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Chatfield Tupelo Community Center
Photo courtesy Barclay
Gibson, August 2013 |
History in
a Pecan Shell
Champion Chatfield,
the community’s namesake operated a trading post at the site in 1839.
The convenient location was on the trail between San
Antonio and Shreveport and drew a modest population from travelers.
Chatfield in the 1850s had a plantation economy and its citizens supported
secession prior to the Civil War. It could boast both cotton and wool
mills as well as a machine shop and flour mill.
A post office was granted in 1867 and by the mid 1880s it had a population
of 250. Chatfield peaked with a population of 500 in the 1890s, when
it has daily stage service to Rice,
Texas. Population declined to 300 by the end of the Great Depression
and after WWII,
post war opportunities lured residents to larger cities.
By the mid 1950 it had reached 100 and a rock bottom of just 40 residents,
the same number being used for the 2000 census.
Chatfield appears on detailed county maps with 3 cemeteries. The name
Chatfield appears as well as Old Chatfield and New
Chatfield.
Photographer's Note:
"Actually Chatfield had four
cemeteries." - Barclay
Gibson |
Chatfield Texas
Landmarks
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Historical Marker:
Chatfield
Baptist Church
Reportedly the
owner of one hundred slaves and 1280 acres of land, Robert Hodge settled
in this area in 1849. Hodge allowed his slaves to organize two churches
-- a Baptist church and an African Methodist Episcopal Church. They
shared a building known as the Colored Community Church of Chatfield
with the Rev. Z. T. Pardee as pastor.
By 1858 the Baptist congregation formed by Hodge's slaves was part
of the Chatfield Baptist Church. In that year the Chatfield Baptist
Church joined the Richland Baptist Association. During this time,
white pastors preached to both white and black congregations, one
in the morning and one in the evening. After emancipation many freed
slaves remained in the area. They became both sharecroppers and landowners.
One distinguished local family was that of Allen R. Griggs (1850-1922),
a Baptist minister dedicated to the education of black Texans. His
son, Sutton Elbert Griggs (1872-1933), was born in Chatfield. A minister
who was heavily involved in Texas Baptist life, Sutton E. Griggs became
a noted African American writer.
The Navarro Baptist Association was formed in 1887 and the Chatfield
Baptist Church transferred its membership to the new organization.
The town of Chatfield reached its peak in the 1890s with a population
of 500. The Chatfield Baptist Church congregation continues to uphold
the traditions of its founders through worship and service to the
community.
(1999) |
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Chatfield Baptist Church Historical Marker
8323 NE CR 1100
Photo courtesy Barclay
Gibson, August 2013 |
Chatfield Memorial Cemetery One
Photo courtesy Barclay
Gibson, August 2013 |
Chatfield Memorial Cemetery Two
Photo courtesy Barclay
Gibson, August 2013 |
Chatfield Memorial Cemetery Three
Photo courtesy Barclay
Gibson, August 2013 |
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Chatfield,
Texas Forum
Subject:
Chatfield
I have a little more information about Chatfield. That very old
plantation house in Chatfield is Hodge Oaks and it was built by
my Great, great great grandfather, Captain Robert Hodge. He had
the title of Captain because he owned three river boats in Kentucky
before he settled in Chatfield. He was also a Captain in the Civil
War. The pasture next door was not to my family’s knowledge, a battleground,
although, it did house an extensive spread of slave quarters, smoke
houses, gardens, etc. Just down the road before you get into Chatfield,
there is a historical site where I believe a calvary patrol was
camped at the end of the Civil War. Captain Hodge’s picture still
hangs in Pioneer Village in Corsicana and there is a re-enactment
held there every year. Thank you - Kathleen Hodge, April 19, 2007
I am a distant
relative of Kathleen Hodge, who wrote the letter dated April 19,
2007. I have tried to email her, but her address has changed. It
would be appreciated if you could include my email address here
- in hopes that she might contact me. I'd also like to hear from
anyone with a Hodge Family connection. Thank you. - Roberta Hodge
(great-granddaughter of Dr. John David Hodge of Cleburne) roberta_h2003@yahoo.com
, April 02, 2009
Letter from
a Chatfield Resident
My name is Robert Erisman IV and I live in Chatfield next to Rice
and I have a little information about Rice
History.
A woman who goes to my church, who is very old, told me [about]
that the old Cotton Gin that mean kids mess around in and destroy
things in. Well, [she said] that some man who she knew who was the
owner back in 1915 or something like that was working in there and
the machine stopped and so he tried to fix it and it started back
up and killed him or cut his arm off. I'll try and find out more
information about that accident.
Also in Chatfield there is a very old house that the generals would
sometimes stay in during the Civil War and the pasture next to it
is where a battle was fought that had to do with the civil war.
Some of the Civil War took place there you could say. And next to
my house there is another house but not quite as old as the other
one and there is a reenactment of the Civil War every year...
Thank you for your time. - Robert Erisman IV
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