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Paula Carl (Cowee Miller)
Here's just a brief history of the town where I presently reside. Nacogdoches is a city in East Texas, United States. It is the main city of Nacogdoches County. In 2020, about 32,147 people lived there. Nacogdoches is 2-1/2 hour drive north of Houston and 3-1/2 hour drive from Dallas.
Nacogdoches is often called "The Oldest Town in Texas." It is also home to Stephen F. Austin State University, which is known for its programs in forestry and agriculture. Nacogdoches is known as "the oldest town in Texas." People have lived in this area for a very long time, possibly as far back as 10,000 years ago. It was once the main village of the Nacogdoche tribe, who were part of the Caddo Indian group.
The area remained a Caddo Indian settlement until the early 1800s. In 1716, Spain built a mission here called Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe de los Nacogdoches. This was the first European building in the area.
After the French left the region in the 1760s, Spanish officials decided the mission was too expensive. In 1772, they told all settlers to move to San Antonio. Some people were happy to leave, but others had to be forced out by soldiers.
Nacogdoches has been under more flags than the state of Texas! Besides the Six Flags (Spain, France, Mexico, Republic of Texas, United States, Confederacy), it also flew under the flags of the Magee-Gutierrez Republic, the Long Republic, and the Fredonian Rebellion.
In 1820, people from the United States started moving to Nacogdoches. The first English-language newspaper in Texas was printed here. However, the very first newspaper in the 1700s was in Spanish. An old Spanish edition is kept at the local museum.
In 1832, the battle of Nacogdoches happened. Many local settlers joined together to support a federalist government. They successfully drove the Mexican military out of East Texas.
Thomas Jefferson Rusk was an important early settler in Nacogdoches. He was a hero of the Texas Revolution and signed the Texas Declaration of Independence. He also served as a U.S. Senator for Texas. He helped start Nacogdoches University, which was open from 1845 to 1895. The Old Nacogdoches University Building is now a historic landmark.
Sam Houston, another famous figure, lived in Nacogdoches for four years before the Texas Revolution in 1836. He even had a law office downtown.
William Goins, who was of mixed race, ran a local inn, a trucking service, and a blacksmith shop. He also owned a plantation outside Nacogdoches. He helped the Texas Army during the Revolution.
Adolphus Sterne was a merchant who had the nicest home in town. Famous people like Sam Houston and David Crockett often visited him. His diary is a great source of information about early Nacogdoches history.
The August Tubbe Plantation is one of the last family-owned plantations in East Texas. It was started in 1859 by August Tubbe, an immigrant from Germany. The plantation grew cotton and sugarcane, and later became important for lumber production. The Tubbe Sawmill was the first water-powered, then steam-powered, sawmill in Nacogdoches. The Tubbe family is considered one of the "founding families" of Nacogdoches.
In 1859, the first oil well in Texas started working near Nacogdoches. It was drilled by Lyne Taliaferro Barret. He struck oil in 1866, but the project stopped because oil prices dropped. The site was not as famous as Spindletop, but it is still known as the first and oldest oil well in Texas.
In 1912, the Marx Brothers performed their singing act at the old Opera House in Nacogdoches. There's a historic plaque downtown to remember this event.
John Wayne even mentioned the town in some of his movies, like Big Jake.
On February 1, 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart when it returned to Earth. Many pieces of the shuttle landed in the Nacogdoches area. News reports about finding the debris often focused on Nacogdoches. My son found several pieces of the shuttle on his property. That was such a tragedy
In 2019 The median age in Nacogdoches was 24.4 years old. The low average age is affected by the 13,000 college students. The average household income in the city was $54,444 from 2014 to 2019. About 31% of the city's population lived at or below the poverty line.
Old North Baptist Church, on U.S. Highway 59 four miles north of the city limits of Nacogdoches, is the oldest active Baptist church in Texas. It was originally called Union Baptist Church because settlers from various religious denominations made up the first congregation. The Battle of San Jacinto April 26, 1836 officially ended the war with Mexico and Old North was founded on Sunday, May 6, 1838. I am a member of this church.
Paula, this was quite a thesis! Is this the picture you wanted to post...?
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