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History in
a Pecan ShellFounded
around 1902 with the arrival of the Texas and New Orleans Railroad, the first
citizens relocated from the village of Kickapoo, Texas, two miles southeast of
present Frankston. The first post office was named Ayers (as was the town)
but the name was changed when a Miss Frankie Miller donated land for a city park.
Lumber and cotton were the town's major
economic engines. As the lumber played out, peach orchards and tomato fields took
up the slack.
The railroad depot, just south of the town square was the
nerve center of old Frankston. During its heyday, Franston had three hotels, several
cafes, a basket factory (for the tomatoes), a Masonic hall, and even a theater.
The town's population ranged between just over 800 to 1,500 from the mid 20s through
the 80s.
In the 1980s Frankston was still thriving with two car dealerships,
stores, gas stations, a bank, savings and loan association, newspaper, and funeral
home.
Tourism has become increasingly important to Frankston in recent
years and the former depot has become a library.
Frankston
Chronicles > |
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Frankston
Texas Depot
Photo
courtesy Michael G. Ellis, 1998
More Texas
Depots |
Frankston
Depot Library"This
is a 1998 photographic of the historic Texas and New Orleans (T&NO) depot in downtown
Frankston, Texas. This structure is from 1906, when the railroad first came through,
and is situation on the south side of the downtown square. The railroad first
called the depot Frankport, then Ayres, after the town's post office. Passenger
rail service ended in 1964. After the railroad shut down, the station sat alone
and began to decay, but in 1976, as apart of the United States Centennial Celebration,
the train depot was restored. Today, it serves as the Frankston Depot Library.
It received a historical marker in 1977. It is the only T&NO station left standing
in the Henderson/Anderson county area." - Gage Guinn, September 15, 2012 |
Old
store in Frankston (Ellis Merchantile)
Photo courtesy Lori
Martin, 2001 |
Frankston
ChroniclesThe
Possum Dinner by Bob Bowman
While most East Texans were planning
Thanksgiving dinners in 1929, four old friends in Frankston were sitting down
for a meal of possum and sweet potatoes... more
A
Newspaper’s Centennial by Bob Bowman
One of my favorite weekly
newspapers, the Frankston Citizen, celebrated its 100th anniversary recently.
What I enjoyed most were reproductions of front pages from the Citizens’ issues
during the past century. In the early days, newspapers carried down-to-earth news
that you seldom read in newspapers today. Some examples... |
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