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An abandoned
property in Bruceville-Eddy
Photo courtesy Justin
Parson, January 2006 |
History
in a Pecan Shell
A Brief History
of Bruceville:
Bruceville and
the separate community of Eddy
both became stations on the Katy Railroad (the Missouri, Kansas and
Texas) when it built through McLennan
County in the early 1880s. Lucien N. Bruce became Bruceville's
namesake when he donated land for the depot. The railroad connection
drew population from Mastersville, a town that could ill afford to
lose it. Soon Bruceville's population was approaching 30 - many of
them coming from the doomed town of Mastersville.
A Bruceville
school district formed in 1904. Banking in Bruceville was short-lived.
Although a bank started in 1907, a drought, forclosures and unpaid
loans caused it to close in the late 20s - even before the arrival
of the Great Depression.
Bruceville had a respectable population of 500 throughout the 30s
and 40s. However after WWII,
increased mobility allowed people to seek work in distant cities.
The town declined by half in the late 40s and by 1970 there was
only a reported population of 25 people. Clearly something needed
to be done if Bruceville was to be saved from becoming a ghost.
They found an ally in their neighboring town of Eddy
- two miles distant.
A Brief History of Eddy:
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A Brief
History of Eddy:
Before the Katy
Railroad arrived, Eddy, Texas was Marvin, Texas. In 1883 railroad
superintendent Everett B. Eddy had the honor of replacing Marvin (whoever
that had been). Eddy was a little smaller than Bruceville
- with 150 residents shortly after it was founded. Still, it was quite
independent with its own newspaper and essential businesses.
During the 1890s Eddy surpassed the population of its neighbor by
several hundred. Bruceville and Eddy's future merger may have been
fortold when, in 1928, the two communitees consolidated their schools
- a first in McLennan
County. Eddy's population was just under 500 in the 20s. By the
mid-1940s the population was down to 350. With the construction of
I-35 in the early 60s, commuting to Waco
and Temple became
easier. In the 1960s the population doubled to 600. The towns incorporated
as one in the mid 1970s and the population rebounded to over 1,000
by the 1980s. Bruceville-Eddy incorporated in the mid-1970s and the
population soon increased to over 1,000 people. It has since inrcreased
to 1,490. |
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| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories,
landmarks and vintage/historic photos, please contact
us. |
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