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SALMON, TEXAS
Anderson
County, East Texas
31° 34' 23" N, 95° 29' 54" W (31.573056, -95.498333)
US Hwy 287 and State Hwy 19
Near Elkhart
14 miles SE of Palestine
the county seat
Included in the Palestine metropolitan area
Area codes 430 & 903
Population: 20 (1990, 2000)
Book Hotel Here › Palestine
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Salmon Road Sign
TE photo |
History in
a Pecan Shell
Late in the 19th
Century Elkhart, Texas
was growing and some people went in search of greener pastures. They
found them at Byron (or Byron's) Switch - a spot on the railroad.
M.D. Salmon, an enterprising storeowner, built his general store here
and applied for a post office that was granted in 1902. Both post
office and town were named Salmon.
The history of Salmon's population has a see-saw quality about it.
Given as 100 people in 1914, it dropped to a mere 10 in 1925 then
mysteriously increased back to 100 two years later. There was speculation
the residents were practicing for the soon-to-be Great Depression
which appeared in earnest in 1933. As, they had planned in their drill,
the population again fell to only ten residents.
But plucky little Salmon defied the odds and actually gained people
during the 30s. By the end of that decade, there were eighty people
and four surviving business from the town's 1914 heyday. The 1940s
were calm with no fires or natural disasters to report. The town suffered
the same post-war decline as most East
Texas communities, and by the mid-1950s, the post office closed.
The population was back to only 25 residents and this time, no businesses
were in operation.
But once again, Salmon defied the odds and increased its population.
By the mid- 1960s, there were enough residents willing to do their
grocery shopping in Elkhart
to raise the population back to 100 (estimated). By the 1970 census,
Salmon was back to just 20 and this time, the decline remained through
the 2000 census.
In 1902,
a descendant of storekeeper and namesake Meredith Salmon has built
a replica of the early post office and store, establishing a tangible
history for the community. |
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Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories,
landmarks and recent or vintage photos, please contact
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