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PROVIDENCE,
TEXASTexas Ghost
Town
Anderson County, East Texas
FM 323 near Slocum
11 miles NW of Palestine
Population:
unknown |
| | The
church in Providence
Photo courtesy Erik Whetstone, October 2005 |
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History in a Pecan
Shell
At least six towns in Texas were named Providence. This one began
in early 1858, when W. T. Miller generously donated eight acres for a cemetery,
school and church. In the 1870s the Masons built a two-story combination school
and church building and held their meetings upstairs. A tornado in 1900 damaged
the building, causing the lodge to relocate in nearby Elkhart.
Wreckage from damaged buildings allowed the townspeople to build a one-story church.
The school sent students to other schools and discontinued their classes
at Providence.
The church disbanded in the mid 1930s and a historical
marker for the Providence Church and Cemetery was dedicated in the early 1970s.
|
| | Providence
Cemetery. Notice church in the background.
Photo courtesy Erik Whetstone,
October 2005 | |
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