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DOUCETTE, TEXAS
Tyler County, East
Texas
30° 49' 6" N, 94° 25' 44" W (30.818333, -94.428889)
U.S. Highway 69
About 3 Miles N of Woodville the
county seat
ZIP code 75942
Population: 160 Est. (2010) 131 (2000, 1990)
Book Hotel Here › Woodville
Hotels |
History in
a Pecan Shell
In the 1830s the
site had originally been a land grant to a man called Elijah Hanks.
Whatever improvements (if any) built by Mr. Hanks have been lost to
history. The first growth occurred in the early 1890s when a man (Alva
Carrolls) built a sawmill here and the community grew around it. First
known as Carrolls' Switch, the mill was sold to investors,
one of them a Peter Doucette who was honored by a renaming of the
town.
A post office opened in 1893, and the sawmill was resold many times,
finally closing in 1944. But prior to its closing, Doucette was firmly
established and considered to be an East
Texas success story. In the mid 1950s, the interests were bought
by International Paper, a company that continues operations to this
day.
The population peaked in the 1920s at 1,800 but during the Great Depression
it had fallen to just 500. It declined further to just 250 residents
from the 40s through the 60s and by the late 1980s, it bottomed out
at around 130 residents - where it remained for the 2000 census. |
Tyler
County 1920s map showing Doucette just N of
Woodville
From Texas state map #10749
Courtesy
Texas General Land Office |
| 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
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