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SOUR
LAKE , TEXAS"Gateway
to the Big Thicket"
Hardin County, East Texas
Highways 105 and
326
15 miles SW of Hardin
18 miles NW of Beaumont
Population
1,667 (2000) |
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A Texaco gas station globe sits atop a derrick downtown
Photo by John Troesser, 9-04 |
| Sour Lake
is known as the home of Texaco. Formed in 1903, the Texas Company was one of the
three major oil companies that can trace their birth to the oil fields around
SE Texas. |
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One of Sour Laker's new historic murals by S. Stowell
Photo by John Troesser, 9-04 |
History
in a Pecan Shell
The oldest surviving town in Hardin County, Sour
Lake was settled around 1835. First known as Sour Lake Springs after the medicinal
waters, the healing properties were long known to the Indians long before the
arrival of white settlers. By 1850 Sour Lake had become a full-fledged health
resort. After a visit in the early 1860s, the town got a testimonial from none
other than Sam Houston himself. Like many medicinal springs, the water was bottled
and sold.
The population in 1885 was 150 which declined to only 50 by
1896. When oil was discovered in 1902, Sour Lake became one of the earliest Texas
boom-towns with a population that was estimated as high as 10,000. It was reported
that fifty-two saloons were in operation during the first year of the boom. By
1903 half of the wells were coming up dry due to over drilling.
In 1914
two railroads serviced the 2,800 residents of Sour Lake. As late as 1948, Sour
Lake was still producing 3,500 barrels of crude oil daily. |
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The Former Sour Lake Jail
Photo by John Troesser,
9-04 |
| | Sour
Lake downtown scene
Photo by John Troesser, 9-04 |
Sour
Lake's population was 3,032 in 1925 which declined to around 1,500 in 1942. It
peaked in 1976 with 2,500 residents. In recent years Sour Lake has been celebrating
its history by restoring downtown buildings, displaying artifacts from boom days
and having a professional muralist paint murals with historic themes.
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Lake, Texas Forum Anyone
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© John Troesser | |
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