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PHELPS, TEXAS
Walker County,
East
Texas
FM 2296
Just S of Highway 190
6 Miles E of Huntsville
Population 98 (2000)
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Cistern
TE photo, June 2004 |
History in
a Pecan Shell
The Houston and Great Northern Railroad built a station here in the
1870s and and the town grew up around it. The contractor for the railroad
construction was the Phelps-Dodge Corporation from whence the name
came.
In 1874 a post office was granted and the railroad added a spur at
Phelps, connecting Huntsville to
the main line. Phelps became the nucleus of a cluster of sawmills
– and the mill workers resided in the hub town. It was estimated that
the population included residents of 100 separate families. From a
mere 25 people in 1890, the town reached 300 by 1914. As the forest
played out and the sawmills moved on, Phelps declined to a single
business. The 1950 population was estimated to be 100 and the post
office closed in the mid-1960s.
See Huntsville, Texas |
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