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ROSSER, TEXAS

Kaufman County, Central Texas North

32° 27' 41" N, 96° 26' 59" W (32.461389, -96.449722)

TX Hwy 34
2 miles NE of the Trinity River and the county line
12 miles SW of Kaufman the county seat
14 miles NE of Ennis
45 miles SE of Dallas
ZIP code 75157
Area code 972
Population: 400 Est. (2019)
332 (2010) 379 (2000) 366 (1990)

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Rosser Tx - Post Office 5157
Rosser post office, TX 75157
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, January 2006
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History in a Pecan Shell

Platted as a townsite in 1851 under the name Trinidad, initial settlement was before 1850. The town's location on the East Fork of the Trinity River promised a bright future. The watercourse was navigable at that time for barge and riverboat traffic. Trinidad experienced healthy growth prior to the Civil War and the post office opened in 1854. River commerce decreased after the war as railroads expanded. The post office (still named Trinidad) closed its doors in 1866.

The Texas and Pacific Railroad arrived in 1872 and Trinidad hosted scores of railroad workers, increasing the population and creating a tent boomtown. The newcomers justified reopening the post office and a new application was filed under the name of Burton. But Washington County already had a Burton and so the town was renamed after Capt. Robert S. Rosser a local landowner who had become wealthy through land and timber sales.

Under the new name, the town continued to prosper. By 1894 there was a gin, sawmill, and gristmill. A second gin was constructed just after 1900 and the town acquired a hotel. A newspaper was first published in1902, under the name Review. In the mid-teens a second paper (The Midget) appeared. In 1904 the population of Rosser was 128 and by 1925 it had increased to 350 residents.

During the Great Depression, while other North Texas towns were declining, Rosser experienced a boom of sorts. The town was wired for electricity and a pork-slaughtering business (which never materialized) was planned.

In 1936 Rosser claimed a healthy population of 350. It declined from this number to just 225 by the mid-1950s where it remained through the late '80s.

Rosser Texas depot
Rosser depot
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, January 2006


Rosser Texas depot
Rosser depot and water tower
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, January 2006
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Rosser Texas silo
Grain elevator and water tower
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, January 2006

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Rosser Texas closed school
The closed school in Rosser
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, January 2006
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Rosser Texas volunteer department
The Volunteer Fire Department
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, January 2006

Take a road trip

Central Texas North

Rosser, Texas Nearby Towns:
Kaufman the county seat
Dallas
See Kaufman County

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