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MELISSA, TEXAS
Collin County,
Central
Texas North
33° 17' 1" N, 96° 34' 19" W (33.283611, -96.571944)
Highways 75, 121 and FM 545
6 miles NE of McKinney
40 miles NE of downtown Dallas
37 miles S of Denison
ZIP codes 75071, 75454
Area code 972
Population: 12,117 Est. (2019)
4,695 (2010) 1,350
(2000) 557 (1990)
Melissa Area Hotels › McKinney
Hotels
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History
in a Pecan Shell
Melissa settlement began in the 1840s although the town didn't really
take off until the Houston and Texas Central Railway arrived in the
early 1870s. The towns namesake is not certain since there were two
railroad executives with daughters named Melissa. The town's railroad
connection drew off population from Highland, Texas, a small community
about 2.5 miles north of Melissa.
A post office was granted in the first half of 1873 and by 1884 the
town had a population estimated at 100.
Melissa was on the line of the first Texas Interurban line (the Texas
Electric Railway) which ran from Denison
to Dallas beginning in 1908.
The population increased to 400 by 1914. Melissa's connection to the
electric railway insured that the town was "wired" and the townspeople
also benefited from paved roads and a telephone exchange - all of
this infrastructure installed prior to 1920.
Melissa had all essential businesses plus a fully-enrolled school.
As a shipping point, Melissa sent out 3,000 bales of cotton each year
from two cotton gins. Disaster appeared in 1921 in the form of a tornado.
In April of that year thirteen people were killed and both businesses
and residences were destroyed. To make matters worse, a fire raged
through town eight years later consuming many of the replacement buildings.
Growth was curtailed by the Great Depression, mechanized farming and
Defense industry jobs available in Dallas
during WWII.
From 500 people in the mid 1920s, Melissa declined to less than 300
by 1949. It increased to 375 by the mid 1960s and to just over 600
in 1980. The 2000 Census shows a substantial increase to over 1,300.
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| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their Melissa history, stories,
landmarks and recent or vintage photos, please contact
us. |
"...the
truck broke down one day and he just left it there."
Photo
Courtesy Justin Parson
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"The Cadillac
was out in the woods in the middle of nowhere... the landowner said
it's been there since she was a little girl."
Photo
Courtesy Justin Parson
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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 recent or vintage photos, please contact
us. |
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