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
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
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
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
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
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
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
"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
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
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
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
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
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
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
Front:
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 . . . — — 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
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
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
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
Main engagement of Cherokee War; fought July 15 and 16, 1839, between 800 Indians (including Delawares and Shawnees) and 500 troops of the Republic of Texas.
An extraordinary fact is that David G. Burnet, vice president of the Republic; Albert . . . — — Map (db m87080) HM
A man whose public service was of highest order. Born on a farm near this site in Van Zandt County. Educated at Cumberland University (Tennessee) and Tyler Commercial College, was County Attorney and County Judge of Smith County. As chairman of . . . — — Map (db m84511) HM
Pioneer nickname appropriate to this area’s many freedoms–particularly from want and fear. (Food was obtained with little effort; and although the Indians fought white men here as late as 1842, the settlers by 1847 slept in the open with no . . . — — Map (db m84510) HM
In the early 1920s, an atmosphere of gratefulness for the end of World War I was prevalent throughout the country. In Wills Point, a sense of optimism and interest in urban development led to the formation of a chamber of commerce on December 5, . . . — — Map (db m119621) HM
German-born Oscar Pabst moved to Wills Point from Quitman, Texas in 1879, and he established an apothecary in town along the Dallas-Shreveport Road. After an 1888 fire damaged Pabst’s Store, he relocated it inside a grocery owned by his son-in-law, . . . — — Map (db m237023) HM
Van Zandt County was among the Texas counties that voted for secession in the spring of 1861 as the Civil War loomed. At the outbreak of the conflict, Texas troops began training for service to the Confederate States of America (C.S.A.). Military . . . — — Map (db m244647) HM
Provisions for the first African American public school in Wills Point were made around 1878. The school was located on the north side of Wills Point on what is now North Wills Street. In 1926, the school relocated to the south of town on Bertha . . . — — Map (db m244707) HM
Due to a surveyor's error, the county seat of Van Zandt County was located on private property in 1850. An election was called 27 years later because of discontent with the site. On May 28, 1877, County Judge Cadwell Walton Raines ordered court . . . — — Map (db m244615) HM
A trail established by Caddoan Native Americans and later used by French traders who traversed this area is known today as the Dallas-Shreveport Road. The trail emerged in the mid-1830s as a main route into North Texas for emigrants and cargo from . . . — — Map (db m244619) HM
On Feb. 5, 1912, 16-year-old Elbert Gray committed a most heroic act. Two-year-old Calvin Stepp had fallen into a water well sixty feet deep and barely one foot across. Lowered by rope, Elbert descended feet first to carry Calvin to safety, but near . . . — — Map (db m244636) HM
On May 6, 1901, 21 Wills Point men met in the law office of W.B. Wynne to organize the Fin & Feather Hunting and Fishing Club to be located at Thorn Lake. The Texas & Pacific Railroad Company built Thorn Lake to provide water for their steam . . . — — Map (db m244634) HM
The First Baptist Church of Wills Point was founded in 1873, with Dr. J. L. Matthews, a doctor of medicine, serving as the first pastor. In 1876 the 30-member congregation erected a building, which is said to have been destroyed in a tornado the . . . — — Map (db m119610) HM
Founded in 1882, the congregation first met in the Presbyterian church, and a cotton gin pond north of town was used for baptisms. A church building was erected in 1886, and in 1891 a baptistry was added. The first in town, it was offered for use by . . . — — Map (db m237011) HM
Shortly after the arrival of the railroad caused an economic boom in the Wills Point area, a private bank was founded by John E. Owens in 1879. It was granted a Federal bank charter in 1895.
Following a state and federal bank holiday in 1933, . . . — — Map (db m244622) HM
Built 1874 for Thomas J. and Mattie Cornelia Bagby McKain-- first couple married in Wills Point. McKain had come to Texas in 1870 from Florida; his bride, born in Virginia, was educated at Old Trinity University, Tehuacana. McKain (1849-1922), a . . . — — Map (db m244627) HM
German brothers B. W. and Isaac Edward “Ike” Rose came to nearby Cedar Grove in 1873 and the same year moved to Wills Point, where they opened Rose Dry Goods Store. In 1884, Ike moved to Dallas and was a successful entrepreneur. B. W. . . . — — Map (db m119620) HM
The W.O. Rowden family moved from Gurley, Alabama to
Van Zandt County in 1895 and, in 1898, the family moved to
the H.H. Carmack place just at the outer edge of Wills Point.
Carmack received a cotton boll from a friend in Florida
and gave it to . . . — — Map (db m244641) HM
Organized 1875 as Wills Point Methodist Episcopal Church, South, after a retired minister, James A. Scruggs, had led services for some years. The Rev. L. P. Lively became first resident pastor in 1878. The earliest sanctuary, built about 1877 and . . . — — Map (db m244628) HM
Settlers William McBee and Adam Sullivan established the Union Grove community in 1844. McBee built and operated the first corn mill in Van Zandt County, and Union Grove grew to include a Baptist Church and the McBee School. Charles Rufus Peery . . . — — Map (db m244644) HM
The town of Wills Point was established in the early 1870s on the Texas and Pacific Railroad. It was named for the log cabin/trading post established at a nearby site on the Dallas-Shreveport Road by early settler William Wills. This cemetery began . . . — — Map (db m244632) HM
Tennessee native William A. Wills (1804-1864) moved to Texas with his wife, Mary Ann "Polly" (Phillips), and their children in 1847 and settled on the Dallas-Shreveport Road in what became Van Zandt County. They hosted many travelers in their home. . . . — — Map (db m244621) HM
Wills Point city officials under Mayor Thomas J. McKain established a public school system in 1886. Classes began in a rented building on North Fourth Street with Professor W.I. Cowles as the first superintendent. In 1891, trustees purchased 6.1 . . . — — Map (db m244633) HM
In 1877, William B. Wynne came to Wills Point and opened a law practice with his older brother, Richard M. Wynne, who later became a state senator. Four of W.B. Wynne’s sons were associated with the firm. In addition to serving clients, the office . . . — — Map (db m237024) HM