TexasEscapes.com HOME Welcome to Texas Escapes
A magazine written by Texas
Custom Search
New   |   Texas Towns   |   Ghost Towns   |   Counties   |   Trips   |   Features   |   Columns   |   Architecture   |   Images   |   Archives   |   Site Map

Bowie County TX
Bowie County


Texas Towns
A - Z

New Boston Hotels

Hotels

BOSTON, TEXAS

Bowie County Seat, East Texas

33° 26' 29"N, 94° 25' 11"W (33.441389, -94.419722)

State Highway 8, FM 1840
Just S of U.S. Highway 82
Equidistant between the Old Boston and New Boston
22 Miles W of Texarkana
ZIP code 75570
Area codes 430 and 903
Population: 200 (2000, 1990)

Boston, Texas Area HotelsNew Boston Hotels

Boston Texas courthouse square
"The old courthouse square where the 1891 courthouse used to stand, has been turned into a park. Notice the old jail on the right. The raised walls to the right of the garzebo mark the foundation of the burned courthouse."
- Terry Jeanson, December 2006 photo

History in a Pecan Shell

First there was Boston, Texas – but this wasn’t it. The original town of Boston is now called Old Boston and is about 2.5 miles S of this Boston. The original town was the county seat until around 1890 when Texarkana became the seat of government for Bowie County.

Since it had been decided by the Texas State Legislature that county seats should be centrally located, a new courthouse was begun here in 1890.

The postal application had been submitted under the name of Center, but that was nixed by the postal authorities. Other names were submitted and rejected – usually for the reason that other post offices were operating under those names.

The post office was moved from the original town of Boston, making the new county seat officially Boston and making Boston “Old” Boston in the same act.

In the mid 1890s Boston had a growing population of 175. That seems to be a level that comfortable with, since it hasn’t changed all that much in 115 years.

New Boston, has had more businesses growth and has eclipsed the smaller town, leaving it to tend to the county business without distractions.

The towns of Boston and New Boston now join one another but are as separate as the Texas side of Texarkana is from the Arkansas side of Texarkana.

To further confuse things, a new courthouse was built in 1985 – but in New Boston, even though Boston is the official county seat.


See Bowie County Courthouse

New Boston TX Bowie County Old Jail
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, December 2006.
More Texas Jails
The 1891 Bowie County Jail
On the old courthouse square
FM 1840 and S. Merrill St.
In use until 1984

Boston Texas, Old Bowie County Courthouse, burned by arson
1939 photo courtesy TXDoT
The 1891 Bowie County Courthouse in Boston
Burned in 1989

Bowie County Texas 1920s map
1920s Bowie County map showing Boston and New Boston
From Texas state map #10749
Courtesy Texas General Land Office

Bowie County Towns

County Seat - Boston
Book Hotel Here - New Boston Hotels

  • Bassett
  • Beaver Dam
  • Boston County Seat
  • College Hill
  • Dalby Springs ghost town
  • DeKalb
  • Eylau ghost town
  • Hodgson
  • Hooks
  • Hubbard
  • Leary
  • Malta
  • Maud
  • Nash
  • New Boston
  • Oak Grove
  • Old Boston
  • Old Salem
  • Pine Springs
  • Poer
  • Red Bank
  • Redwater
  • Texarkana
  • Victory City
  • Wake Village
  • Wamba

  • Contiguous Counties:
    McCurtain County, Oklahoma (NW)
    Little River County, Arkansas (N)
    Miller County, Arkansas (E)
    Cass County (S)
    Morris County (SW)
    Red River County (W)

    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.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     


    Texas Escapes Online Magazine »   Archive Issues » Home »
    TEXAS TOWNS & COUNTIES TEXAS LANDMARKS & IMAGES TEXAS HISTORY & CULTURE TEXAS OUTDOORS MORE
    Texas Counties
    Texas Towns A-Z
    Texas Ghost Towns

    TEXAS REGIONS:
    Central Texas North
    Central Texas South
    Texas Gulf Coast
    Texas Panhandle
    Texas Hill Country
    East Texas
    South Texas
    West Texas

    Courthouses
    Jails
    Churches
    Schoolhouses
    Bridges
    Theaters
    Depots
    Rooms with a Past
    Monuments
    Statues

    Gas Stations
    Post Offices
    Museums
    Water Towers
    Grain Elevators
    Cotton Gins
    Lodges
    Stores
    Banks

    Vintage Photos
    Historic Trees
    Cemeteries
    Old Neon
    Ghost Signs
    Signs
    Murals
    Gargoyles
    Pitted Dates
    Cornerstones
    Then & Now

    Columns: History/Opinion
    Texas History
    Small Town Sagas
    Black History
    WWII
    Texas Centennial
    Ghosts
    People
    Animals
    Food
    Music
    Art

    Books
    Cotton
    Texas Railroads

    Texas Trips
    Texas Drives
    Texas State Parks
    Texas Rivers
    Texas Lakes
    Texas Forts
    Texas Trails
    Texas Maps
    USA
    MEXICO
    HOTELS

    Site Map
    About Us
    Privacy Statement
    Disclaimer
    Contributors
    Staff
    Contact Us

     
    Website Content Copyright Texas Escapes LLC. All Rights Reserved