jones started a public subscription school in 1883 in the Empire Community. Jones was the first teacher at the school first called Bear Creek Academy. The second floor of the two-story frame school building was a meeting hall for Masonic, Eastern Star and Knights of Honor lodges. Subjects taught included latin, mathematics and music, and a dormitory was later built. The Empire Community declined when area railroads bypassed the site. The post office closed in 1888, and the Masonic Lodge moved to Nevada. The college closed in 1890, and the Bear Creek School continued at the site. The Empire College building burned in 1914.
Near this site operated an important
early area school. North Carolina
native J.E. "Tarheel" Jones started a
public subscription school in 1883 in
the Empire Community. Jones was the
first teacher at the school first called
Bear Creek Academy. The second floor
of the two-story frame school
building was a meeting hall for
Masonic, Eastern Star and Knights of
Honor lodges. Subjects taught
included latin, mathematics and music,
and a dormitory was later built. The
Empire Community declined when area
railroads bypassed the site. The post
office closed in 1888, and the Masonic
Lodge moved to Nevada. The college
closed in 1890, and the Bear Creek
School continued at the site. The
Empire College building burned in 1914.
Erected 2009 by Texas Historical Commission. (Marker Number 15762.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Education.
Location. 33° 3.927′ N, 96° 24.22′ W. Marker is near Nevada, Texas, in Collin County. It is on County Road 543 0.1 miles east of County Road 544, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Nevada TX 75173, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the Prairies & Lakes Region and in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the Republic of Texas, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Bear Creek Cemetery (approx. 0.7 miles away); Thompson Cemetery
Credits. This page was last revised on May 4, 2024. It was originally submitted on May 3, 2024, by Jeff Leichsenring of Garland, Texas. This page has been viewed 183 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on May 3, 2024, by Jeff Leichsenring of Garland, Texas. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.
