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History in a Pecan
Shell
Forreston
dates from 1843 and is believed to be Ellis Countie’s first communities. Fist
called Howe’s Settlement after William Howe, who arrived in the early 1840s,
it underwent a change of name in the mid 1840s to Chambers Creek. A post
office opened in 1846 and the town became the original county seat of neighboring
Navarro County. When Ellis County was organized in 1850, present-day Forreston
found itself within Ellis County lines.
The community added most essential
business over time but when the MKT Railroad arrived around 1890, the town shifted
its businesses closer to the rails. The last change of name came when businessman
and postmaster Carr Forrest donated land for the depot. But even before this act
of generosity, the community was widely known as Forrest’s Store. Forreston
had 200 people just after the turn of the 20th Century but even its railroad connection
didn’t help. Growth was slow and even into the 1940s. it only reached an apex
of 350 residents.
The 1990 Census only showed 300 people and ten years
later the population declined to a mere 200. Forreston, however, continues to
be a tidy town with an appreciation for its history.
A
Visit to ForrestonPhotographer's
Note:
This is a
nice, small town bypassed by I-35. - Barclay
Gibson |
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| Forreston,
Texas - Texas Escapes' 2200th town |
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