Shady Grove still has a fine lot of citizens who will tell you that it is a nice place in which to live.
The Calvary Baptist Church
On Friday, June 13, 1936, in a tent just east of the county rock building on the Gladewater road, the Calvary Baptist Church was organized, with 13 charter members. Bros. Obie Barton and J. W. Harper assisted in the organization. A church building was then erected on the corner of Cass and Bledsoe Streets, with an auditorium 36 by 48 feet, with four Sunday School class rooms, all of which are air conditioned. A little later an adjoining lot was purchased on which was built a nice five-room parsonage and a garage.
Mr. J. M. Hays set out shade trees all around the parsonage and church building and kept them watered for several years until they became well set. Some of them are large enough now to make a good shade. They will serve as a living monument to the memory of J. M. Hays for many years to come.
The membership of the Calvary Baptist Church at present is about 200.
Edd Spier, Obie Barton, Jack Bullard, H. D. Martin, and the present pastor, Roy Alford, have served the church.
East Mountain
In the history of East Mountain there are several colorful incidents, and several major steps in its final development. The bare story of this community’s development is intensely interesting to its present day citizens. It is interesting to go back to when your grandfather and his companions blazed the first trails, when deer, fox, turkey, and other wild game were plentiful, and when the Indians held their pow-wows on the summit of the picturesque little mountain.
Settlers
Buck Smith, grandfather of County Superintendent Frank T. Smith, settled here some time in the 1870’s, where C. H. Landers now lives. W. W. Bowden settled here about the same time. Sam Salter Sr. also settled here in the latter part of the 1870’s. He ran a horse-power cotton gin. William Ramey lived at the Jones place. Mr. Caldwell settled in the northern part of the community at what is still known as the Caldwell place. Mr. Mackey, father of Charley Mackey, lived here in the early days and helped to develop the community. Mr. Jones, father of John and Lee Jones, settled at the E. S. Salter place. Fayett Loden settled at the J. M. Everett place. J. M. Everett settled here in 1882. Thomas Wells came here from Erath County in 1885 and settled where his widow still lives. In the following year, A. G. Loden settled at the Allison place. In all, up to this time, there were about twelve families in the community.
Schools
There were no free schools in those days. Parents had to pay for their children’s tuition. Money was scarce and the teacher’s salary was low, and the terms of school short. They put up a log school house somewhere about where the cemetery is now located. They hired Tom Jones to teach a two months school at a salary of twenty-eight dollars a month. He had only seven pupils.
After the discovery of oil in this part of the county, East Mountain entered upon a period of sure-enough development. People became rich overnight, and new homes, new churches, and new schools were built. The East Mountain High School was organized in 1933-34. It is now one of the outstanding high schools of East Texas. The building and equipment cost $250,000. They are affiliated with the State University with 33 credits. They operate six buses in carrying the pupils to and from school. They have a cafeteria in the building, and maintain a brass band. They use 18 teachers and have 330 students.
Churches
The first church established at East Mountain was a congregation of Primitive Baptists. It was organized sometime in the latter part of the 1870’s, in a little log school house, where they continued to meet for a while. H. B. Jones was the first pastor. Caldwell and Smith were the first deacons. A church building was put up in 1881, and the present brick building was erected in 1933.
A Missionary Baptist Church was organized in 1914.
A Church of Christ was also established in about 1937 or 1938.
East Mountain secured a postoffice back in the early days with H. B. Jones as first postmaster. The office was known as “Savannah” for a while, but was later changed to East Mountain. Route No. 2 was established out of Gladewater in 1906 or 1907. Mr. Graves was the first mail carrier.
Mr. Salter ran a horse-power gin back in the beginning, and a little later on, Mr. Wells put in a steam gin, and ran a sawmill in connection with the gin. About 1905 Mr. Fenton put in a steam gin. H. B. Jones and Thomas Wells both ran stores. There is one store at East Mountain now, run by C. H. Pittman.
Grice
Grice was originally Hamils Chapel. On the western border of Upshur County, at the edge of the “Big Woods,” was the modest little settlement of Hamils Chapel. Only a few people lived near here, and the community was unknown a few miles away. The land was heavily timbered, and the settlers had a task in removing this timber from the farm lands. Thousands of feet of fine pine timber was wasted and destroyed.
Settlers
Some of the settlers back in the 1880’s were: Mr. Moon and his sons, John and Robert; Daniel Burnett, Tobe Davis, Alec Davis, Mr. Grice, who ran a little store and became the first postmaster. Sam Hill, William Fennell, Ben Lankford, Will Davis, John LaRue, Mr. Holmes, Mr. Cavitt, and a number of others.
In 1891, Mr. Grice put in a little store here and got a postoffice established. The postoffice was named Grice in honor of Mr. Grice, who became the postmaster. The church and school was, for a while, known as Hamils Chapel, but was later changed to “Grice.”
Anyone was allowed to sell whiskey at that time, so Bob Moon put in a little saloon and did a big business. John Bates moved from Soules Chapel community and put in a general merchandising business. A cotton gin was put up, and new settlers moved in. For a while the school was taught in the church house, but later on a school building was erected. About this time a Rev. Weatherby, a Congregational preacher, came in here and established a church, and another church building was erected on the original church grounds.
A Mr. Cone, a sawmill man, came in here sometime in the 1880’s and bought up all this pine timber and put in a big sawmill. This added many more inhabitants to the community, and increased the attendance of the school.
The community has changed considerably in the past fifty years. The old people of the 1890’s have passed on to their reward, and the young ones have become old. Mr. Allen now operates a store at the Pittsburg and Gilmer, and the Big Sandy and Simpsonville roads. The postoffice has long been discontinued, and the school has joined the Harmony consolidated school district, with the building located near Rosewood. School buses carry the pupils to and from school, and they have all modern conveniences.
Pleasant Hill
About nine miles southwest of Gilmer is located the old-settled community of Pleasant Hill. Back in the 1870’s, 1880’s and 1890’s, Pleasant Hill was a progressive community. People drifted in here from Harrison and other counties, and from the old states, and Pleasant Hill had its beginning. The early settlers and builders of Pleasant Hill were some of the best people in Texas. John T. Holloway, Madison Read, Joe Mathis, Henry Bauman and many other noted families settled at Pleasant Hill.
John T. Holloway, a Christian evangelist, held meetings here and established a church at an early date. John Mathis ran a county store and cotton gin and grist mill. Henry Bauman ran a blacksmith and general work shop.
A building for church and school was erected on a little deviation, hence the name, Pleasant Hill. The land at that time was fresh and fertile. The farmers made good crops and were prosperous. Wild game was plentiful in the woods, which furnished a means of recreation and sport as well as meat for the settler’s table.
Back in the early days, good schools were scarce. The state had but little money to finance schools, hence the public schools were poor. Our best schools were private institutions, financed by private individuals, by tuition, or by church organizations.
Sometime in the 1880’s, Prof. T. J. Allison established a private school in connection with the public school at Pleasant Hill. He erected a two-story frame building, and equipped it for high school work. He conducted a large school here for several years, with pupils coming from the surrounding settlements. One particular feature in regard to all early schools, we note, was the thoroughness of their work. Pupils were required to master a subject before they passed it. Public examinations were held at the close of the term, and each class was examined on the entire term’s work. These public examinations were important occasions attended by the entire community.
Prof. Allison sold his school to the local community in a few years and took up the practice of medicine. C. B. Reader succeeded him.
In about the year 1900, the town of Pritchett began to be built up on the Cotton Belt railroad near Pleasant Hill, and the business and a number of the citizens of Pleasant Hill moved over to the new town. Prof. W. W. Saunders established the Pritchett Preparatory Institute in 1891, and the history of Pritchett began. A considerable town was built up, with a number of nice residences, several stores, a postoffice and a bank. After the Pritchett Normal Institute ceased to function, the citizens of Pritchett established a high school which was affiliated with the State University and received pupils from the nearby districts whose grades were not taught in their home schools. The school building was destroyed by fire, and the school ceased to function as a receiving school. Later, the school united with Gladewater and the high school pupils are carried to that school. A modern rock school building was erected at Pritchett, where an elementary school is now maintained.
Some Early Settlers of Pleasant Hill
Sam McCullough settled about three miles north of Pleasant Hill in 1845. His nearest neighbor at that time was eight miles away. A Mr. Samples and a Mr. Jacobs settled here shortly after Mr. McCullough came. Jim and John Lockhart settled near what is now Pritchett, in 1861. About 1870, J. M. Baker, a minister of the Methodist Church, settled here.
On December 24, 1865, John T. Holloway and Ed E. Elder came from Rusk County and established a church and school at Pleasant Hill. Aunt Texas Mings is the last surviving charter member of this church, established by her father. John T. Holloway was a minister of the gospel and a music teacher. These early settlers were fond of music and the first Sunday in each month was devoted to singing with a public lunch spread at noon.
Union Grove
Back in the 1880’s and 1890’s, there were only a few settlements in what is now known as the Union Grove area. Mr. John O’Byrne settled a few miles to the east, where he ran a large sawmill business. Bill Phillips settled near old Union Grove. Jim Victory settled where Nick Sherman now lives. Mr. Watkins came here in 1892 and settled where he now lives. John Mackey settled about one half mile east of the present location of the Union Grove school, and Rufus Gay settled about one mile west.
At first there was a little school house put up over near Mr. O’Byrne but was later moved to the present location about three miles north of Gladewater on the Gilmer road. There has never been a church building at Union Grove. At one time a few members of the Church of Christ met in the school house, but they disbanded and the members went either to West Mountain or Gladewater.
When oil was discovered in this area, the people who owned land here became rich before they knew it. Oil wells were drilled, people rushed in from everywhere, and leases and royalties were sold. Today the country is covered with oil wells and beautiful modern residences. The people have all late conveniences and are independent and happy.
The most outstanding feature of Union Grove is the school. It stands second to none in this part of the country. After oil was discovered here, wells were drilled on the school property, which enabled them to build a first class school. A magnificent brick building was erected and the school put on high school basis in 1933. It was affiliated with the State University in 1935-36, and became a member of the Southern Association in 1937-38. The school operates a number of buses bringing in pupils from the surrounding districts. They use 18 teachers and have 36 units of affiliation.
Soules Chapel
About ten miles northwest of Gilmer, a few miles west of the old Cherokee Trace, is the pioneer settlement of Soules Chapel. The church and community were named for a bishop in the Methodist Church by the name of Soules. He probably was the first minister to preach at that place. Mr. Williams, father of Sam and Louis Williams, who used to be important citizens of the community, donated the land for the location of a Methodist Church. This was sometime in the early 1880’s.
Settlers
The early settlers came into the Soules Chapel community in the wee days of Texas history, and settled on large tracts of land, which were later divided up and occupied by new settlers. The early settlers here, like those in other parts of the country, first built log houses in which they lived till sawmills were installed to convert these pine forests into lumber. Early settlers brought their slaves with them, who helped to clear the land and build these log houses.
There were several old settled places which served rather as land marks in the community. The Williams place, the Robertson place, the Bailey place, the Morris place, and others. John Bates lived on part of the Williams place. Wash Spencer was living on the Robertson place when he died. The Robertson place now belongs to Ustice Spencer. T. G. Morris now lives on the Isom Hill place. There was the Hogan place, later occupied by the Blounts, Floyds, and Whitesides. William Fennell lived on the Jim Bates place, which was part of the Robertson land, and is now occupied by Horace Morris. Mr. Fennell came from South Carolina to Texas. He first went to Waco, but moved from there to Upshur County and settled at Grice. Later, more than fifty years ago, he moved to Soules Chapel and settled on the old Kerns place. This Kerns was the father of Charlie Kerns, who once lived in Gilmer. The Schrum place was originally settled by a Mr. Nelson, father of Lent and Ed Nelson of Pittsburg. I. E. Hill moved with his parents to where he now lives, when he was five years old.
The Methodist Church is the only church in the community.
A common district school has been maintained since the origin of the community. The high school pupils are now transported by bus to the Harmony consolidated high school.
Fletcher Morris ran a horse-power gin here in the early days. Wash Spencer ran a steam-power gin and mill. Thee Spencer operates a gin in the community at present. He also runs a sawmill in connection with the gin. A. J. Morris runs a store at Soules Chapel at present.
The community is served by a mail route out of Gilmer. There are a number of nice, modern rock residences along the roadsides, and the community has the air of prosperity.
Graceton
Graceton began to be settled up during the 1880’s. Judge Walton Simpson owned a large body of land here, and he donated the land for the erection of a church building. He had a daughter named Grace, and he named the community Graceton, in honor of her.
Early Settlers
L. S. Covin settled here in 1866. He bought a section of land from Judge Simpson. He gave all his boys a home from it. Jim Hallmark settled two miles west of the Covin place, while G. A. Floyd settled two miles north. They each operated large farms. W. H. Greer settled where L. L. Covin now lives. Edmond Greer came here in about 1855. He had a large family and settled them around him. J. B. Oliver bought land from W. H. Aaron, where some of the Oliver family still live.
Churches
The Methodist Church was the first church organized at Graceton. It has later disbanded, however. The Walnut Creek Baptist Church was organized and is still kept up. Later a Church of Christ was established.
Schools
Graceton operated a common district school until the New Diana high school was built, which now serves this community.
Industries
J. N. Hooton ran a gin, grist mill and sawmill, all combined. A number of these farmers operated large plantations and used a number of negro hands. Each individual farm had its own cotton gin. Sugar cane was raised in the creek and branch bottoms. Some of the farmers would make as much as a thousand gallons of syrup in one year.
When the Marshall and East Texas railroad was built through here, a considerable little town was built up at Graceton. A post office was located at Diana, with one store. The post office was changed to Graceton, and L. L. Covin served as postmaster for seventeen years. When the railroad went out of business, Graceton, like all other towns on the line, went down.
Graceton now has two stores run by Les Wilson and Otis Smith. Dr. Garrett settled in the eastern part of the community where he looked after the health of the community. The town was generally served by doctors from Coffeeville, however.
The post office was discontinued and the community is served by route No. 5 from Gilmer.
Glenwood
About fifteen miles southeast from Gilmer is the settlement of Glenwood, one of the most popular and progressive communities in Upshur County.
When Texas was a Republic, and even after it joined the United States, all the land in East Texas was considered government land, or public land, and everyone felt free to use the land or timber without permission from anyone. Consequently some of the large cotton growers from Louisiana would come into East Texas with their slaves and clear up large tracts of land and put it in cotton. In a few years they would move on to other parts. These fields would be left to grow up in pine bushes. When the first settlers came into this part of the country, they found a few fields that had once been in cultivation.
Near the close of the Civil War, settlers began to locate in the Glenwood area. They established a post office and Mr. Wiley Florence was first postmaster, who named the post office and the community. No one knows where he got the name, but he selected the romantic name of Glenwood. This was in 1865 or 1866. The post office was kept in Mr. Florence’s house for a while, but was later established at its present location. Mr. Bledsoe followed Mr. Florence as postmaster and continued in office until the post office was discontinued and rural delivery established.
Early Settlers
Wiley Florence, grandfather of Mack and the other Florence boys, settled at what is known as the Florence place, a little southeast of Glenwood. Larkin Berry settled just north of Glenwood. The old home is still standing, but is not occupied at present. O. E. Oliver lives on part of the old homestead. W. J. Bledsoe settled the Bledsoe place a little farther north. The old home, a two-story residence, is not occupied at present. J. J. Wheeler lives on part of the estate, near the old home. Mr. Bledsoe settled here in 1867 and was one of the most influential and progressive citizens. He put in a gin and grist mill when he first settled here, which was operated by horse-power. It was later operated by steam. Later, in 1904, Mr. Bledsoe put in a large sawmill, which he ran for several years. There was a lot of fine pine timber near by and he did a large lumber business. J. J. Wheeler came here from Wood County and married one of Mr. Bledsoe’s daughters in 1893. He located on part of the Bledsoe estate in 1894 and has since that time been active and influential in directing the affairs of Glenwood. The Brawleys came from South Carolina and settled at first near the Florence place. The Brawleys have always been important citizens. There were the Willefords, the Kennards, the Lovells, and many others who united their efforts in building this fine community.
Church
There has never been but one church at Glenwood. Just after the Civil War, Larkin Berry donated a plot of ground for the location of a Methodist Church. A crude building was first used, but later on a nice modern church building was erected and a real live, active church is still making its influence felt in this and adjoining communities.
The land for a cemetery was donated by G. W. Anderson.
Schools
Glenwood has had good schools all along. Mrs. Eugenia Greer Floyd taught the first school. Rev. McClelland also taught in the early days. For a while the school was taught in the church building, but later a house was built at the present location. Charlie Christian established a boarding school here back in the 1880’s. This school exerted a great influence over this part of the county. Later a large two-story building was put up and Glenwood had an excellent school, taught by some of the best teachers of the county. At present, Glenwood has a nice stone school building, fully accredited, with twelve grades, employing eight teachers. It operates two buses in transporting pupils to and from school.
Dr. Buchanan practiced medicine here for a long time. Bill Davis put in the first store at Glenwood and there has been one or two stores here ever since. Jim Darden used to operate a blacksmith shop here.
Coffeeville
Coffeeville, located in the eastern part of Upshur County, claims the honor of being the third or fourth settlement made in East Texas. Tradition says that during the Civil War, or before that time, it was almost impossible to buy coffee anywhere. The settlers used parched corn, okra, and almost everything else as a substitute for coffee. At this time there was quite a little town at Coffeeville and one of the merchants went to Jefferson or Shreveport and brought back a quantity of green coffee! When the settlers learned about it, everybody rushed in to get a supply of coffee. As that was the only place they could buy coffee, they nicknamed it “Coffeeville,” and it has kept the name ever since. Coffeeville has an interesting early history and served as an important distributing point for East-Texas.
Dr. Cunliff was one of the early settlers and practiced medicine here all his active life. Hal Cunliff was post master a long time. This was one of the first post offices established in Upshur County. Mail was brought from Pittsburg by La Fayette and on to Coffeeville, three times a week. Joe Spratt ran a store here at an early date. He brought his goods from Jefferson. J. P. Morgan and Henry Collins ran stores following Joe Spratt. George Murrell ran a store in the present store building, which was at one time used as a saloon. C. W. Williamson settled where he still lives. A public well was dug here back in the early days, and is still in use.
Gerald Hogg, father of the Hogg boys of Gilmer, settled here and raised a large and influential family. Mose Bell ran a gin and grist mill in the early days. Charlie Melton lived here where C. R. Ambrose now lives. A Mr. Wright also ran a store at Coffeeville in the early days. Frank Chapman used to run a blacksmith shop here.
Schools
Coffeeville has maintained a public school during all the years. Lately, two or three districts have consolidated with a nice school building located on the old Hogg homestead. They operate one school bus in carrying the children to and from school.
Churches
At one time there was what was known as the First Baptist Church, The Methodist Church, The Presbyterian Church, and the Northern Missionary Baptist Church. They, at one time, had separate buildings, but they use one common building at present.
Ore City
Ore City is located in the eastern part of Upshur County among the picturesque little hills, rich with iron ore deposits. Ore City was originally a part of the old Murry League, and had a part in the Murry Institute. Its early history is involved in the history of this needed institution.
About 1910, an iron ore boom struck here and Ore City came into existence. A move was put on foot to develop the millions of tons of valuable ore lying in these local hills. A company was organized, and a boom was on foot! The town of Ore City was laid off and settlers rushed in and bought building lots. The town began to build up and bid fair for a prosperous city. A post office was secured, a bank established and a number of stores opened up. The ore failed to be developed, as was expected, and the city failed to fill out. The city is still there, however, with its streets and avenues, with its four hundred inhabitants quietly waiting the development of this fine iron ore, which is bound to take place at some time in the near future. Ore City has an interest in the Daingerfield iron industry, and a number of her citizens have stock in that enterprise.
Schools
Back before the Civil War, back in the 1860’s, the Murry Institute, located near the present Ore City, was doing a great work educating the boys and girls of that part of the country. After the institute was discontinued, and after Ore City was built up, they had good schools. They have a nice brick school building, with five class rooms and an auditorium, equipped with all modern aids and helps. An independent district was organized and a bus route established to carry the pupils to and from school.
Present Enterprises
Ore City has two churches, the Missionary Baptist and the Methodist.
Ore City, at present, has five stores, two garages and filling stations, bank, barber shop, post office with rural route. It has a cotton gin and grist mill, and a hammer mill which grinds all kinds of grain and hay for stock feed. Six saw mills are now operating from Ore City, and everybody seems to be busy and contented.
Indian Rock
When the Indians were driven from East Texas, there was found, about five miles east of Gilmer, a large rock. This rock was about thirty feet square, with a comparatively smooth surface containing marks which the Indians had made. The Indians had previously had a settlement or village near this rock. A few scattering settlements were made near this Indian rock at an early date, but the community did not exist as such until about the year 1898. In that year, Bill Johnson, who owned a large tract of land, deeded to the officers of the Missionary Baptist church land for the location of a church building. John Reynolds, who also lived here, deeded a plot of ground for a school building. Henry and George Johnson, sons of Bill Johnson, settled in the community. Bill Johnson first settled where Robert Taylor now lives. John Reynolds settled the Chatman place. Bill and George Johnson both settled up on the road toward Gilmer. Mr. Floyd settled at the Aaron Floyd place, now owned by Willie Starr. Will Ray now owns the Erly Floyd place. Originally all the land in the settlement belonged to the Floyds, Johnsons, and Vivians. Other settlers bought land from them as they moved in. T. O. Baugh settled where he now lives, in 1900. C. H. Baugh settled on an adjoining place. Nims Tilman lived on the Maxie Floyd place, settled by Aaron Floyd. Sam Rogers settled where Otis Shipp now lives. There is a beautiful lake near here, known as the Crosby Lake. A settlement was made near this lake by W. E. Crosby. Steve Barton now owns this home and lake, and his son-in-law, Lofton Berry, lives near by.
Schools
Indian Rock has always had a good school. Frank Smith, now County Superintendent of Upshur County, took charge of the school in 1920 and later organized a high school. A beautiful brick building was put up in 1934, and high school pupils were brought in from the near by districts. This high school was maintained for several years till the scholastic population became so low they were forced to lower their grade. They still have a good school, however, with eight grades and four teachers.
The Baptist Church is the only church in the community, with Otis Shipp and wife, and Willie Floyd, as leaders.
D. F. Smith, Matt Camp, Gordon Carrington, Cleon Floyd, Milton Rash, and W. O. Hancock are the present trustees of the school. Buses from Glenwood and East Mountain, also one local bus, serve the district.
Enterprises
At an early date, the Johnsons put in a cotton gin operated by horse power. Aaron Floyd later put in a gin run by steam. John Reynolds also ran a steam gin. There is no gin in the community at present, however. W. A. Phillips and brothers once ran a saw mill in the community. Luther Stanley and Mont Camp are running saw mills at the present time.
Maxie Floyd runs a store at Indian Rock at present. Clyde Baugh also runs a store here. Mrs. Thornton operates a store at Thornton City, a little farther east. There is a large car wrecking yard, run by Douglas Davis, a little way on the road to Gilmer. Two mail routes from Gilmer serve the district; Routes No. 1 and No. 5.
Floyd Cemetery is located two miles east of the church,
West Mountain
About eight miles south of Gilmer, on the Gilmer and Gladewater road, is a picturesque little mountain, around which, in the early days, a large progressive settlement sprang up. Farther east, is another little mountain, so they were known as East Mountain and West Mountain. This location was ideal for settlement in the pioneer days. With a rich sandy soil, with abundance of pure water and fine timber of all kinds, this made a desirable location for homes.
One of the earliest settlers of West Mountain was John Morgan, who came here from Alabama with his family and a few Negro slaves. He reared a large family of children, three boys and seven girls. The boys were, Mack, Sebern, and Richard. They all remained at West Mountain and raised large families, who were instrumental in building up the fine community of West Mountain. There is no house at present on the place where Richard Morgan settled, but Mrs. Alice Brazille, a granddaughter, owns the property. Tump Morgan, a son of Sebern Morgan, now lives where his father settled. Coleman Starkey now owns the Mack Morgan place. Alph Phillips settled near the center of the community, where he raised a large family. He had three sons, Alpha, James, and Ben. They all remained in the settlement and raised their families. Ras Phillips of Gilmer, now owns most of the Phillips place. When Mr. Phillips settled here he built a large log house, which was removed only a few years ago. This house consisted of two large rooms, twenty-four feet square, with side rooms downstairs, and two large rooms upstairs. It had a hall twelve feet wide and a twelve-foot porch. It had a stock chimney with a fireplace downstairs and one above. It was made of large, hewed logs, and was a relic of the pioneer days.
Lon and Adolph Phillips, who became progressive leaders in the community, and in the county, were sons of Jim Phillips. Otis Phillips now owns the Jim Phillips place. E. C. Shipp now owns and lives on the Ben Phillips place. Mr. Bradshaw also built a log house where they lived for a number of years. Part of the house is still standing, and is owned by a grandson, Douglas Bradshaw. Alph Phillips donated land for the cemetery and school. The Morgans and Phillips were influential in the community and through their leadership, a progressive community was built up. Ben Phillips served in the state legislature, and Lon Phillips served as county clerk and as county judge of Upshur County.
A family of Todds settled here at an early date. V. E. Todd and his sister, Miss Achsa Todd, of Gilmer, are grandchildren of the original Mr. Todd. He settled at or near what is now known as the J. M. Perdue place. Five fine boys of this couple settled here, or nearby. Also one sister, Mrs. J. M. Perdue. Lowe Perdue and his sister, Miss Laman Perdue, now own this place.
Dick Morgan’s oldest daughter married Charley Mackey and reared nine children, all of whom Settled near West Mountain. B. B. Elder and wife, Octa, who is a daughter of Charley Mackey, now live on the old home place.
Church
The Church of Christ is the only church ever established in the immediate settlement of West Mountain. Mr. John O’Burns built a Catholic church near his residence, where regular services are held.
Schools
West Mountain has always had the reputation of having good schools. Mr. J. M. Perdue, an outstanding educator, conducted a school here of considerable note. Prof. Chrisman also taught here. W. A. Phillips, together with his brother, Adolph Phillips, taught here for a number of years. Other good teachers taught here from time to time. Later, after the discovery of oil, a nice rock school building was erected and an excellent school was maintained. A high school was built up at Union Grove, on the Gladewater road, and as the scholastic population became too small at West Mountain to do the grade of work they desired, they consolidated with Union Grove.
Outstanding Characters
The Morgans, Phillips and Mackeys were outstanding leaders in the community. They were all noted singers and took a great interest in the musical development of their local community and the entire county. Monroe Morgan, a son of Richard Morgan, became a music teacher and composer with a state reputation.
Jim Shipp, Lum Smith, and Jim Edwards were also outstanding families who lived at West Mountain. John O’Burns, who ran a large saw mill in the lower part of the settlement, was also an important community leader and builder. B. B. Elder, a retired school teacher and minister of the gospel, now lives at West Mountain, and is an influential leader in the church and in the social affairs of the community.
There has been at least one store at West Mountain all the time. A post office was operated here until rural delivery was established. Dr. Allison practiced medicine here for a number of years. Dr. Pritchett also practiced here.
The oil industry has added greatly to the population and wealth of West Mountain. There are a number of wells in the community, and the citizens have electricity and gas. Rube Smith now runs a store and filling station. The community is served by two mail routes, one from Gilmer and one from Gladewater. The State Highway No. 271 passes through the community and buses make regular trips over this highway.
Mings Chapel
About six miles south of Gilmer, near Glade Creek, is the settlement of Mings Chapel. “Grandpa” Mings and Joseph Beavers were the first settlers in the community and it was named in honor of “Grandpa” Mings. Mr. Mings was the grandfather of Phillip and Mace Mings, formerly of Big Sandy. He brought a number of slaves here with him, and operated a large plantation back before the Civil War. Sam Kelly, father of Tom Kelly, who at one time ran a business at Big Sandy, settled here. Henry Vessel later settled on part of this place. Billy and Jim Mings settled at Cedar Grove near Glade Creek church. Joseph Beavers settled where his son, Hop Beavers, now lives, shortly after the close of the war with Mexico. He served in the Mexican War and received a large tract of land as compensation for his service. James Long settled east of Glade Creek in 1866, just after the close of the Civil War. Mr. Shettlesworth settled near the schoolhouse, where he died. Ed. Beavers now lives on part of the old Mings place. A Mr. Boyington settled near where Bill Palmer now lives. Frank Long now lives on his father’s old place. Jesse Beavers settled near the Long place on Glade Creek.
Churches
A little house was built some time back in the 1850’s to be used as a school house, and also a church house for all denominations. Later, the Missionary Baptist organized a church and built a meeting house near Glade Creek, and named it Glade Creek Church. Brother Christian of Gilmer was once pastor of this church.
Schools
A Mrs. Humphreys taught the first school at Mings Chapel. They used a large, double pen log house. She taught school in one end of the building, while the family lived in the other end. Jeff Allison also taught here in an old dwelling house before the school house was built. Later, a one-room building was put up, with a little belfrey on top, which was used for a number of years. The community now has a large school building, well equipped, teaching eight grades and is accredited with the state university. The school uses buses to transport children to and from the school. Pupils above the eighth grade are transported to East Mountain.
Dr. Hardin, Dr. McCruchin, and Dr. Bill Watkins served the community at different times in the early days. Later, Dr. Shettlesworth practiced here for a number of years before he moved to Pritchett. Jim “Red” Smith ran a cotton gin here and lived where Bill Palmer now lives. Alvin Palmer ran the first store at Mings Chapel about thirty five years age. Will Nation also ran a store here before he went to Gilmer. Joe Youngblood and Lon Craig both operate stores here at the present time. The community has rural electricity, and gets its mail from Gilmer on route No. 3.
Sand Hill
This settlement was begun and named by W. A. Bland about 1898. It was named Sand Hill because of its deep sand.
W. A. Lloyd settled where C. L. Lloyd now lives. M. D. Matthews settled here. Part of his place now belongs to D. T. Loyd, superintendent of East Mountain school. Robert Shaw settled where Howard Jones now lives. Bill Hawkins settled where his son, Henry, now lives. Mark Shaw settled west of the school house, where he still lives. Dick Guest settled a little to the east of the school house, where he lived till his death. Mr. Guest was an influential citizen in the community and took a great interest in the school and community life. Florence settled where I. Glasco now lives. W. W. Hawkins ran a cotton gin before the first war, but there is no gin now. There was, at one time, a saw mill here, operated by Glasco and Glasco.
Churches
The Missionary Baptist Church is the only church meeting here at the present time. The Methodist Church, the Church of Christ, and the Nazarenes all formerly met here, but they have discontinued or changed their place of meeting.
Schools
Children in the high school grades are carried to East Mountain, while the lower grades attend the local elementary school.
Sand Hill gets mail from Gilmer on Rural Route No. 5.
Latch
In about the year 1900, there was a fine area of timber land lying about eight miles a little to the southwest of Gilmer. Most of this land belonged to the public schools of Nacogdoches County. Mr. L. A. Latch came in here about that time and bought up a lot of this land and timber and put in a saw mill and began cutting this fine timber into lumber. There was an abundance of large, heart timber with trees from two to three feet in diameter. This lumber was of an excellent quality, and houses built back in those days are still standing in almost perfect condition.
This country was all in the woods at that time, with the exception of a few scattering settlements nearby. There were the Carrols, who lived near what was known as Carrol’s Chapel. The Steelmans lived to the north, near Hopewell church. A Mr. Steelman ran a horse power cotton gin out on the Gilmer road.
As the timber was cut off this land, it was sold to settlers and a prosperous farming community was built up. Some of these settlers were, Tom Bullard, Jim Moore, Giles Steelman, John Earp, the Longs, and many others who helped to build up the Latch community. Latch got a post office, with a star route, which came from Gilmer around by Calloway and Shady Grove. Soon a school building was erected and later on, Latch had a good school. Latch at the present time is a prosperous community. It has two stores and filling stations that do nice business.
After L. A. Latch cut off all the timber, he went out of the saw mill business, and operated several farms. Later he went into politics, and served as sheriff of Upshur County for a number of years. The community was named for Mr. Latch, and everybody in the community loved him. He was known as “Daddy Latch,” and was over 90 years old when he died.
After Mr. Latch went out of the saw mill business, Lark Carrington ran a saw mill at Latch for some time. Will Mathis ran a gin at Latch for several years, but cotton gins for the past few years have all moved to town.
Dr. Craddock married one of Mr. Latch’s daughters and located in the community, where he has lived since, as the community doctor.
The entire Latch school transferred to Harmony, a consolidated school near Rosewood, and is still with that school. It may eventually consolidate with Harmony, because they do not have sufficient pupils to do the grade of work they desire.
Stamps
Forty-five years ago, the territory now known as the Stamps community, was undeveloped. Mr. John Smith owned a large tract of land, including a large part of Gum Creek bottom, together with a lot of land covered with fine pine timber. Mr. W. O. Stamps bought this land and improved it. He put in a large saw mill and planer and for a number of years did an extensive lumber business. His son, the late Virgil O. Stamps, famous song writer and publisher, hauled logs to his father’s mill with a team of oxen, when he was a young man. Mr. Stamps had the rich bottom land in Gum Creek bottom put in cultivation and planted in ribbon cane. He put in cane mills and cooking vats and manufactured thousands of gallons of the finest quality of ribbon cane syrup. Mr. Stamps also put in a canning factory, which did a large business. To operate these various industries, it required a number of hands. A considerable settlement was built up, and the community of Stamps, named for its founder, was placed on the map.
Mr. Stamps was a great organizer and business man and social leader. His influence was felt not only in his home community, but in all the county as well. In addition to his local activities, he served four years in the state legislature.
First Settlers
Mr. W. O. Stamps was the first to settle in the present Stamps area. C. T. Culpepper settled where he still lives. G. A. Lloyd, B. F. Culpepper, and J. P. Bland were also among the first settlers. Later, Will Willeford bought the Stamps home. His brother, John Willeford, also lives here.
Churches
The Methodist church meets in what is known as the Union Church building. The Church of Christ has a building down toward Graceton, where they meet regularly.
Schools
Stamps maintained a public school since the community was first settled until about the year 1930 when the school was consolidated with New Diana.
Outstanding Characters
Dr. Childress of Gilmer did his first practicing of medicine at Stamps. V. O. Stamps, Frank Stamps, D. A. Lloyd, and others are natives of the Stamps community. There was at one time an old Indian settlement on the Stamps land. Old Indian pottery and relics have been unearthed in later years. There is a string of miniature mountains nearby, known as the “Camp Mountains.” There are also other little mountains nearby, known as the “Barnwell Mountains.”
Simpsonville
Just after Texas joined the United States, there was a considerable rush of immigrants into Texas, which was considered “The Land of Opportunity.” A number of families generally came together for companionship and mutual protection from the wild animals and the Indians. As these settlers came in groups, they generally settled in groups. They were dispersed throughout East Texas and Upshur County, and many local communities had their beginnings about the time Texas became a state. A few settlers came, however, while Texas was an independent republic, and even when it belonged to Mexico. But they, as a rule, settled in the southern part of the state around San Antonio, or Goliad. The early settlers brought their Negro slaves with them, and with plenty of timber for building and fencing, abundance of pure spring water, and the woods full of wild game, this seemed to be the settlers’ paradise.
Simpsonville was named for one of its first settlers named Simpson. Other early settlers were the Hart brothers, George, Jim and Joel. They were of the same Hart family as William Hart, who was one of the first settlers of Upshur County, and who played an important role in its establishment. Jim and Washington Tucker were among the first settlers. Woods Wright settled about a half mile east of the present town of Simpsonville, and in 1853 a Missionary Baptist church was established on his farm. It was a little log house, but was later moved to Simpsonville where a better house was built. The first preacher was Reverend Ziegler, who now has a great, great grandson living between Simpsonville and Perryville, and preaches regularly for the churches nearby.
John R. Taylor settled down near Soules Chapel, but later moved to Simpsonville. Dock Taylor, one of the leading citizens of Simpsonville today, is part of the original Taylor family.
Dr. Couch, Sr., father of the late Dr. J. E. Couch, was the first physician in Simpsonville. Dr. Harrison settled east of Simpsonville on the Bettie road, but later moved to Simpsonville. Dr. Winn ran the first automobile in Simpsonville. It was a little high-wheeled, buggy-like contraption, steered by a lever, but it would run. Bill Spencer settled a little way south of Simpsonville. He first built a little log house, but in a short time he put up a large house, built of hewn pine logs, which were plentiful. While Mr. Spencer was building his new house, and before he got it completed, he had to be away from home on business and was detained several times until after night. Mrs. Spencer being alone as night began to come and darkness gathered, became frightened, for the woods were full of wild animals and Indians. So she climbed up the wall of the new house and sat on the plate until Mr. Spencer came home, away in the night, Mr. Spencer raised a large family of boys and girls who became leading citizens of the communities where they lived.
A post office was established at Simpsonville at an early date. At first it was only a delivery point for the mail which was brought from Pittsburg about once a week. Some time later a regular post office was established, and as there was already a post office in Texas named Simpsonville, it was given the name of Thomas, for the active post master at that time. Mail is now brought into the community both from Gilmer and from Pittsburg, but still the post office is maintained.
Simpsonville grew into a considerable little country town. There were a number of stores, all of which did a good business. Woods Wright, Dr. Couch, Fletcher Morris, and Alf Morris all ran cotton gins nearby operated by horse power. Most of those gins were changed to steam power and continued to serve the public. Tom Spencer ran a gin south of Simpsonville. S. G. Dean, Dave Calvert and others operated stores here at different times. Calvin Reeves ran a blacksmith shop. A bank was established at Simpsonville in 1923 and continued to do business until it was taken over by the First National Bank of Pittsburg in 1927.
Simpsonville is in somewhat an isolated position. It isn’t felt so much now, however, as it was in the days before motor transportation and good roads. Goods had to be brought from Pittsburg, about 15 miles to the north, or from Gilmer, about the same distance to the southeast. At times, during the winter, the roads would become so bad it would be impossible for the merchants to get groceries hauled out. During such times the citizens would have to divide their supplies of staple goods, such as sugar or flour, until the roads dried.
Schools
Simpsonville has had good schools from the beginning. A man by the name of LeRoy taught here in the early days. Professor LeRoy was a peculiar character. He was highly educated, and was said to have been an excellent teacher, but he knew nothing outside of books. He could not distinguish one kind of tree from another, and could not tell the different directions. He boarded with George Hart, Sr., who lived a little way off the main road that led to the schoolhouse. If the mornings were cloudy, or snow was on the ground, Mr. Hart would have to go with him and show him the way. On one occasion, it was told, the professor started to his school while it was cloudy and snow was on the ground. During the day Mr. Hart had occasion to pass the schoolhouse and saw the children in the house, with no teacher. He began to search for the teacher and traced him to a little outhouse. He was sitting in there waiting for the children to come to school. When Mr. Hart approached the door, the teacher said, “It seems like the children are late getting here this morning.”