On East James Street at North 4th Street (Farm to Market Road 47), on the right when traveling east on East James Street.
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
On West James Street at North 5th Street, on the left when traveling west on West James Street.
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
On Farm to Market Road 47, 1.8 miles east of County Road 3707, on the right when traveling east.
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
On Bertha Street, 0.1 miles west of South 4th Street, on the left when traveling west.
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
On Houston Street (County Road 3415) at Corky Boyd Avenue (State Highway 64), on the right when traveling east on Houston Street.
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
On Houston Street (County Road 3415) at Corky Boyd Avenue (State Highway 64), on the right when traveling east on Houston Street.
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
Near County Road 3410 at Bama Street, on the right when traveling south.
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 East South Commerce Street, 0.1 miles east of Hatch Street, on the right when traveling east.
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
On East James Street at North 3rd Street, on the right when traveling west on East James Street.
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
On North 3rd Street at East James Street, on the right when traveling north on North 3rd Street.
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
On West North Commerce Street at North 6th Street, on the right when traveling west on West North Commerce Street.
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
On East High Street at McKain Alley, on the right when traveling west on East High Street.
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
On East James Street at North 4th Street (Farm to Market Road 47), on the right when traveling east on East James Street.
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
On County Road 3805 north of U.S. 80, on the right when traveling west.
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
On South 4th Street at East O’Neal Street, on the right when traveling north on South 4th Street.
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
On Farm to Market Road 751, 0.2 miles south of County Road 3812, on the right when traveling south.
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
On Houston Street (County Road 3415) at Corky Boyd Avenue (State Highway 64), on the right when traveling east on Houston Street.
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
On School Street at West O’Neal Street on School Street.
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
On West James Street at North 5th Street, on the left when traveling west on West James Street.
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
