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History in
a Pecan Shell
Named after early
settler James Boyd Hawkins, who arrived here in the 1840s, Hawkinsville
was in fact, a sugar plantation. It’s first name was Hawkin’s Post.
In the early 1850s, Hawkins built a brick sugar mill – made of bricks
fired in his own kiln. A substantial enterprise, the slave-built mill
vented through a 40-foot smokestack. As Hawkins diversified into ranching,
the town became the headquarter’s for Hawkin’s Ranch.
During the Civil War, John Magruder maintained a contingent of troops
and supplies here from late 1963 through January 1864. The end of
the war did not mean the end of Hawkin’s empire. He merely changed
his labor force from salves to convicts.
In 1874 Hawkinsville was granted a post office but the population
remained below 25 – into the 1880s. By 1888 the post office had closed
but a new one under the name Hawkinsville opened in 1898.
In 1903 the NewYork, Texas and Mexican Railway ran a tap line from
Bay City, roughly running parallel
to present-day FM 457. The railroad
increased the number of residents to around 100. In the 1930s the
railroad tracks were taken up and Hawkinsville settled into a deep
sleep that continues to this day.
Although there are scattered houses in the vicinity, the town disappeared
in the 1950s. |
Hawkinsville,
Texas Landmarks
Photographer's
Note:
Hawkinsville looks like an unorganized village. Really just a road
intersection: FM 2611 and FM 457. - Barclay
Gibson, 2009 |
| 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. |
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