OAKWOOD, TEXAS

Leon County, Central Texas South

31°35'5"N 95°51'2"W (31.584816, -95.850666)
Highway 79
3 Miles W of the Trinity River
30 Miles NE of Centerville the county seat
15 Miles NE of Buffalo
18 Miles SW of Palestine
Population: 510 (2010) 471 (2000) 527 (1990)

Oakwood Area Hotels › Centerville Hotels | Palestine Hotels

Some of the remaining buildings on Main Street
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, August, 2009

History in a Pecan Shell

Established in 1872 as a stop on the International-Great Northern Railroad, the name first given was Oakwoods but the "s" was dropped in later years. The community was granted a post office that same year.

First located closer to the river, flooding mandated a move two miles west. The population of 542 in 1904 grew to a high of 1,100 by 1925.

Early cotton crops were flat-boated down the Trinity to Houston and Galveston but the railroad helped make Oakwood the region’s shipping center.

The boll weevil infestation in the 20s and the Great Depression severely depleted the population. By 1931 there were less than 900 people and by the 1970 census it had bottomed out at 400. It has since grown to 527 for the 1990 census.

Oakwood. Texas - Methodist Episcopal Church

The Methodist Episcopal Church in Oakwood.
More Texas Churches
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, August, 2009

Oakwood Water Tower
More Texas Water Towers
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, August, 2009

1907 Leon County postal map showing Oakwood near Freestone County line
NE of Centerville, SE of Fairfield
From Texas state map #2090
Courtesy Texas General Land Office

Take a road trip

Oakwood, Texas Nearby Towns:
Centerville the county seat
Buffalo | Palestine
See Leon County | Central Texas South

Book Hotel Here:
Centerville Hotels | More Hotels

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