In 1890 Van Zandt county had 81 schools but none for higher learning. In April 1890, Prof. James F. Davidson and J. W. Downs held a community meeting in the Old Clough School House in Ben Wheeler. They presented a plan, adopted unanimously, to . . . — — Map (db m74158) HM
Just as Native Americans were attracted to this area because of the climate and resources, early settlers also utilized these resources. The area was originally named Clough after George W. Clough (1820-1884) who, in 1868, purchased the 640-acre . . . — — Map (db m73951) HM
The tradition of making syrup from sugar cane and sorghum started in East Texas in the second half of the nineteenth century. Syrup production arrived along with migration from the Deep South to East Texas. Van Zandt County provided the ideal . . . — — Map (db m237028) HM
A settlement known as Mars flourished at this crossroads from the 1880s until about 1930. The intersection of the Tyler-Porter's Bluff Road (now FM 2339) and the Canton-Athens Road (now FM 773) provided a likely site for a community to develop. . . . — — Map (db m310463) HM
Legislator Morgan Gurley Sanders was born near Ben Wheeler. He published newspapers, worked as journal clerk of the state senate and was admitted to the State Bar of Texas before winning a seat in the state legislature. His public service as a . . . — — Map (db m74159) HM
Associated for many years with the Prairie Springs Methodist Episcopal Church, South, this cemetery dates to 1866, when the infant grandson of R. W. Berry was buried here. Berry formally deeded land for the graveyard in 1880, although several other . . . — — Map (db m310454) HM
Organized in July 3, 1875, and born of the Bacon Presbytery in the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, Stanger Springs Church began with 27 charter members under the leadership of the Rev. J. W. Vance. The church building, originally made of pine and . . . — — Map (db m310458) HM
The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is a two-seat, all-weather, long-range, supersonic interceptor fighter/fighter-bomber/reconnaissance aircraft that was developed for the U.S. Navy and used from 1960 to 1996. The F-4 could fly over 1500 miles per . . . — — Map (db m247167) HM
These flags are sponsored by the family of
1st Lt. Robert A. "Bob" Reese
in honor of his service in Europe with the
US Army Air Corps 1942-1945.
World War II P-47 Thunderbolt ("Jug") Fighter Pilot.
He flew 109 missions, was awarded . . . — — Map (db m247171) WM
In honor of the men and women of Van Zandt County who served in the armed forces of our country preserving our freedom and our way of life — — Map (db m247170) WM
Known as the oldest house in Canton, this residence was built for Henry F. Blackwell, II, and his wife Nannie Jane Blackwell. An early merchant in Canton, Blackwell also served as county sheriff. Records state the house was built in 1886, and was . . . — — Map (db m285761) HM
Born in Georgia, Raines came to Texas in 1858. After serving in Gen. R. M. Gano's Texas Cavalry Regiment in the Civil War, he was a teacher in New Braunfels and a lawyer in Canton. Van Zandt County Judge from 1876 to 1878, he played a major role in . . . — — Map (db m54081) HM
The Texas Legislature created Van Zandt County in 1848. It originally included nearly 2,000 square miles of territory. Jordan's Saline, now Grand Saline, was near the county's geographic location and became the first seat of government. Two years . . . — — Map (db m187057) HM
Martha and John Pate Carter brought their family to Van Zandt County about 1851 and were among the first settlers in this area. Although local oral tradition holds that the first person buried in the cemetery was a nine-year-old son of the Carters, . . . — — Map (db m308519) HM
The community of Cool Springs was named for
approximately one dozen springs and seeps that dot the
immediate area. The site is also the dividing line between
the watersheds of the Trinity River, Sabine River and
Neches River. When the Van Zandt . . . — — Map (db m310476) HM
Robert K. Gibbs and his family settled in this area in the early 1850s. A gravestone for an infant daughter of R. K. and Sarah Gibbs reveals the earliest documented burial in this cemetery to be November 1853. Robert Daniel Cox (1842-1898) acquired . . . — — Map (db m310447) HM
Before discovery of a dip (1894) and vaccine (1898), the American cattle industry faced ruin, as it lost $40 million annually from cattle tick fever. In 1918, tick eradication began in East Texas, with colorful, exciting "dipping days" enforced . . . — — Map (db m285757) HM
On September 2, 1915, the Canton Herald announced plans for a new hotel. Its site along the Dixie Highway gave the hotel its name and a prime location to attract travelers and residents. The hotel’s square floor plan included two full floors . . . — — Map (db m187055) HM
The Wynne community of Canton is one of the oldest African American communities in Texas. Its namesake, Edmund Arnold Wynne, was born June 18, 1850, in Cherokee County to a family of slaves. His family moved to the Big Rock area of Van Zandt County . . . — — Map (db m247166) HM
First organized church in city. Founded under leadership of the Rev. J. B. McDaniel, first pastor, Sept. 21, 1871. Charter members: Francis M. and Sue L. Hobbs; Mary King; Montgomery W. and Nancy Knox; Melissa J. and Silphia McCarthy; Elizabeth, . . . — — Map (db m237010) HM
On the first Monday of each month in the early 1850s, Judges Oran M. Roberts and Bennett H. Martin held court in Canton, an event attended by townspeople and country folk alike.
With large numbers of people present, court day also became the . . . — — Map (db m187058) HM
In 1852, shortly after Canton became Van Zandt County's seat of government, local families began hosting Methodist services in their homes as a mission of the Athens Methodist Episcopal Church. The Canton worshipers met in homes and under brush . . . — — Map (db m237017) HM
George Washington Tull, Sr. (1827-1917), better known as G. W. Tull, was one of the earliest and most successful merchants in Canton. His family migrated from Georgia, where G. W. was born, to Alabama, Mississippi, and then Tennessee. In 1852, G. W. . . . — — Map (db m187053) HM
The first burial in this public cemetery, that of Nancy Jane Hubbard, took place in 1859, six years after the High community was first established. More than 100 graves date from the 19th century. Many members of the High family, including Samuel . . . — — Map (db m305676) HM
Located within the original 1850 town plat of Canton, this cemetery has served citizens of this area for well over a century. The oldest documented burial is that of Ann Calhoon (1807-1860). Among those buried here in marked and unmarked graves are . . . — — Map (db m28120) HM
The Hilliard family has long been identified with the general trade business in Canton. Founded because of its central location, Canton became the seat of Van Zandt County in 1850. George McIntosh Hilliard came to Texas in the 1870s and migrated to . . . — — Map (db m187056) HM
Isaac Van Zandt
1813-1847
Member of the Congress
of the Republic - 1841-1842
Charge D’Affaires to the
United States - 1842-1844
In 1845 - Member of the
Constitutional Convention
Frances C. Lipscomb Van Zandt
1816-1909 . . . — — Map (db m187282) HM
Influential Texas politician Isaac Van Zandt was born on July 10, 1813. He lived in Tennessee and Mississippi until he moved to the Republic of Texas in 1838. After settling in Harrison County, Van Zandt served as congressman for Harrison County in . . . — — Map (db m187064) HM
John Henninger Reagan was born in 1818 to Timothy Richard and Elizabeth Reagan in Sevier County, Tennessee. He worked at his father's tannery and on the family farm, attending school sporadically, until leaving the state in 1838.
Reagan came in . . . — — Map (db m54002) HM
This church was organized in 1893. The congregation met at the Farmers Alliance Hall before building their first sanctuary in 1894. Louis Manuel Parsons deeded over two acres, which included the newly constructed building, to the church in 1896. A . . . — — Map (db m308517) HM
The Mt. Pisgah community was founded by farming families who came to the area in the 1860s and 1870s from Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church was established ca. 1870, and Wade H. Walters deeded property for the . . . — — Map (db m308520) HM
In 1858, William and Nancy Palmer deeded five acres of land for a Methodist church and cemetery. The oldest tombstone in the graveyard, that of six-month-old Isaac Willingham, also dates from that year. In 1895, the church building was removed from . . . — — Map (db m285755) HM
A South Carolina-born Alabama legislator, Oran M. Roberts came to San Augustine, Texas in 1841. He served in district and state judicial positions, including the first district court in Canton in 1850, and was president of the Secession Convention . . . — — Map (db m53959) HM
Gen. Joseph O. Shelby's command refused to surrender at the close of the Civil War. Shelby's men, the First Missouri Cavalry of the Confederate States of America, marched via Clarksville to Van Zandt County, proceeding through Grand Saline to Canton . . . — — Map (db m237016) HM
In 1894, the Van Zandt County Commissioners Court approved construction of a new brick courthouse at this site. Built between 1894 and 1896, it replaced a frame courthouse that had served the county since shortly after the Civil War. The noted San . . . — — Map (db m53917) HM
James F. Starr, acting as attorney for Sarah F. Clapp, executed a deed donating two acres of land at this site for a community school on September 14, 1886. Burials occurred here as early as 1889, and in 1911 a cemetery was officially established . . . — — Map (db m255896) HM
"The Canton Herald" has been in continuous operation since 1882. Ellis Campbell (1882-1945), publisher of the "Wills Point Chronicle," purchased the "Herald" in 1915. Campbell and his wife Mary Jane (Gilmore) built a family publishing business that . . . — — Map (db m187054) HM
In 1867, a group of citizens, resentful of Northern control of the State and county, attempted to secede from Texas and the U.S. General Philip Sheridan, Commander at New Orleans, sent federal troops to restore order – resulting in a battle, won by . . . — — Map (db m247165) HM
The youngest of seven children born to William and Elizabeth
(Jones) Towles, Thomas Jefferson Towles was born on December
29, 1843, in Jones County, Georgia. After losing his father in 1847
and his mother in 1854, Thomas came to Van Zandt County, . . . — — Map (db m237031) HM
A portion of the original
Mercer Grant created from
Henderson County in 1848
Named in honor of the illustrious
statesman Isaac Van Zandt
Born in Tennessee, July 10, 1813
Delegate to the Annexation
Convention in 1845
Died in . . . — — Map (db m187059) HM
Built in 1937 with Public Works Administration funds, this is the sixth building to serve as the Van Zandt County Courthouse. According to local lore, the Commissioners Court decreed that a modern courthouse should be erected in order to provide . . . — — Map (db m54055) HM
In the early days of Van Zandt County, families, churches and charitable organizations took care of people in need. After the civil war, the high number of indigents forced an addendum to the state constitution making care for the poor the . . . — — Map (db m187051) HM
Settled in the 1840s, the Wallace community grew into a rural trading center with a general store and school. This Methodist congregation, organized in 1889 by the Rev. W.D. Wheeler and eight charter members, met first in the schoolhouse. W.H. . . . — — Map (db m305677) HM
Settled in the 1840s, Wallace community grew into a rural trading center with a general store and school. This Methodist congregation, organized in 1889 by the Rev. W. D. Wheeler and eight charter members, met first in the schoolhouse. W. H. . . . — — Map (db m305678) HM
The Watkins community was settled in the mid-1800s. M. Crosby and his wife Isabell Crosby deeded land for a church and cemetery to the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in 1872. The first recorded burial in this cemetery is that of John I. Sewell, . . . — — Map (db m305679) HM
The oldest marked grave in Oakland Cemetery is that of Oscar Lee who was born and died on the same November day in 1882. The earliest recorded school building at Oakland was erected in 1885. It served as a non-denominational church on Sundays and . . . — — Map (db m255897) HM
In 1858, Milo and Martha Manning
arrived from Kentucky with eight
children, including son Wentworth
(1847-1921), for whom the community
is named. He became a businessman
and land owner. Starr School, the
first free school in the area, . . . — — Map (db m255893) HM
In 1883, A.L. Kellam donated five acres of land that helped establish this cemetery. The first burial, which took place in 1884, was that of Elisha Tunnell, founder of Tunnell's Chapel, the rural community which later became known as Colfax. Land . . . — — Map (db m308516) HM
Adolphus Lane Spradlin (1863-1946) came to Texas from Indiana in 1875 with his parents. He settled at Hiram in Kaufman County and married Lee Ann Henson (1864-1939), of Cherokee ancestry. In 1898 he bought land in the Van Zandt County community of . . . — — Map (db m245164) HM
A post office opened at the crossroads settlement of Barren Ridge in 1850, and James Bundy was named the first postmaster. Because there was already a post office in Smith County called Canton and the postal service would not grant a post office by . . . — — Map (db m296290) HM
In 1911, B.J. Carter (1875-1934) moved to Edgewood with his wife, Sallie Abigail (Smyre) (1880-1966), and their three daughters. B.J. Carter was a schoolteacher before becoming a certified pharmacist. After arriving in Edgewood, the couple jointly . . . — — Map (db m244652) HM
This church grew from services led by a Canton Methodist circuit rider in the late 1870s. The first sanctuary (1 blk. W) was built on land deeded in 1879 by the Texas & Pacific Railroad. Early church buildings were shared with the public school. In . . . — — Map (db m244613) HM
District Judge-Elect John C. Robertson (1824-1895) and his partner, W. S. Herndon (1837-1903), gave land in 1878 for a railroad depot. This started Edgewood community. Citizens of Canton moved their shipping here from Wills Point due to the Van . . . — — Map (db m245158) HM
Elders E.B. Eakin and S.E. Reeves organized the original fifteen members of this congregation in December 1890. During its first two years of existence, the fellowship met for worship in several locations, including the community schoolhouse, under . . . — — Map (db m245160) HM
Established by 1894, this burial ground serves the Highland community. In the 1880s, pioneering farmers settled the area after construction of a road which allowed easier access to markets. In 1889, John and Elizbaeth Valentine deeded property for . . . — — Map (db m296288) HM
Built by Virgil Henson (1882-1967) and W.A. Covin (1871--1946) in 1909, this structure housed the First State Bank of Edgewood. Started by J.P. Downs (1879-1932), it later became the First National Bank. In 1918 a second floor was added, providing . . . — — Map (db m244624) HM
Population growth along the Dallas-Shreveport road during the late 19th
century brought about the need for a
school in this portion of Van Zandt
County. Although it is known that
Slaughter School existed by 1883 at a
different location, in . . . — — Map (db m296287) HM
William Henry (1862-1917) and Molly (1867-1945) Humphries joined a large migration of Mississippi families to Edgewood in the early 1890s. Humphries opened a general store, acquired many acres of farmland, and became a business leader in the growing . . . — — Map (db m244626) HM
The first recorded burial on this site was that of Asbury Lowery (1836-1855). The new burial ground was named in his memory. In 1863, Prairie Flower (1858-1863), the young daughter of celebrated Comanche Indian captive Cynthia Ann Parker and . . . — — Map (db m105485) HM
On this site the
Cherokee Chief Bowles was killed on July 16, 1839 while leading 800 Indians of various tribes in battle against 500 Texans. The last engagement between Cherokees and whites in Texas. — — Map (db m91605) HM
Oral tradition links this church to the original County Line Baptist Church of 1851, the earliest recorded attempt of area African American families to create a community of worship. County Line Colored Missionary Baptist Church was founded in 1872 . . . — — Map (db m31867) HM
According to available records the town of Edom has occupied three different locations and is the third oldest town in Van Zandt County. James Coltharp and A. C. Beall settled six miles east of here in 1849, built a sawmill, and named the town . . . — — Map (db m293972) HM
Officially organized in 1874 with the Rev. D. L. Lake as first pastor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South of Edom is believed to have been founded as early as 1859, relocating to this site in the 1920s. A singing school began in 1866 and a . . . — — Map (db m293970) HM
One of the first Baptist churches in Van Zandt County, this congregation traces its origins to the 1850s when early settlers organized a Baptist church in this vicinity. Elder J. J. Whitmore was the first pastor. Membership increased as new families . . . — — Map (db m293969) HM
The first grave here was that of 19-year-old Elizabeth Carolina Piles, who died May 4, 1856. Buried nearby are her sister Melissa, who died two days later, and her father John Piles (1802-57), on whose land the cemetery was located. Included among . . . — — Map (db m310450) HM
Stephen Ingram, who served in the U.S. Army in the second Seminole War (1835-1842), moved to Van Zandt County with his wife Elizabeth (McKleroy) and their family in 1850, building log homes on this site by the Tyler-Porter's Bluff Road. Stephen . . . — — Map (db m310457) HM
Artist Doug Brown (1943-2020) opened Edom's first pottery shop in 1971 and began making original creations. Brown's shop used a distinctive color technique, and the store begame a heaven for other craftsmen to learn and perfect their trade. His . . . — — Map (db m293976) HM
Built 1854 by B. H. Hambrick, from Virginia. Headquarters for 3,000-acre property. Colonial architecture. Pegged mortise and tenon construction. Joists are 48-ft. timbers. Bricks were handmade on the plantation. Site, halfway between Dallas and . . . — — Map (db m310455) HM
As was the case in so many small Texas towns in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the cotton gin in Edom was a major element in the economy. First opened at this site in 1918 by Ro Dike, who moved his ginning operation here from Davidson (3 . . . — — Map (db m28115) HM
First mapped in 1846 and 1849 by state surveyors John Lawler and Samuel Huffer, this trail may pre-date Mexican rule. Used as a military road and a cattle trail, it extended from Tyler in Smith County to Porter's Bluff in northwestern Navarro . . . — — Map (db m293965) HM
During the Spanish colonial period in Texas, Jose Francisco Calahorra y Saenz (birth date unknown) served as a Catholic missionary to Native Texans. He began ministering in east Texas by 1730, and was well-respected by many Native Texans, who . . . — — Map (db m296413) HM
Methodists living in Grand Saline during the early years of its settlement traveled to Creagleville (3 mi. W) to attend worship services. In 1889, after Grand Saline experienced a period of growth due to industrial and business expansion, a . . . — — Map (db m237012) HM
The large saline deposit was a major source of salt in Texas during the Civil War. Salt was first obtained by the Indians. In 1854, works were built. Sam Richardson, the owner in 1861, went to war and left his wife to run the works until the . . . — — Map (db m237013) HM
John Jordan established the community of Jordans Saline when he settled here in 1844 and joined with A.T. McGee in organizing a salt company. When Van Zandt County formed in 1848, Jordans Saline was named temporary county seat. Although the county . . . — — Map (db m237020) HM
The first documented mention of a settlement at this site, just west of Jordan's Saline, comes from an 1863 letter by Alice Merrifield. The community was mostly made up of people who fled west to escape the southern battle sites of the Civil War. . . . — — Map (db m255905) HM
A settlement first grew in this area of Van Zandt County beginning in the 1850s, at the junction of the Dallas-Shreveport Road and the Crockett’s Bluff Road. The community was first known as Chrestman, after John W. Chrestman, who purchased property . . . — — Map (db m255898) HM
Pioneer aviator Wiley Hardeman Post was born on November 22, 1898, in the community of Corinth in Van Zandt County, to William Francis and Mae Laine Post, who moved to Oklahoma when Wiley was a boy. Wiley was inspired as a youth to learn to fly. In . . . — — Map (db m237015) HM
Benjamin Franklin Wheeler, namesake for the Ben Wheeler Community, contributed to the development of communications across the region in his mail-carrying career and influenced land ownership in the area. He was born in 1818, in Adair County, . . . — — Map (db m255899) HM
The rural community of Creagleville traces its beginnings to the 1840s. It was named for German native Henry Creagle (1826-1872), who settled in Van Zandt County about 1847. The community was located on the Dallas-Shreveport Road, a major east-west . . . — — Map (db m255906) HM
In 1844 Charles Fenton Mercer led an effort to colonize an area in north central Texas equal to portions of 18 current Texas counties. His contract to settle 500 families in five years was complicated by various legal issues, but land certificates . . . — — Map (db m255902) HM
The church and cemetery at this site are all that remain of the once-thriving community of Corinth. Settled during the 1800s, Corinth boasted a gin, grist mill, blacksmith shop, doctor's office, sawmill, stores, and a school during its early years. . . . — — Map (db m255907) HM
Land for this cemetery was first deeded in 1886 by James Richardson (1814-1887), on whose land grant the Corinth community had developed. Over the years, additional acreage for the graveyard has been given by members of the D. D. Richardson, Oliver, . . . — — Map (db m255908) HM
Providence Community comprised mostly of small family
farms, is located in the far northeast section of Van Zandt
County straddling the Smith County line. Since 1845,
colonization of the area was encouraged with land
grants, and many immigrants . . . — — Map (db m237026) HM
Early Elm Grove community leader Anthony Hyde originally donated this property as land for a local school and church in 1881. It was first used as a cemetery in 1883 for the burial of his grandchild. In 1886 Hyde gave an additional five and one-half . . . — — Map (db m285763) HM
This community church traces its history to the early 1870s. A log structure used as a church, school, and community gathering place was built on land owned by early settler Anthony Gray Hyde in 1875. Called Hyde Schoolhouse, it served the community . . . — — Map (db m285764) HM
Its name meaning "One," Mono school was established in 1895 after two smaller school districts, Elm Grove and Harper, were consolidated. Children in the farming communities of Roddy and Elm Grove attended classes here for over 50 years. At its peak, . . . — — Map (db m285765) HM
Located 10 miles southeast of Canton in Van Zandt County, the Holly Springs United Methodist Church has served the community for over 160 years. The church was organized in 1852 and is named for the native holly trees and fresh water springs near . . . — — Map (db m310452) HM
Educator and noted poet, Lexie Dean Robertson, was the first native born Texan to be named Poet Laureate of Texas (1939-41). Born in Lindale (Smith Co.) to educators Alexander Green and Lena (Ansley) Dean, Lexie and her family moved to Martin’s . . . — — Map (db m310453) HM
Pioneer L.H. Hobbs arrived in this area in about 1850 and was instrumental in the establishment of the community. He owned 320 acres of land, including this site. Hobbs allowed the King family to bury their two-year-old daughter here, marking the . . . — — Map (db m105614) HM
In 1860, Robert K. Gibbs donated three acres of land near this site for the establishment of Holly Springs Methodist Episcopal Church, South. Three years later, during the height of the Civil War, W. E. and Comelia J. Roberts deeded approximately . . . — — Map (db m310451) HM
Located along the Tyler-Porter's Bluff Road, a major route for pioneers coming through Texas from eastern and southern parts of the United States, this burial ground is a reflection of 19th- and 20th-century settlement in this area of Van Zandt . . . — — Map (db m310461) HM
The organizational meeting for this congregation was held in October 1878. Led by Dr. George D. Staton, who also served as first pastor, the fourteen charter members adopted the name Myrtle Springs Baptist Church and agreed to meet monthly, a . . . — — Map (db m305674) HM
This community was first called Snider Springs for John Snider who bought the land on which the springs were situated in 1853. A road, later designated State Highway 198, opened from Canton to Snider Springs in 1858, and the town soon boasted . . . — — Map (db m285766) HM
Thomas Horsley received much of the land in this area from the State of Texas in 1847, and settlers began to arrive in the 1850s. Johnson Watts and his family came in 1858 and bought 820 acres of Horsley land. B. H. Denson, his family and 30 slaves . . . — — Map (db m293949) HM
Named for Adelia Pruitt, the first postmistress, the town of Pruitt began in the 1880s. It included a cotton gin, blacksmith shop, general store, barber shop, Woodmen of the World lodge, drug store, school, Methodist church, and congregational . . . — — Map (db m255884) HM
Members of the Redland, Bethlehem, Prairie Creek and Chandler communities met near this site on Ephraim and Malinda Curtis' farm to organize the Mt. Zion Church in 1874. The congregation provided spiritual assistance, community outreach and . . . — — Map (db m310462) HM
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