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HOPEWELL, TEXASTexas Ghost
Town
The largest Magnolia tree in Texas - "you can't miss it."
Smith County, East Texas
Highway 69
4 miles N of Tyler
and just N of Swan, Texas
Population: Unknown
Book
Your Hotel Here & Save
Tyler
Hotels
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The
Hopewell Magnolia
on the southwest corner of the Hopewell Baptist Church cemetery.
(Scale
provided by Roland)
Photo Courtesy Collin Colston, 2004 |
History in
a Pecan Shell
Hopewell began with the granting of its post office in 1887 and it
may have thrived if the International-Great Northern Railroad hadn't
bypassed it. The town lost both the railroad and the post office when
nearby Swan got both.
To add insult to injury, most of the congregation of Hopewell's Baptist
Church also moved to Swan to form the Swan Baptist Church.
In 1903 Hopewell's 132 students were taught by 3 teachers in two schools.
In the 1920s the school had two-stories and a severely depleted enrollment.
In the mid 1930s Hopewell had a church, school, and two cemeteries.
Nearby schools were merged into a single ISD and that in turn was
merged with the Lindale ISD in the 60s.
Only the church, and cemeteries remain but the town is not shown on
TxDoT maps of Smith County. But Swan is. |
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Rebecca
tests the strength of a limb.
Photo Courtesy Collin Colston, 2004 |
Hopewell has
managed to hold onto one thing that Swan didn't get - a huge Magnolia
Tree that is said to be the largest in Texas.
See also County
Line Magnolia
© John Troesser |
Hopewell
Texas Forum
Subject:
Large Magnolia tree
I just found your site and am thoroughly enjoying reading about
everything Texas. I saw your story on the "County
Line Magnolia" in Liberty County that was vandalized years ago.
We have a Magnolia here just outside of Tyler that is supposedly
the biggest in Texas. It is in the Hopewell community behind Tyler
Pipe Industries. Don't know if you have heard about it or not. I'm
attaching a photograph. Don't mind the strange looking fruit growing
off the tree. - Sincerely, Collin Colston, March 05, 2004
Anyone wanting to share stories or photos of life in Hopewell,
Texas, please contact
us.
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