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PALESTINE,
TEXAS
Anderson
County Seat, East Texas
31°45'29"N 95°38'19"W (31.757925, -95.638473)
Junction of Hwy 84, 79 and 19
108 miles SE of Dallas
150 miles N of Houston
36 miles SE of Athens on
Hwy 19
ZIP codes 75800-75899
Area code 903
Population: 18,544 (2020)
18,712 (2010) 17,598 (2000) 18,042 (1990)
Book Hotel Here › Palestine
Hotels |
Oak Street
1917 Postcard courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
The
Original County Seat was a town named Fort
Houston. When the State declared that County Seats be at the geographic
center of the county, Andersonians took them seriously and moved the
two miles it required. Fort
Houston melted into oblivion.
The County was named for vice-president of Texas Kenneth Lewis
Anderson. There is a rumor that the city was named after Palestine,
Illinois. |
Palestine,
Texas
Landmarks/Attractions
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| Palestine,
Texas has 23 historical sites on the National Register of Historic
Places |
| Postcard
courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
The
Texas State Railroad State Park & the Texas Forest Trail
Palestine is joined to nearby Rusk
(25 miles) by the Texas State Railroad. This antique steam train is
operated by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept. The train operates
from March to October. 1-800-442-8951 for reservations.
Murder on the Disoriented Express
In October a local theater group performs Murder on the Disoriented
Express on the train. This is a fund raising effort for the Palestine
Library and the tickets include a buffet dinner. Make reservations
by calling 1-800-659-3484. |
Palestine’s
Texas Theater by Bob Bowman
The Texas Theater, one of the grand old movie houses of East Texas,
has been restored and is now a setting for community stage productions.
The Texas is not only a landmark for Palestine...
Texas
Theatre by Dana Goolsby
The crown jewel of downtown Palestine
213 W. Crawford Street |
Palestine High
School
400 Micheaux Ave
Photo courtesy Lori
Martin, December 2005 |
|
Museum
for East Texas Culture
At 400 Micheaux Ave in Reagan Park
The museum puts to excellent use the former Palestine High School
(c.1916). The Statue
of John H. Reagan was sculpted by Pompeo
Coppini in 1908 and was cast in Rome.
Historical marker:
Palestine High School
A public school system in Palestine was established in 1881 under
control of the municipal government. The first classes were held
at the old Palestine Female Institute (built in 1858), then a high
school was built in 1888 at the Institute site on Avenue A. In 1915
voters passed a $100,000 bond issue for a new high school. The City
Council chose this site in newly created, 22-acre Reagan Park for
the campus.
Fort Worth architects
Sanguinet & Staats were chosen for the design, which features Tudor
Gothic -- or Jacobethan -- detail in brick, limestone, and occasional
tile panels. The 2-story structure, on a raised basement, is framed
with reinforced concrete, allowing ample window space for air and
light. The original plan included eight lecture rooms, a library,
a gymnasium, laboratories, and an auditorium.
A principal and 10 teachers comprised the first faculty, and the
first graduating class in 1917 contained 38 students. This building
became a junior high in 1939, and was named in 1955 for John
Henninger Reagan (1818-1905), Texas statesman and Palestine
resident. Elementary grades were assigned here from 1966 to 1976,
when the school was closed. The building was then preserved and
rehabilitated as a museum and cultural center.
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1986
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Howard House
Museum
1011 N. Perry Street.
A Texas Historic Landmark, the house was built in the mid-1800s and
bought by the city in 1963.
Open Saturdays and Sundays 12:00 to 5:00, group tours by appointment. |
Palestine
Carnegie Library
502 North Queen.
502 N. Queen St., Palestine
Historical marker:
Outgrowth of 1853 effort by Judge John Graham Gooch to see circulating
library established in Palestine, at first lending his own books.
Original city library was replaced by this structure, built 1914 with
aid from the Carnegie Foundation.
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1970 |
Palestine Post
Office and Federal Building
101 E. Oak St.
National Register of Historic Places
Photo
courtesy Lori
Martin, December 2005 |
Historical Marker:
Palestine Post Office and Federal
Building
Land at this site was purchased in 1907 from St. Philip's Episcopal
Church for a new post office for Palestine. Architects Deacon Armiger
and Dunplap, under the supervision of U. S. Treasury architect James
Knox Taylor, drew the plans, and construction took place between 1911
and 1913.
Located in Palestine's commercial district, the new post office building
was an imposing addition to the downtown and prominently affirmed
the presence of the federal government in Palestine. Other federal
offices also were located in the building, including the Selective
Service office and the National Weather Bureau's reading station.
The Palestine post office vacated the building in 1962; thereafter,
until 1987, it was used solely for the offices of various federal
agencies. After the General Services Administration declared the building
surplus to its needs, the county of Anderson, in search of additional
space for county workers, stepped in to preserve the historic building.
The property transfer to Anderson County took place in 1990.
Listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1998, the Palestine
Post Office and Federal Building remains a significant part of Palestine's
architectural heritage.
(2001) |
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Haunted
Memorial Hospital
Photo by Dana
Goolsby, October 2010 |
The
Haunting of Old Memorial Hospital In Palestine
by Dana Goolsby
"The old hospital has been abandoned as a care facility, however
locals claim the facility has not been entirely deserted. Supernatural
tales have lived within the old hospital far prior to the closing
of the facility...." more |
The
Anderson County Poor Farm
by Dana Goolsby
"[I]n 1884, Anderson County finally obtained its poor farm. The
county paid $2,700 for approximately 462 acres, located south of Palestine
on Sycamore Road. This acreage was part of 800 acres originally patented
to Stephen Crist on May 21, 1835. ...more"
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| Postcard
courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
The Ivanhoe Building
Photo courtesy Lori
Martin, December 2005 |
Palestine,
Texas
History and Features
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A
Steamboat’s Tale by Bob Bowman
"Lying in the Trinity River at Parker’s Bluff, near Palestine,
a cluster of remnants from an old sidewheeler steamboat serve as
reminders of an era when cotton was king in much of East Texas...."
Almost
a Houston (Fort Houston) by Bob Bowman
Palestine:
Old homes, fruit cakes, and stained glass windows by Bob Bowman
The
Texas State Railroad and the Texas Forest Trail
The
Texas State Railroad by Archie P. McDonald, PhD
The
Gem Picture Palace and Other 1920s Charms by Sandy Fiedler
"Voice
of East Texas" East Texas feature stories by Sandy Fiedler
from Palestine
Texas’
Oldest Bakery Ships Thousands of Pounds of Holiday Desserts
by Dana Goolsby
The oldest bakery in Texas - Eilenberger’s Bakery, located in historic
downtown Palestine.
The
Redlands Hotel at 400 North Queen. Now a nostalgic galleria
of specialty shops, the old hotel thrived from 1915 to 1918 and
then served as an office building for the next four decades.
The
Black Beast of the Pineywoods by Dana Goolsby
"Sightings of mysterious black panthers that scream like women
in the pine jungles are not at all uncommon in the Pineywoods"
The
Crystal Lakes of Texas by Clint Skinner
"... Another Crystal Lake is located seven miles east of Palestine
in Anderson County. The natural water source drains into Stills
Creek and serves as a recreation spot for the Crystal Lake Country
Club. In addition, it provides fishing and camping opportunities
for those living in the town of Crystal Lake, Texas... "
more
Palestine
Hotels › Book here
People
Country
Legend Gene Watson by Bob Bowman
Someone once asked country singing legend Ray Price to name his
favorite singers. Price paused a minute and finally said, “I have
too many to name, but Gene Watson would be right at the top.” But
Watson--who was born in Palestine and raised in Paris--is such a
low-keyed individual that he considers singing “just something I
like to do,” like working on cars in his shop....
The
40-minute de facto president by Mike Cox
Oddities
The
note-in-a-bottle in Trinity River by Mike Cox
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Sunday
Drive
Palestine:
Old homes, fruit cakes, and stained glass windows
Excerpted from "The
East Texas Sunday Drive Book" by Bob Bowman
The focal point of this Sunday Drive is Palestine, the county seat
of Anderson County and a town whose history parallels the arrival
of the railroad in the l870s. But you'll also have the opportunity
to see some excellent rural scenery.
Start your Sunday Drive with a tour of downtown Palestine. The Chamber
of Commerce offers an excellent walking tour guide which will carry
you to several points of interest, including:.... read
full article |
Palestine,
Texas Natural Attractions
|
Dogwood
Late March and early April is a wonderful time to
visit. Anderson County has some of the nicest rolling hills and
dogwood trees bloom in profusion just before the deciduous trees
leaf out.
Davey Dogwood
Park
Just north of town is Davey Dogwood Park, 200 acres of streams,
trees and winding roads. The perfect place for a spring picnic.
For information on current conditions call Texas Dogwood Trails
Inc. at 903-729-7275.
Wisteria
Trail
Palestine is also on the unofficial East Texas "Wisteria Trail."
Palestine
Community Forest
There's another 700 acres in Palestine Community Forest.
Just NW of town, this park offers memorable autumn views
due to the proliferation of Sweetgum and Yaupon Trees.
Lake Palestine
Over 25,000 acres. Marina and swimming beach. Twenty miles north.
Concord
"The countryside around Montalba,
north of Palestine in Anderson County, is among the most beautiful
in East Texas with its small mountains, winding roads and scenic
streams..."
Book
Hotel Here > Palestine
Texas
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Palestine,
Texas Vintage Photos
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Missouri Pacific
Passenger Depot circa 1953, razed
On Spring Street, Palestine, Texas
Photo courtesy Maurice Higginbotham |
Spring Park
Lake and Club House
1911 postcard courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
View of Spring
Park Lake from Club House
1913 postcard courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
The White Way,
Spring Street, at night
1921 Postcard courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
New Temple Theatre
1914 Postcard courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
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Palestine
City Hall
Old postcard TE archives |
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Sycamore
Street
Old postcard TE archives |
"Anderson
County Fair, Palestine Texas,
annually in October since 1925"
Postcard
ca 1950 courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
Palestine
Tourist Information
Palestine Convention
and Visitor Bureau
825 Spring Street, Palestine, TX 75801
903-723-3014 or 800-659-3484
Palestine Chamber
of Commerce
401 W. Main Street
903-729-6066
Book Hotel Here › Palestine
Texas
|
Palestine,
Texas Forum
Subject:
It is wonderful town!
I was reading all the wonderful stories on my hometown of Palestine,
Texas and it made me glad to be from a small town. It was great
place to grow up and still is to this day. When I travel my mind
often return to Palestine. I am now forty years old and I still
get lump in my throat when at dusk the light come on Ave A all the
way to the Anderson County Courthouse on top of the hill as it stand
there in all it beauty. - Rodney Paul Smith, Palestine, TX, April
12, 2007
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| Texas
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
us. |
| This
page for Palestine, Texas sponsored by: Sandy Fiedler 10
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