| |
History
in a Pecan Shell
The town was named for Judge Henry J. Jewett
(who helped organize Leon County) when the town was platted in 1871 by the International
Railroad Company.
Shortly after establishing the essential store and
post office, Jewett got its first newspaper. Methodist, Baptist and Presbyterian
Churches were established in 1873, 1876 and 1884 (respectively).
By 1884
the town had 500 people, a weekly newspaper, five stores, three saloons, a gristmill
and a steam cotton gin. The town didn't get a bank until 1890 - the year that
it incorporated. By 1900 the population had dropped to 433.
In 1905
the Houston and Texas Central Railway arrived, followed by the Trinity and Brazos
Railway two years later. The town had several railroad hotels - and by 1910 the
population had increased back to nearly 600.
In the 1920s Jewett had
the county's only high school. Jewett's population was back to around 500 by 1930,
dropped to 445 in 1960, and began to rise in the 1970s. A public library was started
in 1983 and the town has a current population of 861. | |
|
