Forreston, Texas

Last updated
Forreston, Texas
Unincorporated community
First Baptist Church, Forreston, TX IMG 6767.JPG
Forreston Baptist Church (established 1891)
USA Texas location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Forreston
Location within the state of Texas
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Forreston
Forreston (the United States)
Coordinates: 32°15′23″N96°51′55″W / 32.25639°N 96.86528°W / 32.25639; -96.86528 Coordinates: 32°15′23″N96°51′55″W / 32.25639°N 96.86528°W / 32.25639; -96.86528
Country United States
State Texas
County Ellis
Elevation
541 ft (165 m)
Population
 (2008 est.)
 • Total238
Time zone UTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP codes
76041
Area code 972

Forreston is an unincorporated community in Ellis County, Texas, United States. It lies on U.S. Route 77 eight miles south of the county seat of Waxahachie. Its population was estimated to be 238 in 2008, but it is not listed in the 2010 census. [1]

Contents

Denver Pyle, a supporting actor in many roles, including CBS's The Doris Day Show and The Dukes of Hazzard , is interred in an unmarked grave at Forreston Cemetery just south of the community off Highway 77. [2]

James "Big Jim" Bynum of Forreston, held, along with Jack Favor of Fort Worth, the 2.2-second rodeo record for bulldogging a steer. [3]


History

Former bank building in Forreston Forreston bank.jpg
Former bank building in Forreston
A long-closed business in Forreston Forreston old storefront.JPG
A long-closed business in Forreston
Forreston Cemetery is located south of the community. Forreston Cemetery, Forreston, TX IMG 6765.JPG
Forreston Cemetery is located south of the community.

The roots of Forreston date to 1843, when the area was known as Howe's Settlement, named for an early settler in the region. In the middle to late 1840s, the community was renamed Chambers Creek. It received its first post office in 1846. It initially served as the original county seat of Navarro County until 1850, when the organization of Ellis County placed the town within the new county.

From the early 1850s to the late 1880s, Chambers Creek remained a small farming community, providing a school and a church for local residents and farmers. In 1890, the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad (KATY) was built through the area, and businesses began to spring up along the tracks. The community was renamed Forreston, after Carr Forrest, a local landowner who served as the first postmaster and donated the land on which the new rail depot was built. By the 1940s, Forreston had three cotton gins, several businesses, and a population of 350. Throughout the 20th century, the town remained a shipping point for local farming and commerce.

The population declined; by 2000, it had only some 200 residents.

Forreston was featured in the March 1999 issue of Texas Monthly in the article entitled "The Best of Small-Town Texas". In August 2007, Forreston was featured in "Shop Vintage with Ken Weber" in the publication, D Magazine . The spread was encouraged by Bon Ton Vintage, a shop founded in 1984 by retired jazz musicians Barbra and John Kauffman, which claims to have the "largest collection of vintage clothing in Texas".

Education

Forreston is served by the Waxahachie Independent School District.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ellis County, Texas</span> County in Texas, United States

Ellis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2020, its population was estimated to be 192,455. The county seat is Waxahachie. The county was founded in 1849 and organized the next year. It is named for Richard Ellis, president of the convention that produced the Texas Declaration of Independence. Ellis County is included in the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nazareth, Texas</span> Community in Texas, United States

Nazareth is a city in Castro County, Texas, United States. The population was 311 at the 2010 census, down from 356 at the 2000 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ennis, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Ennis is a city in eastern Ellis County, Texas. The population is 20,159 according to the 2020 census, with an estimated population of 21,210 in 2021. Ennis is home to the annual National Polka Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italy, Texas</span> Town in Texas, United States

Italy is a town in Ellis County, Texas, United States. Its population was 1,926 in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midlothian, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Midlothian is a city in northwest Ellis County, Texas, United States. The city is 25 miles (40 km) southwest of Dallas. It is the hub for the cement industry in North Texas, as it is the home to three separate cement production facilities, as well as a steel mill. The population of Midlothian grew by 121% between 2000 and 2010, to a population of 18,037.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milford, Texas</span> Town in Texas, United States

Milford is an incorporated rural community located in North Central Texas, in the southwestern corner of Ellis County, in the United States. The population was 722 at the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waxahachie, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Waxahachie is the seat of government of Ellis County, Texas, United States. Its population was 41,140 in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fulshear, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Fulshear is a city in northwest Fort Bend County, Texas, United States, and is located on the western edge of the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan area. The population was 16,856 as of the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kemah, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Kemah is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, southeast of Houston along west Galveston Bay. The city's population was 1,773 at the 2010 census, down from 2,330 at the 2000 census. Located in Galveston County, Kemah's main industry is shipping. Originally a small fishing town, the city has become a tourist destination for the area's restaurants and attractions, which are contained within the Kemah Entertainment District. In 2012 Kemah was ranked the top tourism spot in the Greater Houston area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Woodlands, Texas</span> Census-designated place and special-purpose district in Texas, United States

The Woodlands is a special-purpose district and census-designated place (CDP) in the U.S. state of Texas in the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area. The Woodlands is primarily located in Montgomery County, with portions extending into Harris County. The Woodlands is governed by The Woodlands Township, an organization that provides municipal services and is administered by an elected board of directors. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the township had a population of 114,436 people. In 2021, The Howard Hughes Corporation estimated the population of The Woodlands was 119,000. The United States Census Bureau defines an urban area separate from the Houston urban area with The Woodlands as a principal city: The Woodlands–Conroe, TX urban area had a 2020 population of 402,454, making it the 103rd largest in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ferris, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Ferris is a city in Dallas and Ellis counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is 20 miles (32 km) south of downtown Dallas. The population was 2,788 in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ovilla, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Ovilla is a city in Dallas and Ellis Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 4,304 at the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mentone, Texas</span> Census-designated place in Texas, United States

Mentone is an unincorporated small town in, and the county seat of, Loving County, Texas, United States. It had a population of 19 in 2010, almost a quarter of the county's 82 people at the time.

Cayuga is an unincorporated community in northwestern Anderson County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 200 in 2000. It is located within the Palestine, Texas micropolitan area.

Doss is an unincorporated farming and ranching community at the crossroads juncture of FM 783 and FM 648 in northwestern Gillespie County, Texas, United States. It is 19 miles NW of Fredericksburg and 14 miles NE of Harper. Postal zip code is 78618. Elevation is 1729 feet.

Stoneham is an unincorporated community in Grimes County, Texas, United States. The town was once a part of a colony operated by Stephen F. Austin and by 1900, the population grew to 250. Although a ghost town by 1970, the town has since grown in population.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockett, Texas</span>

Rockett is an unincorporated community in Ellis County, Texas, United States. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Rockett is located on FM 813, approximately five miles northeast of Waxahachie.

For the county seat of Upton County, Texas, see: Rankin, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward H. Tarrant</span> American politician (1796–1858)

Edward H. Tarrant was an American politician who served the Republic of Texas and the State of Texas by fighting multiple indigenous nations for two decades. He, along with John Nealy Bryan, John B. Denton, John H. Reagan, and surveyor Warren Angus Ferris, participated in the massacre of Caddo Indians along the Trinity (Arkikosa) River. Once all native people were removed from the area Bryan was able to claim the land, divide it, and sell it, all thanks to the efforts of Gen. Tarrant. This area along the Arkikosa is now known as Dallas, TX. He also served in the Texas House of Representatives during both periods.

Bristol is a census-designated place in Ellis County, Texas, United States. The population was 668 at the 2010 census.

References

  1. ↑ "2010 Census: Population of Texas Cities Arranged in Alphabetical Order". tsl.state.tx.us. Retrieved April 12, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Forreston Cemetery". cemeteries-of-tx.com. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  3. ↑ "Not Guilty" (PDF). cowboysforchrist.net. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 21, 2014. Retrieved February 7, 2014.

Handbook of Texas Online entry for Forreston

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.