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CUSHING, TEXASNacogdoches
County, East Texas
Highway 204 and FM 225
18 miles NW of Nacogdoches
Population:
465
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Downtown
Cushing
showing west side of the street
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, 2005 |
History
in a Pecan Shell
Edward Benjamin Cushing is the town's namesake. Cushing, who was born
in Houston in 1863, worked for the SP Railroad at Houston, prior to
serving in WWI as a Major on General John "Blackjack" Pershing's staff.
He was appointed to the Teaxs A&M University board of regents in 1912
and became president in 1913. He died in Houston in 1924 and two years
later the Texas A&M library was named in his honor.
The town of Cushing was founded in 1902, with the announcement that
the Texas and New Orleans Railroad would soon be building through
the area. A post office opened that same year and the town was platted
in 1903. The railroad arrived a year later and Cushing developed as
a major shipping center for lumber.
In 1914 Cushing had a respectible population of 600 people a bank,
newspaper and hotel. In 1925 the population peaked at 1,500 but declined
with the deforestation of East Texas. For the 1950 census there were
473 reported residents - a figure close to the current 465. |
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Cushing water
tower
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, 2005 |
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