Historical Markers

ATAKAPAN INDIANS OF ORANGE COUNTY

THE ATAKAPAN INDIANS, A TRIBE ASSOCIATED WITH SOUTHEASTERN U. S. BANDS, LIVED IN THIS AREA FOR CENTURIES. STUDIES HAVE SUGGESTED THEIR PRESENCE COVERED A LARGE REGION OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS. THEIR NAME COMES FROM THE CHOCTAW INDIANS, AND MEANS "MAN-EATERS". 

IT IS BELIEVED THAT INDIANS ENCOUNTERED BY SPANISH EXPLORER CABEZA DE VACA IN 1528 ALONG THE GULF COAST MAY HAVE BEEN ATAKAPANS. THE FIRST DOCUMENTED CONTACT WITH THE TRIBE WAS BY FRENCH SAILOR SIMARS DE BELLISLE IN 1719. PUT ASHORE WITH FOUR OTHERS TO COLLECT FRESH WATER, THE MEN WERE ABANDONED AND DE BELLISLE, AFTER THE DEATHS OF HIS COMPANIONS, WAS MADE A CAPTIVE OF THE INDIAN TRIBE FOR A TIME. 

LATER CONTACT WITH THE ATAKAPANS INCLUDED TRADE WITH FRENCH AND SPANISH EXPLORERS. THE TRIBE WAS EVIDENTLY A FAIRLY LOOSE CONFEDERACY OF SMALL, SCATTERED BANDS. ARCHEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THEY SUBSISTED MAINLY ON SMALL GAME, FISH, AND WILD PLANTS, AND EVIDENTLY WERE NOT FARMERS. SHELL MIDDENS FOUND INDICATE THE EXISTENCE OF ATAKAPAN CAMPSITES IN THIS VICINITY. 

THE TRIBE DISAPPEARED FROM TEXAS IN THE EARLY 19TH CENTURY, EITHER BECOMING EXTINCT OR INTEGRATING INTO OTHER TRIBES.

TEXAS SESQUICENTENNIAL 1836-1986

BLACK EDUCATION IN ORANGE COUNTY

AS EARLY AS THE 1870s, ORANGE COUNTY'S AFRICAN AMERICAN CHILDREN ATTENDED SCHOOL IN PRIVATE HOMES AND CHURCHES. THE ORANGE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ESTABLISHED 17 SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN 1887. SCHOOLS INCLUDED THE DUNCAN WOODS NO. 3, LOCATED IN THE DUNCAN WOODS COMMUNITY OF SOUTHWESTERN ORANGE COUNTY. THE SCHOOL HAD PROBABLY BEEN IN OPERATION FOR SEVERAL YEARS AT THAT TIME. THOMAS F. POLLARD SERVED AS AN EARLY TEACHER THERE.

STUDENTS WITHIN THE CITY OF ORANGE ATTENDED SCHOOL AT MOUNT ZION BAPTIST AND THEN SALEM METHODIST EPISCOPAL COLORED CHURCH IN THE 1880s. UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF TEACHER A.J. CRINER, THE SCHOOL LATER MOVED TO THE UNITED BROTHERHOOD FRIENDSHIP HALL. S.R. PICKNEY SERVED AS PRINCIPAL FOR 13 YEARS, AND DURING HIS TENURE THE SCHOOL MOVED INTO A TWO-STORY FRAME STRUCTURE, WHICH BECAME THE ORANGE COLORED SCHOOL. IT WAS RENAMED IN 1930 IN HONOR OF EDUCATOR AND TUSKEGEE INSTITUTE PRESIDENT ROBERT RUSSA MOTON AND AGAIN IN 1946 FOR LONGTIME ORANGE TEACHER AND PRINCIPAL EMMA HENDERSON WALLACE. MOTON ELEMENTARY AND HIGH SCHOOL, WHICH LATER OCCUPIED A THREE-STORY BRICK STRUCTURE, WAS KNOWN FOR ITS BEAUTIFUL CAMPUS AND WON ACCLAIM FOR ITS SPORTS AND BAND PROGRAMS.

THE DISTRICT INCLUDED SCHOOLS FOR SEVERAL HUNDRED AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDENTS AND CONTINUED TO BUILD NEW FACILITIES UP UNTIL INTEGRATION IN 1966. IT UTILIZED FRANKLIN ELEMENTARY, BUILT IN 1958, AND NORTH JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL, OPENED IN AUGUST 1964, ONLY FOR A SHORT WHILE. ALTHOUGH MOST OF THE FORMER AFRICAN AMERICAN CAMPUSES WERE PHASED OUT OF USE, THE DISTRICT, WHICH BECAME THE WEST ORANGE COVE INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT, CONVERTED THE NORTH JUNIOR HIGH CAMPUS INTO A LEARNING CENTER.

(1988, 2004)

THE CITY OF ORANGE

THE FIRST KNOWN SETTLERS IN WHAT IS NOW THE CITY OF ORANGE WERE JOHN AND ELIZABETH HARMON, WHO ARRIVED IN 1828 WITH THEIR THREE CHILDREN. KNOWN FIRST AS GREEN'S BLUFF, THE SMALL FARMING COMMUNITY THAT DEVELOPED ALONG A BEND IN THE SABINE RIVER WAS SELECTED AS THE SEAT OF GOVERNMENT WHEN ORANGE COUNTY WAS CREATED IN 1852. THE TOWN WAS CALLED MADISON FROM 1852 UNTIL 1858, WHEN THE NAME ORANGE WAS ADOPTED.

THE EARLY ORANGE ECONOMY WAS BASED ON THE LUMBER AND SHIPBUILDING INDUSTRIES. LED BY PROMINENT PIONEER AREA LUMBERMEN AND AIDED BY THE ADVENT OF THE TEXAS AND NEW ORLEANS RAILROAD IN 1876, ORANGE WAS RECOGNIZED AS THE LEADER IN EAST TEXAS SAWMILL ACTIVITY BY THE 1880s. THE DEEP WATER PORT AND THE AVAILABILITY OF LUMBER MADE THE CITY AN IDEAL LOCATION FOR THE SHIPBUILDING INDUSTRY, WHICH REACHED ITS HIGHEST PRODUCTION LEVELS DURING WORLD WARS I AND II.

FOR MANY YEARS THE CITY OF ORANGE HAS MAINTAINED A FULL RANGE OF SERVICES FOR ITS CITIZENS. PUBLIC SCHOOLS HAVE OPERATED SINCE THE 1880s AND ELECTRICITY WAS INSTITUTED IN 1890. ORANGE'S SHIPBUILDING AND PETROCHEMICAL INDUSTRIES CONTINUE TO MAKE THE CITY A LEADING COMMERCIAL CENTER IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS.

(1983)

CLARENCE "GATEMOUTH" BROWN
(APRIL 18,1924 – SEPTEMBER 10, 2005)
 
WELL-KNOWN FOR HIS EXPERTISE ON THE GUITAR AND HIS MULTI-GENRE MUSIC, CLARENCE "GATEMOUTH” BROWN HAD A RECORDING CAREER THAT SPANNED MORE THAN 50 YEARS. BORN IN VINTON, LOUISIANA, HE AND HIS FAMILY MOVED TO ORANGE WHEN HE WAS AN INFANT. HERE, BROWN WAS SHAPED BY A MIX OF TEXAN AND CAJUN CULTURES. HE LEARNED FROM HIS MUSICIAN FATHER AND BECAME KNOWN FOR HIS GUITAR AND FIDDLE PLAYING, AS WELL AS HIS DEEP SINGING VOICE; HE ALSO PLAYED THE DRUMS, VIOLIN, MANDOLIN AND HARMONICA. BROWN'S MUSIC REFLECTED AFRICAN-AMERICAN FOLK TRADITIONS OF THE SOUTHWEST.

AFTER RETURNING FROM WORLD WAR II, BROWN SETTLED IN HOUSTON AS A PROFESSIONAL MUSICIAN. HE RECORDED WITH PEACOCK RECORDS, WHERE HE HAD HIS FIRST HIT, "MARY IS FINE." IN THE 1960s, BROWN’S CAREER SLUMPED AND HE CHANGED GENRES, RECORDING COUNTRY MUSIC. BY THE 1970s, BROWN GAINED A LARGER FANBASE, TOURING IN EUROPE, AFRICA, AND THE U.S.S.R., AND APPEARING ON THE POPULAR PROGRAMS, HEE HAW AND AUSTIN CITY LIMITS. HE ALSO BEGAN A SERIES OF RECORDINGS IN BOGALUSA, LOUISIANA THAT DISPLAYED HIS ABILITY TO PLAY MUSIC IN A VARIETY OF GENRES, INCLUDING BLUES, WESTERN SWING, RHYTHM AND BLUES, COUNTRY AND CAJUN. IN 1982, HE WON THE GRAMMY AWARD FOR BEST TRADITIONAL BLUES RECORDING WITH A BOGALUSA RECORDING, “ALRIGHT AGAIN." HE RECEIVED OTHER HONORS FOR HIS WORK, INCLUDING EIGHT W.C. HANDY AWARDS AND INDUCTION INTO THE BLUES HALL OF FAME.

IN 2005, BROWN EVACUATED TO ORANGE FROM SLIDELL, LOUISIANA DUE TO HURRICANE KATRINA. HE DIED HERE TWO WEEKS LATER AND WAS INTERRED IN HOLLYWOOD CEMETERY. TODAY, GATEMOUTH BROWN'S WORK ENDURES THROUGH HIS RECORDINGS AND SIGNIFICANT INFLUENCE ON GENERATIONS OF GUITARISTS AND OTHER MUSICIANS.

(2009)

MARKER IS PROPERTY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS

DAVID ROBERT WINGATE
(1819 – 1899)

IN 1852 WEALTHY MISSISSIPPI SAWMILL OWNER DAVID ROBERT WINGATE MOVED HIS FAMILY TO A LARGE COTTON PLANTATION IN NEWTON COUNTY. DURING THE CIVIL WAR (1861-65), HE DONATED LUMBER FROM HIS SABINE PASS SAWMILL TO BUILD FORT SABINE AND OTHER POSTS. FEDERAL TROOPS BURNED HIS HOME AND BUSINESS. IN 1874 HE RELOCATED IN ORANGE, BOUGHT INTO A SAWMILL, AND BRANCHED INTO RICE FARMING. WINGATE SERVED AS COUNTY JUDGE IN NEWTON AND ORANGE COUNTIES. ALTHOUGH PLAGUED WITH FIRES AND DISASTERS, JUDGE WINGATE REBUILT HIS HOLDINGS AND CONTINUED TO HELP OTHERS.

(1979)

HOMESITE OF DR. EDGAR WILLIAM BROWN

FOLLOWING THE EXAMPLE OF HIS FATHER DR. SAMUEL M. BROWN, GEORGIA NATIVE EDGAR WILLIAM BROWN (1859-1917) BECAME A PRACTICING PHYSICIAN IN ORANGE. IN 1888 HE MARRIED CARRIE LAUNA LUTCHER (1861-1941), DAUGHTER OF THE SUCCESSFUL ORANGE LUMBERMAN HENRY JACOB LUTCHER.

BROWN, WHOSE HOME WAS LOCATED AT THIS SITE, BECAME ASSOCIATED WITH THE LUTCHER TIMBER ENTERPRISE IN THE DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF THE COMPANY'S PROPERTIES. HE LATER TOOK OVER AS MANAGER OF THE NEWLY ESTABLISHED DIBERT, STARK AND BROWN CYPRESS COMPANY OPERATIONS IN LOUISIANA. HIS SUCCESS IN THE TIMBER INDUSTRY SOON MADE HIM ONE OF THE LEADING LUMBERMEN IN THE UNITED STATES.

IN HIS LATER YEARS BROWN TOOK AN ACTIVE INTEREST IN AGRICULTURE AND WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CLEARING AND CULTIVATION OF MUCH AREA FARMLAND. HE ALSO INVESTED IN THE REGION'S EARLY OIL PRODUCTION INDUSTRY AND DIRECTED VARIOUS LAND DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS.

BROWN SERVED FOR MANY YEARS AS MAYOR OF ORANGE. AN ADVOCATE OF THE CITY'S COMMERCIAL GROWTH, HE ACTIVELY SUPPORTED CONSTRUCTION OF A DEEP WATER PORT AND THE INTERCOSTAL CANAL. HIS EARLY EFFORTS WERE VITAL TO ORANGE'S DEVELOPMENT AS A MAJOR CENTER OF SHIPPING AND TRADE.

(1982)

DR. SAMUEL M. BROWN
(1836 – 1887)

SOUTH CAROLINA NATIVE SAMUEL M. BROWN SERVED WITH DISTINCTION AS A SURGEON IN THE CONFEDERATE ARMY DURING THE CIVIL WAR. HE AND HIS FAMILY SETTLED IN EAST TEXAS IN 1866 AND IN 1871 MOVED TO ORANGE. HE WAS A RESPECTED LOCAL PHYSICIAN, OFTEN TREATING COUNTY JAIL PRISONERS AND PAUPERS. A LEADING CITIZEN OF THE TOWN, HE WAS TRAGICALLY KILLED IN A LOCOMOTIVE ACCIDENT ON MARCH 29, 1887. A LOCAL NEWSPAPER REPORTED THAT HE WAS AIDING A CHILD WHEN HE WAS STRUCK BY THE TRAIN, AND THAT HIS DEATH WAS A GREAT SHOCK TO THE CITIZENS OF ORANGE. 

(1987)

DR. WILLIAM HEWSON AND DR. DAVID CALDWELL HEWSON

TWO IN A LONG LINE OF PHYSICIANS IN THEIR FAMILY, WILLIAM AND DAVID CALDWELL HEWSON WERE SIGNIFICANT FIGURES IN ORANGE COUNTY. WILLIAM WAS BORN IN PHILADELPHIA IN 1801. IN 1821, HE MARRIED MARY ANN BANKSON AND THEY MOVED THEIR FAMILY SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE SETTLING IN ORANGE IN THE EARLY 1850s. DR. HEWSON WORKED AS A PHYSICIAN AND OPENED A DRUGSTORE IN ORANGE. HE ALSO OPENED EMPIRE MILLS, AN EARLY AREA SAWMILL, AND AFTER ORANGE COUNTY ORGANIZED IN 1852, HE BECAME INVOLVED IN CONSTRUCTION OF THE COUNTY COURTHOUSE AND SERVED AS DISTRICT CLERK FOR SEVERAL TERMS. HEWSON ALSO PARTICIPATED IN AGRICULTURAL AND CHURCH ACTIVITIES BEFORE PASSING AWAY IN 1867. 

DR. DAVID CALDWELL HEWSON, ONE OF WILLIAM AND MARY’S THREE SONS, WAS BORN IN PENNSYLVANIA IN 1826. HE MARRIED HANNAH BENNETT IN 1847 AND GRADUATED FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA MEDICAL SCHOOL THE NEXT YEAR. THE COUPLE MOVED TO LOUISIANA AND HAD THREE CHILDREN BEFORE SETTLING IN ORANGE. IN THE 1850s, DR. HEWSON DIVORCED HANNAH AND MARRIED HARRIET THOMAS, WITH WHOM HE HAD THREE MORE CHILDREN. HE WORKED AS A PHYSICIAN AND ALSO RAN THE FAMILY DRUGSTORE AFTER HIS FATHER’S DEATH. HEWSON ENLISTED IN THE CONFEDERATE ARMY IN 1862, WORKING FOR A TIME AS A MEDICAL EXAMINER OF CONSCRIPTS. UPON RETURNING FROM WAR, HIS PRACTICE PROSPERED AND HE TURNED OVER OPERATION OF THE STORE TO HIS SON BENJAMIN, A PHARMACIST. IN 1884, THE SOUTHEAST TEXAS MEDICAL SOCIETY ELECTED DR. HEWSON AS PRESIDENT. HE DIED IN 1896 AND, LIKE HIS FATHER, WAS BURIED IN EVERGREEN CEMETERY. TODAY, DRS. WILLIAM AND DAVID C. HEWSON ARE REMEMBERED AS PIONEER DOCTORS WHO MADE VITAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO ORANGE’S DEVELOPMENT.

(2007)

MARKER IS PROPERTY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS

EMMA HENDERSON WALLACE

A NATIVE OF WAXAHACHIE, TEXAS, EMMA SMILEY HENDERSON WALLACE (1876-1968) ATTENDED SCHOOL AT PRAIRIE VIEW COLLEGE BEFORE BECOMING A TEACHER IN 1896. SHE TAUGHT IN TYLER, ELLIS AND JEFFERSON COUNTIES BEFORE MOVING TO ORANGE IN 1901 TO BECOME ONE OF FOUR TEACHERS AT ORANGE COLORED SCHOOL, WHICH WAS HOUSED IN THE SALEM METHODIST AND MOUNT ZION MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCHES. SHE JOINED THE ORANGE PUBLIC SCHOOL FACULTY IN 1914.

THE WIDOW OF LOFTY HENDERSON, EMMA MARRIED ANDERSON WALLACE IN THE 1920s. AFTER SERVING FIRST AS A TEACHER AT MOTON HIGH SCHOOL, NAMED FOR EDUCATOR ROBERT RUSSA MOTON, SHE WAS APPOINTED PRINCIPAL IN 1933. UNDER WALLACE'S 13-YEAR LEADERSHIP, THE CAMPUS DEVELOPED WITH A LIBRARY, BASKETBALL AND TENNIS COURTS, A BAND, CHOIR, DRAMA GROUP AND STUDENT CLUBS. A DRILL CORPS, WHICH SUPPORTED THE SCHOOL’S LONGTIME DRAGONS FOOTBALL TEAM, FORMED IN 1946. THAT SAME YEAR, AT THE REQUEST OF THE MOTON SCHOOL PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION, THE SCHOOL WAS RENAMED EMMA H. WALLACE HIGH SCHOOL IN HER HONOR.

EMMA WALLACE RETIRED FROM ORANGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN 1952. IN ADDITION TO HER ROLE AS EDUCATOR, SHE WAS ALSO AN ACTIVE MEMBER IN MOUNT ZION BAPTIST CHURCH, CIVIC BETTERMENT LEAGUE, ORDER OF THE EASTERN STAR AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS. SHE MOVED TO DALLAS IN 1959 AND DIED THERE IN 1968.

THE COMMUNITY WALLACE SERVED FOR THE BETTER PART OF A CENTURY CONTINUES TO HONOR HER MEMORY. HER LEGACY IS REMEMBERED BY THE MANY STUDENTS WHOSE LIVES SHE AFFECTED THROUGH HER DEDICATION TO EDUCATING THE YOUTH OF ORANGE'S AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY AND HER DEVOTION TO HER PUPILS’ SUCCESS. 

(2004)

SITE OF END OF THE LINE STATION

THE ORIGINAL CHARTER FOR A RAIL LINE THROUGH THE ORANGE AREA WAS GRANTED TO THE SABINE AND GALVESTON RAILROAD AND LUMBER COMPANY IN 1856. ABOUT THE SAME TIME THE NEW ORLEANS, OPELOUSAS AND GREAT WESTERN RAILROAD COMPANY WAS BUILDING A LINE WEST FROM THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. THE LOUISIANA LEGISLATURE LATER ENDORSED A PLAN TO JOIN TEXAS IN THE COMPLETION OF THE TRADE ROUTE BETWEEN THE STATES.

THE TWO COMPANIES WERE REORGANIZED AS SEPARATE DIVISIONS OF THE TEXAS AND NEW ORLEANS RAILROAD. THE TEXAS DIVISION COMPLETED CONSTRUCTION TO THIS SITE BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR. SINCE THE RAIL LINE STOPPED AT THE SABINE RIVER, THE FIRST DEPOT IN ORANGE WAS KNOWN AS THE END OF THE LINE STATION. TRAINS UNLOADED CARGO HERE FOR TRANSFER TO RIVERBOATS AND OCEAN FREIGHTERS. SECTIONS OF THE LINE REMAINED IN OPERATION DURING THE CIVIL WAR, BUT NEARBY RAILS WERE USED TO BUILD CONFEDERATE FORTIFICATIONS AT SABINE PASS (34 MI. SW). 

THE INTERSTATE ROUTE WAS COMPLETED IN 1881 UNDER THE DIRECTION OF CHARLES MORGAN, A STEAMSHIP LINES OWNER. THE FIRST STATION, DAMAGED BY AN 1885 STORM, WAS REPLACED BY A LARGER FACILITY WITH RIVER LOADING DOCKS, THE SOUTHERN PACIFIC RAILROAD LATER TOOK OVER THE T. & N. O. LINE.

(1981)

EVERGREEN CEMETERY

LOCAL LORE PLACES THE FIRST BURIAL IN THIS CEMETERY AS EARLY AS  1840. WHEN ROBERT JACKSON PURCHASED 35 ACRES OF LAND INCLUDING THIS SITE IN 1853, AT LEAST ONE GRAVE WAS ALREADY PRESENT. JACKSON ALLOWED THAT PORTION OF HIS LAND TO BE USED FOR FURTHER BURIALS.

THE EARLIEST MARKED GRAVE IS DATED 1860. A LADIES' CEMETERY ASSOCIATION WAS FORMED IN 1891, AND FOR MANY YEARS THE GRAVEYARD WAS REFERRED TO AS “THE CITY CEMETERY" OR "THE CEMETERY THAT MR. JACKSON GAVE TO THE CEMETERY.” THE NAME EVERGREEN CAME INTO USE IN 1898 OR 1899.

FEWER THAN 100 MARKED GRAVES DATE FROM BEFORE 1900. MOST ARE THOSE OF PIONEER SETTLERS WHO DIED IN THEIR 40s AND 50s. IN 1911, ROBERT RUSSELL WROTE THAT "MORE GRAVES ARE LOST IN THERE THAN ARE IN SIGHT." THE NUMBER OF MARKED BURIALS INCREASED IN 1917, 1918, AND 1919 DUE TO A SERIES OF INFLUENZA EPIDEMICS.

THE MAJORITY OF THOSE WHO DIED IN THE CITY Of ORANGE BETWEEN 1850 AND 1953, WHEN PRIVATE CEMETERIES BEGAN OPERATIONS IN THE AREA, ARE BURIED ON THIS SITE. NEARLY FOUR TIMES ITS ORIGINAL SIZE, THE CEMETERY CONTAINS A VARIETY OF GRAVE MARKERS, INCLUDING FAMILY MAUSOLEUMS, THE MARKERS OF FRATERNAL ORDERS, AND MILITARY MARKERS HONORING VETERANS OF SEVERAL U.S. AND INTERNATIONAL CONFLICTS, INCLUDING THE CIVIL WAR, THE SPANISH AMERICAN WAR, WORLD WARS I AND II, AND THE CONFLICTS IN KOREA AND VIETNAM.

WITH AN ESTIMATED 7500 GRAVES IN 1998, EVERGREEN CEMETERY IS A RECORD OF THE PIONEERS OF ORANGE. THE CEMETERY CONTINUES TO SERVE THE CITY AND SURROUNDING AREA. 

 (1998)

FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF ORANGE

IN 1879 THE REV. ANDREW PEDDY HELPED ORGANIZE THIS CONGREGATION WITH 18 CHARTER MEMBERS. THEY MET IN THE FRAME ORANGE COUNTY COURTHOUSE AND WERE SERVED FOR A TIME BY MISSIONARY PREACHERS. SARAH A. FINCH AND ANNA AND L.L BETTIS DEEDED A LOT IN THIS BLOCK TO THE CONGREGATION IN 1883. THE FOLLOWING YEAR A 40’ X 60' MEETINGHOUSE WAS ERECTED. 

IN 1898, DURING THE MINISTRY OF THE REV. J.T. STANTON, THE CONGREGATION ADOPTED THE NAME "GREEN AVENUE BAPTIST CHURCH". THIS MEMBERSHIP MERGED IN 1909 WITH THE EIGHTH STREET BAPTIST CHURCH TO BECOME "THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF ORANGE".

UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF THE REV. J. STUART PEARCE, MORE LAND WAS ACQUIRED IN 1913 AND THIS BRICK SANCTUARY WAS IN USE BY 1915. J. G. McMULLEN GAVE ADDITIONAL PROPERTY FOR A NEW EDUCATION BUILDING IN 1939. AS THE CONGREGATION GREW UNDER THE PASTORATE OF DR. COOPER WATERS, ADDITIONAL LAND WAS PURCHASED, AND A SECOND EDUCATION BUILDING WAS CONSTRUCTED IN 1952. THE VIOLA McCORQUODALE BUILDING AND FELLOWSHIP HALL WERE ERECTED IN 1958.

THIS FELLOWSHIP HAS HELPED ESTABLISH THE FOLLOWING BAPTIST CHURCHES: COVE, LITTLE CYPRESS, BROWNWOOD, RIVERSIDE, AND MAPLECREST.

(1979)

FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH OF ORANGE

THE FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH OF ORANGE BEGAN IN 1885 WHEN A GROUP OF RESIDENTS STARTED MEETING FOR WORSHIP SERVICES. SOME OF THESE CHARTER MEMBERS WERE BAPTIZED IN THE SABINE RIVER. THE CHURCH OFFICIALLY ORGANIZED UNDER THE REV. J.C. MASON IN 1894, AND MEMBERS BUILT A SANCTUARY BY 1895. AFTER SPENDING SEVERAL YEARS RAISING MONEY FOR A NEW STRUCTURE, THE CONGREGATION MOVED HERE IN 1954. OVER THE YEARS, MEMBERSHIP HAS GROWN, AND THE CONGREGATION HAS BEEN ACTIVE IN COMMUNITY AND CHARITABLE EFFORTS. MEMBERS HAVE ALSO SUPPORTED MANY ECUMENICAL AND EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS. AFTER MORE THAN 100 YEARS, THE CHURCH CONTINUES TO BE AN IMPORTANT INFLUENCE ON THE COMMUNITY IT SERVES.

(2006)

FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF ORANGE

UNTIL THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION REACHED ORANGE IN THE LATE 1880S, MOST BANKING NEEDS IN THE AREA WERE HANDLED THROUGH GALVESTON. THE GROWTH OF ORANGE AS A LUMBER CENTER AND DEEP WATER PORT, HOWEVER, NECESSITATED THE DEVELOPMENT OF A LOCAL BANKING FACILITY. THE ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING FOR THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF ORANGE WAS HELD IN 1889 AT THE OFFICE OF DR. D. C. HEWSON. A BOARD OF DIRECTORS WAS ELECTED, AND THEIR APPLICATION FOR A CHARTER WAS ACCEPTED THE SAME YEAR.

A MAJOR INSTRUMENT IN ORANGE'S GROWTH AS A CENTER FOR THE TIMBER INDUSTRY, THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK WAS ASSOCIATED WITH MANY OF THE TOWN'S PROMINENT LUMBERMEN. SUCCESSFUL SAWMILL OPERATOR HENRY JACOB LUTCHER (1836-1912) SERVED ON THE BANK'S FIRST BOARD OF DIRECTORS AS ITS PRESIDENT AND BUILT THE INSTITUTION'S FIRST FACILITY AT THE CORNER OF FRONT AND FIFTH STREETS. HIS SONS-IN-LAW, WILLIAM H. STARK (1851-1936) AND DR. EDGAR W BROWN (1888-1917), ALSO WERE MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS. AMONG THE BANK'S INITIAL INVESTORS WERE MERCHANT AND TEXAS LEGISLATOR JEROME SWINFORD AND SHINGLE MILL OWNER LEOPOLD MILLER.

OVER THE YEARS, THE BANK HAS CHANGED LOCATIONS, NAMES, AND INVESTORS, BUT IT REMAINS AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE CITY'S COMMERCIAL HERITAGE.

 (1984)

GEORGE ALEXANDER PATTILLO

A VETERAN OF THE WAR OF 1812, GEORGIA NATIVE GEORGE ALEXANDER PATTILLO (1796-1871) MIGRATED TO THIS AREA IN THE EARLY 1830s. HE SERVED ON THE LOCAL COMMITTEE OF CORRESPONDENCE CREATED BY THE CONVENTION OF 1832 AND ON THE GENERAL COUNCIL OF THE PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT ESTABLISHED BY THE CONSULTATION OF 1835.

DURING THE TEXAS REVOLUTION OF 1836, PATTILO, WHO HAD EARLIER RECEIVED A MEXICAN LAND GRANT, JOINED WITH OTHER AREA SETTLERS TO AID THE TEXAS ARMY. ARRIVING AT SAN JACINTO THE DAY AFTER THE DECISIVE BATTLE, HE WAS COMMISSIONED BY TEXAS PRESIDENT DAVID G. BURNET TO DIRECT THE FORMATION Of JEFFERSON COUNTY, WHICH INCLUDED THIS AREA. HE ALSO BECAME AN ASSOCIATE JUSTICE FOR THE NEW COUNTY AND WAS A POSTMASTER FOR THE SETTLEMENT OF PATTILLO'S STATION, LATER THE TERRY COMMUNITY OF CENTRAL ORANGE COUNTY.

IN THE EARLY 1840s, PATTILLO SERVED THIS AREA AS A REPRESENTATIVE AND A SENATOR IN THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS CONGRESS, WHERE HE ACTIVELY SUPPORTED ANNEXATION TO THE UNITED STATES. IN 1852, HE WAS ELECTED THE FIRST JUDGE OF THE NEWLY FORMED ORANGE COUNTY. AN ACTIVE MASONIC LEADER IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS, PATTILLO DIED IN 1871 AND WAS BURIED IN A FAMILY PLOT AT BUNN'S BLUFF ON THE NECHES RIVER, WHERE HE HAD LIVED SINCE 1844.

(1981)

HOLLYWOOD COMMUNITY CEMETERY

THOUGH RUMORS OF SLAVE CEMETERIES IN ORANGE COUNTY ABOUND, THE BURIAL GROUND ON THIS SITE IS THE OLDEST KNOWN AFRICAN AMERICAN CEMETERY IN THE AREA. WHEN MARY E. (MERRIMAN) BONEVILE TRANSFERRED 2.5 ACRES OF LAND TO WILLIAM KING, TRUSTEE OF MT. ZION BAPTIST CHURCH, IN 1875, THE DEED INDICATED THAT THE PROPERTY WAS ALREADY IN USE AS A BURIAL SITE.

THE OLDEST MARKED GRAVE IS THAT OF TRUSSER T. THOMAS (1866-1886). HE WAS FOLLOWED BY J. JORDAN (1870-1891). MANY OF THE 19TH CENTURY BURIALS WERE THOSE OF YOUNG PEOPLE. CHURCH TRUSTEE WILLIAM KING (1833-1896), A CRAFTSMAN AND FARMER WHO CAME FROM MISSISSIPPI WITH HIS WIFE, MARY, AS EARLY AS 1855, IS ALSO INTERRED HERE.

CALLED AT VARIOUS TIMES "THE COLORED CEMETERY,” “WOODLAWN CEMETERY," AND "MERRION CEMETERY," THE SITE WAS LISTED IN THE CITY DIRECTORY AS THE HOLLYWOOD CEMETERY AS EARLY AS 1922; DURING THE 1950s THE DIRECTOR OF THE SPARROW FUNERAL HOME OFFICIALLY NAMED THE CEMETERY "HOLLYWOOD” AND DEATH CERTIFICATES BEGAN TO REFLECT THAT NAME.

MANY INTERRED HERE WERE VETERANS OF THE U. S. ARMED FORCES; OTHERS, SUCH AS EMMA H. WALLACE (d. 1968), WERE EDUCATORS. UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE MT. ZION CHURCH, HOLLYWOOD CEMETERY CONTINUES TO SERVE THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY OF ORANGE COUNTY AND ALL OTHERS WHO WISH TO BE BURIED HERE.

(1998)

HUGH OCHILTREE
(July 10, 1820 – March 28, 1891)

A NATIVE OF NORTH CAROLINA, HUGH OCHILTREE MIGRATED TO TEXAS IN 1840. SETTLING FIRST IN NACOGDOCHES, HE STUDIED LAW IN THE OFFICE OF HIS COUSIN WILLIAM BECK OCHILTREE, WHO BECAME A PROMINENT JUSTICE AND TEXAS STATESMAN. IN 1843 HE MOVED TO SAN AUGUSTINE, WHERE HE MARRIED MARGARET ANN MCKNIGHT.

DURING THE MEXICAN WAR, OCHITREE VOLUNTEERED FOR SERVICE AND PARTICIPATED IN THE BATTLE OF MONTERREY. SHORTLY AFTER THE WAR HE MOVED TO SABINE PASS AND OPERATED A WAREHOUSE BUSINESS WITH JOHN G. BERRY.

IN 1852 OCHILTREE MOVED TO MADISON, NOW ORANGE. HERE HE ESTABLISHED A MERCANTILE AND LATER DEVELOPED A COMMISSION BUSINESS IN COTTON, SUGAR, AND MOLASSES. HIS WIFE DIED IN 1855 AND THE FOLLOWING YEAR HE WED MARY JOSEPHINE SHAW.

AN ACTIVE MASON AND A CHARTER MEMBER OF MADISON LODGE NO. 126, OCHILTREE WAS ALSO A LEADER IN PUBLIC SERVICE. HE SERVED AS MADISON'S FIRST POSTMASTER, AS AN ORANGE COUNTY COMMISSIONER, AND AS COUNTY CLERK. IN ADDITION, HE WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN THE SUPPORT OF DEEP WATER PORTS ON THE SABINE AND NECHES RIVERS. DURING THE CIVIL WAR HE WAS PROVOST MARSHAL OF ORANGE. HIS ACTIVE LEADERSHIP WAS VITAL TO THE EARLY GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE CITY.

(1982)

JIMMY OCHILTREE - SIMS HOME

BORN IN ORANGE, J. O. SIMS (1874-1961) ROSE FROM CLERK TO BOARD CHAIRMAN DURING HIS LONG CAREER WITH THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK. HE MARRIED MARY ALBERTA SPOONER (1879-1948) IN 1899 AND BUILT THIS RESIDENCE IN 1902. ORIGINALLY LOCATED ONE BLOCK FROM THIS SITE, THE HOUSE WAS ENLARGED IN 1919. ITS SIMPLE STYLE CONTRASTS WITH THE ORNATE MANSIONS BUILT BY WEALTHY LUMBERMEN. THE SIMS FAMILY OWNED THE HOUSE UNTIL 1977, WHEN IT WAS MOVED HERE.  

RECORDED TEXAS HISTORIC LANDMARK - 1979

JOHN HARMON

BORN IN 1790 IN ST. MARTIN PARISH, LOUSIANA, JOHN HARMON LIVED AT POSTE DE ATTAKAPAS, A SPANISH FORTIFICATION AT THE PRESENT SITE OF ST. MARTINVILLE. A VETERAN OF THE STATE’S DEFENSIVE ACTIONS DURING THE WAR OF 1812, HE WED ELIZABETH COMPSTOCK CLARKS IN 1813.

SOON AFTER THE BIRTH OF THEIR FIRST CHID IN 1816, THE HARMONS SOLD THEIR ST. MARTIN PARISH LAND AND MOVED WEST. ALTHOUGH NOT MUCH IS KNOWN ABOUT THEIR ACTIVITIES OVER THE FOLLOWING DECADE, IT IS KNOWN THEY HAD SETTLED ALONG THE EASTERN BANK OF THE SABINE RIVER BY 1826. THE NEXT YEAR, HARMON DECIDED TO RELOCATE IN THIS AREA. HE BUILT A MASSIVE RAFT OF CYPRESS LOGS, WHICH TRANSPORTED A HOUSE, A WAGON, A PAIR OF OXEN, A HORSE, A COW, FARM TOOLS AND SUPPLIES, AND HIS FAMILY, WHICH NUMBERED FIVE.

THE HARMON FAMILY ARRIVED HERE ON JANUARY 1, 1828, AND SETTLED ALONG THE RIVER UNTIL 1830, WHEN THEY ESTABLISHED A PERMANENT HOME ON ADAMS BAYOU (2 MI. W). THEIR ARRIVAL AT THE PRESENT SITE OF ORANGE MARKED THE BEGINNING OF PERMANENT SETTLEMENT. LATER, WHEN THE TOWN DEVELOPED, JOHN HARMON WAS A SADDLER, A CIVIC LEADER, AND A PROMINENT LANDWONER.  HE DIED IN 1874, BUT HIS CONTRIBUTIONS AND PIONEER SPIRIT REMAIN VITAL TO THE AREA’S HERITAGE. 

TEXAS SESQUICENTENNIAL 1836 - 1986

JOHN THOMAS STARK

PATRIARCH OF THE ORANGE COUNTY STARK FAMILY, JOHN T. STARK WAS BORN IN PEBBLE COUNTY, OHIO, IN 1821 AND MOVED TO EAST TEXAS IN 1840. HE SETTLED IN NEWTON COUNTY IN THE 1850s WHERE HE READ LAW AND RAN A MERCANTILE STORE. IN 1861 STARK JOINED THE CONFEDERATE FORCES AS A PRIVATE IN THE TEXAS INFANTRY AND WAS LATER ELECTED CAPTAIN. IN 1874 HE MOVED TO ORANGE WHERE HE PRACTICED LAW, SERVED ONE YEAR AS ORANGE COUNTY JUDGE, AND WAS ACTIVE IN THE OLD ORANGE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH. STARK'S THREE MARRIAGES PRODUCED EIGHTEEN CHILDREN. HE DIED IN 1893 AND IS BURIED IN THIS CEMETERY.

(1982)

LEONARD FREDERICK BENCKENSTEIN
(MAY 15, 1869 – JAN. 30, 1952)

A MILLIONAIRE BY HIS EARLY THIRTIES, LEONARD FREDERICK BENCKENSTEIN MADE HIS FIRST FORTUNE IN DETROIT, WHERE HE WAS INVOLVED IN THE INSURANCE, STOCK, AND BOND BUSINESS. HIS FRIENDSHIP WITH PROMINENT EAST TEXAS LUMBERMAN JOHN HENRY KIRBY LED HIM TO BEAUMONT, WHERE HE WAS VISITING WHEN THE LUCAS GUSHER CAME IN IN 1904.

BENCKENSTEIN CAME OUT OF RETIREMENT TO BEGIN INVESTING IN THE GREAT SPECULATION THAT FOLLOWED THE OIL DISCOVERY. WHILE INITIALLY SUCCESSFUL, HE EVENTUALLY SUFFERED ENORMOUS LOSSES. HE REMAINED ACTIVE IN THE OIL BUSINESS, HOWEVER, AND LATER WAS GIVEN A LEASE TO DRILL FOR OIL ON THE GED GRAY RANCH IN CALCASIEU PARISH, LOUISIANA. THE SUCCESSFUL VENTURE RESULTED IN THE FOUNDING OF VINTON PETROLEUM COMPANY, WHICH CAME TO BE OWNED BY BENCKENSTEIN AND ORANGE BUSINESSMEN W. H. STARK AND DR. E. W. BROWN.

AFTER THE DEATH OF HIS FIRST WIFE, GENEVIEVE (PETERSON), IN 1914, BENCKENSTEIN MARRIED LOUISE SNEED, AND THEY MOVED TO ORANGE, WHERE HE COULD BETTER MANAGE THE AFFAIRS OF VINTON PETROLEUM. WHILE LIVING IN THE CITY, HE HELPED ORGANIZE ORANGE'S RED CROSS CHAPTER AND BECAME BOARD MEMBER OF THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF ORANGE.

(1984)

LEVINGSTON SHIPBUILDING COMPANY

IN 1859, THREE BROTHERS, SAMUEL, DAVID AND JOHN LEVINGSTON, ARRIVED IN ORANGE FROM IRELAND AND PURCHASED AN EXISTING SHIPYARD, WHERE THEY BUILT WOODEN SHIPS FOR MORE THAN THIRTY YEARS. THE SON OF SAMUEL LEVINGSTON, “CAPTAIN” GEORGE LEVINGSTON, ESTABLISHED HIS OWN SHIPBUILDING BUSINESS IN 1919-1920. IN 1930, LEVINGSTON PURCHASED FIVE ACRES AT FRONT AND MILL STREETS IN ORANGE, ENLARGING HIS OPERATION, AND LEVINGSTON SHIPBUILDING COMPANY OPERATED FROM THIS LOCATION FOR THE REMAINDER OF ITS EXISTENCE. INCORPORATION IN 1933 SUSTAINED THE COMPANY DURING THE SLOW ECONOMIC TIMES OF THE 193Os. EDWARD T. MALLOY WAS HIRED IN 1939 AS GENERAL MANAGER, AND STAYED WITH THE COMPANY FOR THIRTY-SEVEN YEARS, BECOMING PRESIDENT OF THE COMPANY WHEN HE BOUGHT THE CONTROLLING INTEREST IN 1945.

WORLD WAR II BROUGHT A VAST INFLUX OF BUSINESS—THE COMPANY HAD BEGUN CONSTRUCTION OF MILITARY VESSELS BEFORE THE UNITED STATES ENTERED THE WAR, AND CONTINUED TO BE A MAJOR SUPPLIER FOR THE ARMY AND NAVY DURING THE DURATION.   LEVINGSTON SHIPBUILDING DELIVERED ITS FIRST VESSEL FOR THE WAR EFFORT, A 530-TON STEEL TUGBOAT NAMED TUSCARORA ON DECEMBER 13, 1941. BETWEEN 1941 AND 1945, LEVINGSTON BUILT AND DELIVERED A TOTAL OF 160 VESSELS FOR THE U.S. NAVY AND U.S. ARMY INCLUDING TUGS, TANKERS, BARGES AND OCEAN GOING RESCUE TUGS. 

AFTER WORLD WAR II, LEVINGSTON SHIPBUILDING CHANGED WITH THE ECONOMIC TIMES AND BECAME A WORLDWIDE LEADER IN THE DESIGN, ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION OF OFF-SHORE DRILLING RIGS, JACK-UP PLATORMS, AND SELF-PROPELLED DRILLING SHIPS. LEVINGSTON SHIPBUILDING WAS THE ONLY U.S. BUILDER OF ALL FIVE TYPES OF OFFSHORE DRILLING RIGS UNTIL IT CEASED OPERATIONS IN 1985.

(2008)

MARKER IS PROPERTY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS

LUTCHER & MOORE LUMBER COMPANY

H. J. LUTCHER AND G. B. MOORE MOVED THEIR LUMBER OPERATIONS FROM PENNSYLVANIA AND ESTABLISHED A HEADQUARTERS HERE IN 1877. OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DECADES THEY BUILT A TIMBER EMPIRE WITH VAST HOLDINGS IN TEXAS AND LOUISIANA AND AN EXTENSIVE NETWORK OF SAWMILLS, RAILROADS, WAREHOUSES, CANALS, DOCK FACILITIES, AND TRANSPORT SHIPS. THE COMPANY ERECTED A MISSION STYLE HEADQUARTERS HERE IN 1913. LUTCHER AND MOORE AND THEIR SUCCESSORS DR. E. W. BROWN AND WILLIAM H. STARK AMASSED GREAT WEALTH AND FOUNDED MANY OF ORANGE COUNTY'S CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS. THE COMPANY CEASED OPERATIONS IN THE EARLY 1930s.

SESQUICENTENNIAL OF TEXAS STATEHOOD 1845-1995

LUTCHER MEMORIAL CHURCH BUILDING

FOUNDED IN 1878, THE FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH INITIALLY OCCUPIED A FRAME STRUCTURE BUILT IN 1883 AT MARKET AND POLK STREET. IN 1912 THE CONGREGATION MOVED TO THIS CHURCH BUILDING WHICH FRANCES ANN (MRS. HENRY JACOB) LUTCHER (1841-1924) HAD ERECTED AS A GIFT FROM THE LUTCHER FAMILY. H. J. LUTCHER (1836-1912) AMASSED A FORTUNE IN THE LUTCHER & MOORE LUMBER COMPANY. THE LUTCHERS AND THEIR TWO DAUGHTERS CARRIE (MRS E. W.) BROWN AND MIRIAM (MRS. WILLIAM H.) STARK WERE PHILANTHROPISTS AND COMMUNITY LEADERS. MRS. LUTCHER ASKED THAT THE COST OF THE BUILDING NEVER BE PUBLICIZED. SHE AND HER DESCENDANTS SET UP A PERMANENT ENDOWMENT TO MAINTAIN THE FACILITY.

FINE WORKMANSHIP AND MATERIALS APPEAR THROUGHOUT THE STRUCTURE. THE BEAUTIFUL ART GLASS WINDOWS WERE MADE BY LAMB STUDIOS OF NEW YORK. FOR THE UPPER FOYER, MRS. LUTCHER CHOSE THREE PRIZE-WINNING WINDOWS FROM THE 1893 CHICAGO WORLD'S FAIR. THE MARBLE CAME FROM ITALY AND THE GRANITE WAS SHIPPED BY RAIL FROM LLANO, TEXAS. THE DOME IS TOPPED BY A COPPER CUPOLA. DECORATIONS ON THE SANCTUARY CEILING AND WALLS HAVE GOLD LEAF OVERLAY. THE PEWS AND WOOD PANELING IN THE ORGAN LOFT ARE MAHOGANY. MOSAIC WORK ADORNS THE PULPIT, MARBLE COMMUNION TABLE AND BAPTISMAL FONT. 

RECORDED TEXAS HISTORIC LANDMARK - 1978

MADISON LODGE NO. 126, A.F. & A.M.

HUGH OCHILTREE (1820-91), GEORGE A. PATTILLO (1796-1871), AND OTHER LEADING CITIZENS ORGANIZED THIS LODGE ON APRIL 30, 1853. COL. OCHILTREE HAD COME TO TEXAS IN 1839, FOUGHT IN THE MEXICAN WAR, AND HELPED DEVELOP THE TOWN OF MADISON (NOW ORANGE). PATTILLO SETTLED IN THE COUNTY IN 1830, WAS A LOCAL OFFICIAL OF THE MEXICAN COLONY OF TEXAS, A REPUBLIC OF TEXAS CONGRESSMAN, AND A VETERAN PUBLIC LEADER. THE LODGE WAS CHARTERED UNDER THE NAME BY WHICH THE TOWN OF ORANGE WAS KNOWN FROM 1842 TO 1858.

OFFICERS FOR THE FIRST YEAR WERE WILLIAM SMITH, WORSHIPFUL MASTER; PATTILLO, SENIOR WARDEN; OCHILTREE, JUNIOR WARDEN; A. H. READING, SECRETARY; I. H. HUTCHINGS, TREASURER; S. FAIRCHILDS, SENIOR DEACON; N. SMITH, JUNIOR DEACON; CHARLES SAXON, TILER.

MADISON LODGE SPONSORED THE TOWN'S FIRST PUBLIC SCHOOL, 1854-1879, PROVIDING HOUSING ON THE GROUND FLOOR OF THE LODGE HALL — WHERE CHURCH SERVICES WERE ALSO HELD FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS. IN 1865, A HURRICANE DESTROYED THE ORIGINAL LODGE BUILDING. A SECOND WAS ERECTED IN 1878. THE PRESENT BUILDING, WITH BANQUET ROOM, OFFICES, AND OTHER APPOINTMENTS, WAS COMPLETED IN AUGUST 1926.

(1976)

MOVED FROM SECOND LODGE SITE AT 5TH AND ELM AFTERSALE OF PROPERTY TO NEW, BUT CONTINUING, LOCATION OF ORIGINAL MADISON LODGE #126, A.F. & A.M.

MISS LAURA CHANDLER'S PRIVATE SCHOOL

JAMES M. CHANDLER WAS A CONFEDERATE VETERAN WHO BROUGHT HIS FAMILY TO TEXAS AFTER THE CIVIL WAR. ABOUT 1890 HE BUILT A RESIDENCE AND SEVERAL OUTBUILDINGS, INCLUDING A STABLE, ON THIS PROPERTY. IN 1896, CHANDLER'S DAUGHTER LAURA BEGAN HOLDING SCHOOL CLASSES IN THE ROOM ABOVE THE STABLE. IN 1904, WHEN SHE MARRIED KNOX HERBERT, THIS STABLE - SCHOOLHOUSE WAS REMODELED AS A RESIDENCE FOR THE COUPLE. ALTHOUGH THE HERBERTS EVENTUALLY MOVED FROM ORANGE THE STRUCTURE STANDS AS A REMINDER OF LIFE IN THE VICTORIAN ERA.

TEXAS SESQUICENTENNIAL 1836 – 1986

MOUNT ZION MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH

THE EARLIEST KNOWN BLACK CONGREGATION IN ORANGE, MOUNT ZION MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH WAS STARTED IN 1871 AS A RESULT OF THE ORGANIZATIONAL EFFORTS BEGUN BY SIMON JONES, PETER MINOR, AND WILLIAM RUBEN MINOR. JOINED LATER BY WILLIAM EDWARDS, BOYD SCOTT, ARTHUR ROBINSON, AND JOHN WILLIAMS, THEY RAISED FUNDS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A CHURCH BUILDING. COMPLETED IN 1872, THE FIRST SANCTUARY WAS A SMALL FRAME STRUCTURE ON THE CORNER OF THIRD AND CHERRY STREETS. IT WAS LATER MOVED TO JOHN STREET AND ENLARGED. 

THE CONGREGATION WAS OFFICIALLY ORGANIZED AT A MEETING IN OCTOBER 1873. THE DEDICATION CEREMONY WAS CONDUCTED BY THE REV. ARCHIE VINERABLE AND THE REV. A. J. SHOTWELL OF BEAUMONT. 

SEVERAL OTHER SANCTUARIES SERVED THE MEMBERS BEFORE THE PRESENT BRICK BUILDING WAS CONSTRUCTED IN 1926. DESIGNED BY DR. C. E. JETER, IT WAS COMPLETED DURING THE PASTORATE OF THE REV. W. J. CLARK. 

THE MOUNT ZION CONGREGATION HAS BEEN INSTRUMENTAL IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COMMUNITY, SPONSORING MISSIONARY PROGRAMS AND SERVING AS A NUCLEUS FOR THE FORMATION OF SEVERAL CHURCHES. MANY PROMINENT AREA LEADERS HAVE BEEN MEMBERS HERE.

(1981)

THE NEYLAND-GILMER HOUSE

ALBERT NEYLAND (1854-1890), SON OF ORANGE PIONEERS, MARRIED LOUISA JETT (1855-1914) IN 1875 AND BUILT A SMALL HOUSE AT THIS SITE. IN 1877 ALEXANDER GILMER (1829-1906) BOUGHT THE PROPERTY. GILMER OWNED SAWMILLS THROUGHOUT TEXAS AND REAL ESTATE IN ORANGE. THIS VICTORIAN RESIDENCE WAS BUILT AROUND THE ORIGINAL STRUCTURE. GILMER DEEDED IT TO HIS DAUGHTER MARTHA WHEN SHE MARRIED H. S. FILSON. AFTER THE FILSON OCCUPANCY ENDED, IT BECAME RESIDENTIAL AND RENTAL PROPERTY. 

RECORDED TEXAS HISTORIC LANDMARK - 1979

OFFICE OF THE SUPERVISOR OF SHIPBUILDING AND CONSOLIDATED STEEL CORPORATION

ORANGE'S LOCATION AT A BEND IN THE SABINE RIVER, ADJACENT TO THE IMMENSE VIRGIN PINE FORESTS OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS, MADE IT AN IDEAL SITE FOR SHIPBUILDING. HOWEVER, BY 1930 ALL OF THE EASILY OBTAINABLE TIMBER WAS EXHAUSTED, AND THE ASSOCIATED SAWMILLS CLOSED. THE DEPRESSION OF THE 1930s ALSO WEIGHED HEAVILY ON THE POPULATION OF ORANGE. IN JULY 1940, CONGRESSMAN MARTIN DIES AND VICE-PRESIDENT JOHN NANCE GARNER ATTACHED AN AMENDMENT TO A LARGE GENERAL APPROPRIATIONS BILL TO BUILD TWENTY-FOUR SURF-LANDING CRAFTS AND TWELVE DESTROYERS IN ORANGE. THE OFFICE OF SUPERVISOR OF SHIPBUILDING, USN, ORANGE, TEXAS, WAS ESTABLISHED AT THIS TIME, WITH CDR E.B. PERRY AS THE FIRST SUPERVISOR. THE SUPERVISOR WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR DIRECTING THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE THIRTY-SIX CRAFTS, AND ALSO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A SHIPYARD IN ORANGE TO SUPPORT THE ENDEAVOR.

THE FACILITY WAS BUILT ON SIXTY-FIVE ACRES AT A BEND IN THE SABINE RIVER. LEVINGSTON SHIPBUILDING'S TUGBOAT AND BARGE SHIPYARD OCCUPIED A SMALL PORTION OF THE WEST SIDE, AND THE REMAINDER WAS OCCUPIED BY CONSOLIDATED STEEL CORPORATION'S STEEL FABRICATING PLANT, WHERE THE OFFICE OF THE SUPERVISOR WAS ALSO LOCATED. ON MAY 14, 1941, CONSTRUCTION BEGAN AT CONSOLIDATED STEEL ON THE DESTROYERS USS AULICK AND USS CHARLES AUSBURNE, THE FIRST TWO WARSHIPS CONSTRUCTED ON THE GULF COAST FOR THE U.S. GOVERNMENT. IN TOTAL, THIRTY-NINE DESTROYERS AND 100 DESTROYER ESCORTS WERE BUILT AT THE CONSOLIDATED STEEL CORPORATION YARD DURING WORLD WAR II. AFTER THE WAR, THE NAVAL FACILITY PREPARED SHIPS FOR STORAGE IN THE NAVAL RESERVE FLEET AS THE UNITED STATES NAVAL INACTIVE SHIP MAINTENANCE FACILITY. 

(2008)

MARKER IS PROPERTY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS

OLD NIBLETT'S BLUFF, C.S.A.

ON HIGH POINT SE, ACROSS THE SABINE IN LOUISIANA. BUSIEST EAST TEAXAS PORT OF ENTRY IN THE CIVIL WAR. TARGET FOR ENEMY MOVEMENTS WEST ACROSS LOUISIANA REPEATEDLY IN 1862-64. CONFEDERATE DEFENSE POST. SUPPLY DEPOT TO SUPPORT CONSTANT TROOP MOVEMENTS, BOTH FOR FIGHTING AND FOR PATROLS AND RECRUITING. CROSSROADS FOR LAND AND RIVER TRAFFIC. FERRY POINT ON OLD ROAD THROUGH SWAMPS. COTTON CONCENTRATION POINT.  A BOOM TOWN WITH SALOONS, GAMBLING, NIGHT LIFE.   

PATROLLED ON BOTH SIDES OF THE SABINE BY TEXANS TO PROTECT TROOP MOVEMENTS, COMMERCIAL SHIPPING, STAGECOACH TRAVEL ROUTES, FREIGHTERS’ TRAINS, AND HERDS OF CATTLE AND HOGS GOING EAST ON THE HOOF. 

PASSED TEXAS TROOPS THROUGH BY THOUSANDS, TO GO EASTWARD THROUGH MARSHLANDS AND SLOUGHS TOWARD BRASHEAR CITY AND NEW ORLEANS OR UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER CROSSINGS, TO EASTERN BATTLEFIELDS. MANY UNITS WENT BY RAIL FROM HOUSTON TO BEAUMONT, THEN TO SABINE PASS AND UP THE RIVER BY STEAMER.

NIBLETT'S BLUFF WELCOMED STEAMERS UNLOADING GUNS, AMMUNITION, CLOTHING, MEDICINES AND OTHER GOODS VITAL TO THE CONFEDERACY - SWAPPING THESE FOR TEXAS AND LOUISIANA COTTON, CALLED "MONEY OF THE CONFEDERACY" BECAUSE OF ITS PURCHASING VALUE IN WORLD TRADE.

(1964)

ORANGE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

THE ORANGE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE TRACES ITS HISTORY TO AN 1887 CITIZENS' COMMITTEE THAT WAS FORMED TO PROMOTE THE AREA'S BUSINESS POTENTIAL. A REORGANIZATION OF THE COMMITTEE RESULTED IN THE FORMATION OF THE CITY'S BOARD OF TRADE IN 1899. 

A FURTHER STEP IN THE EVOLUTION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE TOOK PLACE IN 1902 WITH THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE PROGRESSIVE LEAGUE OF ORANGE. COMPRISED OF REPRESENTATIVES OF LEADING MANUFACTURING INSTITUTIONS AND BUSINESSES, THE LEAGUE ALSO INCLUDED PROFESSIONALS AND INDIVIDUALS NOT DIRECTLY INVOLVED IN THE BUSINESS WORLD CONCERNED WITH THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE CITY, LEAGUE MEMBERS UNDERTOOK PROJECTS FOR BETTER ROADS, A DEEP WATER CANAL, AND AN OPERA HOUSE, AND BEGAN A CAMPAIGN TO ATTRACT INVESTORS TO ORANGE. 

BETWEEN 1918 AND 1922, THE ORANGE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE WAS ORGANIZED FROM A CONSOLIDATION OF ITS PREDECESSORS. OVER THE YEARS, THE CHAMBER HAS WORKED SUCCESSFULLY TO STIMULATE BUSINESS IN THE COUNTY. THE INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE OF THE CHAMBER WAS FORMED IN 1947 TO BRING CHEMICAL PLANTS INTO THE AREA. TODAY THE ORANGE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IS RECOGNIZED AS AN IMPORTANT ELEMENT IN THE TOWN'S COMMERCIAL HERITAGE.

(1984)

ORANGE COUNTY AND THE CIVIL WAR

SHORTLY AFTER THE VOTERS OF ORANGE COUNTY AND TEXAS APPROVED SECESSION IN 1861, THREE MILITARY COMPANIES WERE RAISED IN THE COUNTY FOR CONFEDERATE SERVICE — THE ORANGE LIGHT GUARD, THE ORANGE GREYS AND HANNAH'S COMPANY. ADDITIONAL FORCES, INCLUDING THE ORANGE COUNTY COAST GUARD AND SEVERAL COMPANIES OF STATE TROOPS, WERE LATER RAISED FOR LOCAL DEFENSE. 

ORANGE COUNTY, TEN MILES SOUTH OF THE NIBLETT'S BLUFF LOCATION OF C. S. A. CAMP PLEASANT IN LOUISIANA, WAS PART OF AN IMPORTANT ROUTE FOR CONFEDERATE FORCES AND SUPPLIES. A C.S.A. POST OFFICE WAS LOCATED AT ORANGE IN 1861. THE TEXAS AND NEW ORLEANS RAILROAD WAS OPENED THROUGH THE COUNTY, THOUGH VARIOUS PROBLEMS RENDERED IT UNSERVICEABLE THROUGH MUCH OF THE WAR. 

RUMORS OF A FEDERAL ATTACK ON THE COAST IN 1863 PROMPTED STEPPED-UP DEFENSE PREPARATIONS. A PRIMARY SUPPLY DEPOT WAS ESTABLISHED IN JULY TO SERVE NEARBY CAMP PLEASANT, AND A CONFEDERATE HOSPITAL OPENED IN ORANGE. LOCAL PREPAREDNESS PROVIDED AN ADDITIONAL DETERRENT TO U. S. TROOPS AT THE BATTLE OF SABINE PASS IN SEPTEMBER. 

AFTER THE CONFEDERATE SURRENDER IN 1865, OCCUPATION FORCES LED BY THE 37TH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS ARRIVED IN ORANGE COUNTY, AND RECONSTRUCTION SOON FOLLOWED. 

TEXAS SESQUICENTENNIAL 1836-1986

ORANGE DAIRY COMPANY

CLYDE SPEARS ESTABLISHED THE ORANGE DAIRY COMPANY AT THIS SITE IN 1941, WHERE HE PASTEURIZED AND BOTTLED 800 GALLONS OF MILK EVERY DAY. THE ORANGE DAIRY COMPANY COLLECTED RAW MILK FROM AT LEAST 16 LOCAL DAIRIES, INCLUDING THE PEVETO FAMILY AND THE EDDLEMAN FAMILY’S MOONGLOW DAIRY, WHICH SUPPOSEDLY MILKED ITS COWS BY THE LIGHT OF THE MOON. THE TWO-STORY RED BRICK BUILDING RETAINS MANY FEATURES OF THE ORIGINAL DAIRY PROCESSING PLANT, INCLUDING THE CEILING HOOKS WHICH HELD A COOLING SYSTEM. CERAMIC TILES, WHICH WERE ORIGINALLY INSTALLED AT THE DAIRY FOR SANITARY PURPOSES, STILL COVER THE WALLS AND FLOOR. BUT IN THE POSTWAR ECONOMY, ORANGE’S THRIVING DAIRY INDUSTRY COULD NO LONGER OPERATE ON A SMALL SCALE. THE NECESSITY OF PASTEURIZATION, AS WELL AS THE INVENTION OF NEW MILKING TECHNOLOGIES LIKE THE ROTOLACTOR, SIGNIFICANTLY RAISED OPERATING COSTS. 

AT THE SAME TIME, BETTER REFRIGERATION AND LOWERED TRANSPORTATION COSTS BROUGHT ORANGE INTO COMPETITION WITH DAIRIES AS FAR AWAY AS WISCONSIN. EVEN A 1945 CITY ORDINANCE REQUIRING ALL MILK SOLD IN ORANGE TO BE PASTEURIZED IN ORANGE COULD NOT SAVE THE LOCAL DAIRIES. THE NUMBER OF DAIRY COWS IN TEXAS, WHICH HAD BEEN SLOWLY GROWING THROUGH THE FIRST HALF OF THE 20TH CENTURY, PLUMMETED 80 PERCENT BETWEEN 1945 AND 1971. THE ORANGE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE BOASTED IN 1940 THAT ITS DAIRIES HAD PRODUCED ONE AND A HALF MILLION GALLONS OF MILK, BUT BY 1953 MOST OF THIS PRODUCTION HAD TO BE DUMPED BECAUSE IT COST TWICE AS MUCH AS OUT-OF-STATE MILK. BORDEN, A NATIONWIDE DAIRY COMPANY WITH TEXAS ROOTS, BOUGHT OUT AND CLOSED THE ORANGE DAIRY COMPANY IN 1948.

MARKER IS PROPERTY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS                                   (2015)

ORANGE SOUTHERN PACIFIC DEPOT

FROM 1908 TO 1974, THE ORANGE TRAIN DEPOT SERVED SOUTHERN PACIFIC RAIL COMPANY CARS PASSING THROUGH ORANGE. PRIOR TO THIS TIME, TRANSPORTATION BY ROAD AND ON WATER WAS UNRELIABLE AND UNSAFE, WHICH INHIBITED THE GROWTH OF ORANGE. 

HOWEVER, THE LATE 1850s TIMBER BOOM IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS CONTRIBUTED TO THE NEED FOR A TRAIN DEPOT TO EXPORT ORANGE’S RAW MATERIALS TO OTHER PARTS OF THE COUNTRY.   THE ORANGE STATION WAS JUST ONE OF THE MANY STOPS ON THE THROUGH LINE BETWEEN SAN FRANCISCO AND NEW ORLEANS.  

AS RACIAL SEGREGATION WAS STILL IN EFFECT AT THE TIME OF THE DEPOT’S CONSTRUCTION, ARRANGEMENTS WERE MADE FOR TWO TICKET WINDOWS, TWO WAITING ROOMS AND TWO RESTROOMS FOR WHITE AND BLACK PASSENGERS.  IN THE EARLY 1960s, A LARGE WALL DIVIDING THE BLACK WAITING ROOM AND THE BAGGAGE/FREIGHT AREA WAS REMOVED.

AFTER THE TRAIN DEPOT’S CLOSURE IN THE 1970s, VARIOUS ENTITIES INTERMITTENTLY USED THE BUILDING UNTIL A FIRE IN 1990 DAMAGED THE ROOF AND INTERIOR, BUT THE BRICK WALLS AND INTERIOR WALLS WERE UNDAMAGED. THE TRAIN DEPOT REMAINED ABANDONED UNTIL 2013, WHEN A LOCAL NON-PROFIT GROUP RAISED THE FUNDS TO RESTORE THE BUILDING TO ITS ORIGINAL CONDITION. 

WORK CREWS BUILT A NEW ROOF ON THE STRUCTURE, EXPOSED THE CROSS-HATCHED WINDOWS ON THE SECOND STORY AND RETURNED THE BUILDING TO ITS ORIGINAL BRICK COLOR AND GREEN TRIM. THE RESTORATION EFFORTS ALLOW THE HISTORIC TRAIN DEPOT TO BE ENJOYED BY ORANGE-AREA CITIZENS AND VISITORS ALIKE.  

RECORDED TEXAS HISTORIC LANDMARK - 2018

MARKER IS PROPERTY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS

RIVERSIDE ADDITION: WORLD WAR II HOUSING IN ORANGE

THE SECOND WORLD WAR CATAPULTED ORANGE INTO A PERIOD OF UNPARALLELED INDUSTRIAL GROWTH. IN 1940, AS THE NATION PREPARED FOR POSSIBLE ENTRY INTO THE WAR, THE U.S. NAVY OFFICE OF SHIPBUILDING PLACED ORDERS WITH THREE ORANGE SHIPYARDS: LEVINGSTON SHIPBUILDING COMPANY, CONSOLIDATED WESTERN STEEL CORPORATION AND WEAVER SHIPYARDS. PRODUCTION CONTINUED TO GROW AFTER THE U.S. ENTERED THE WAR IN 1941. COUNTLESS JOBS HAD BEEN LOST DURING THE GREAT DEPRESSION, AND THE POTENTIAL FOR STEADY WORK BROUGHT THOUSANDS TO ORANGE. THE INFLUX OF WORKERS INCREASED THE CITY'S POPULATION FROM 7,400 IN 1940 TO MORE THAN 60,000 BY THE END OF THE WAR. 

TO MEET THE RESULTING CRITICAL HOUSING SHORTAGE, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT STARTED THE RIVERSIDE ADDITION HOUSING PROJECT IN 1942. LOCATED ALONG THE SABINE RIVER, RIVERSIDE ADDITION WAS WITHIN WALKING DISTANCE OF THE SHIPYARDS, THEREBY COMPLYING WITH FUEL AND TIRE RATIONING DEMANDS AND MAXIMIZING WARTIME PRODUCTION. THE FAN-SHAPED SITE SOON INCLUDED THOUSANDS OF "DEMOUNTABLE" (PREFABRICATED) DUPLEXES, CONSIDERED TO BE TEMPORARY. EXPANDED WITH AN ADDITION IN 1943, THE VAST RIVERSIDE HOUSING AREA HAD THREE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS AND ALSO SPAWNED LOCAL BUSINESSES. 

AT THE TIME, RIVERSIDE ADDITION WAS THE LARGEST FEDERAL HOUSING PROJECT EVER UNDERTAKEN. AFTER THE WAR, THE GOVERNMENT SOLD, MOVED OR DEMOLISHED MANY OF THE UNITS. THE CITY OF ORANGE NEVER TOOK CONTROL OF THE DEVELOPMENT DUE TO CONCERNS OVER INADEQUATE INFRASTRUCTURE. REMOVAL OF THE LAST HOUSES TOOK PLACE IN THE 1980s, AND TODAY THERE ARE FEW PHYSICAL REMINDERS OF THE PROJECT THAT PROVED VITAL TO THE HOME FRONT MISSION DURING WORLD WAR II. 

(2007)

MARKER IS THE PROPERTY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS

SALEM UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

SIX MONTHS AFTER THE NEWS OF EMANCIPATION REACHED TEXAS IN 1865, THE LOUISIANA-TEXAS-MISSISSIPPI CONFERENCE OF THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH FOR AFRICAN AMERICANS, KNOWN AS THE MISSISSIPPI MISSION CONFERENCE, WAS ORGANIZED ON CHRISTMAS DAY. IN 1868, ITS MISSION AT ORANGE BEGAN TO HOST WORSHIP SERVICES. BAPTIST MINISTER ARTHUR ROBINSON LED THE MISSION AND WAS SUCCEEDED BY THE REV. JOSEPH HARDIN, A CIRCUIT RIDER FROM GALVESTON, THE FOLLOWING YEAR. 

THE NAME SALEM METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH WAS FORMALLY ADOPTED WHEN THE MISSION BECAME A FULL CHURCH IN 1873. CHURCH TRUSTEES ACQUIRED PROPERTY AND CONSTRUCTED A SMALL FRAME BUILDING IN 1877. FOR SEVERAL YEARS BEGINNING IN 1883, STUDENTS OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN SCHOOL AT MT. ZION MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH ATTENDED CLASSES IN THE SALEM CHURCH BUILDING. AS THE CONGREGATION GREW, TRUSTEES ACQUIRED ADDITIONAL LAND, AND BY 1923 BRICK WAS ADDED TO A SECOND FRAME BUILDING. THE SIXTIETH SESSION OF THE TEXAS ANNUAL CONFERENCE WAS HELD AT SALEM METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN 1925. 

THE CHURCH GREW STEADILY THROUGHOUT THE 20TH CENTURY AND MAINTAINED AN ACTIVE ROLE IN THE DAILY LIVES OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN CITIZENS OF ORANGE. DURING THE WORLD WAR II POPULATION INCREASE, ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CLASSES WERE HELD IN THE SALEM CHURCH BUILDING. MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH HAVE BEEN COMMUNITY AND STATE LEADERS, INCLUDING POLITICAL AND CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS, MINISTERS, EDUCATORS, A VICE PRESIDENT OF THE TEXAS NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF COLORED PEOPLE (NAACP), AND THE FIRST BLACK AND FIRST FEMALE MAYOR OF THE CITY OF ORANGE. THE SALEM UNITED METHODIST CHURCH CONTINUES IN THE TRADITIONS OF ITS FOUNDERS WITH PROGRAMS OF SERVICE AND WORSHIP. 

(2000)

SAMUEL H. LEVINGSTON

A NATIVE OF NORTHERN IRELAND, SAMUEL H. LEVINGSTON WAS BORN IN 1832, THE SON OF GEORGE AND MARGARET LEVINGSTON. AT THE AGE OF FOURTEEN HE LEFT IRELAND WITH HIS BROTHERS, DAVID AND JOHN, AND HIS SISTER, MARGARET. THEY SETTLED IN APALACHICOLA, FLORIDA, WHERE SAMUEL LEVINGSTON WORKED AS A SHIP CARPENTER. THERE IN 1852 HE MARRIED ASENATHA MOORE. 

SHORTLY BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR BEGAN, THE LEVINGSTONS MOVED TO THE AREA NEAR WHAT IS NOW THE CITY OF ORANGE AND ESTABLISHED A SHIPYARD ON THE SABINE RIVER. SAMUEL LEVINGSTON SERVED THE CONFEDERATE FORCES DURING THE CIVIL WAR AS A SHIP CARPENTER AND A BLOCKADE RUNNER. AFTER THE WAR, HE RETURNED TO ORANGE AND BEGAN ANOTHER SHIPYARD, BUILDING PADDLE WHEEL BOATS FOR HAULING COTTON AND FARM PRODUCTS ON THE SABINE RIVER BETWEEN ORANGE AND LOGANSPORT, LA. UPON HIS RETIREMENT HIS SON GEORGE TOOK OVER THE BUSINESS AND DEVELOPED IT INTO THE LEVINGSTON SHIPBUILDING COMPANY. 

AN ACTIVE CIVIC LEADER IN ORANGE, SAMUEL LEVINGSTON WAS INVOLVED IN THE MADISON MASONIC LODGE AND HELPED FOUND THE FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. FROM 1871 UNTIL 1891 HE AND HIS FAMILY LIVED ON AN 11-ACRE TRACT OF LAND THAT LATER BECAME THIS CITY PARK. LEVINGSTON DIED IN 1911 AND IS BURIED IN ORANGE'S EVERGREEN CEMETERY.

(1984)

ST. MARY'S CATHOLIC CHURCH

THE EARLIEST RECORDED CATHOLIC MASS IN THE AREA WAS CONDUCTED BY THE REV. P. F. PARISOT IN 1853, FIVE YEARS BEFORE THE CITY OF ORANGE WAS INCORPORATED. IN 1879 THE REV. VITAL QUINON (d.1894), A NATIVE OF FRANCE, CAME TO ORANGE AT THE REQUEST OF THE LOCAL RAILROAD SUPERINTENDENT CHARLES A. BARTON, WHO WAS CONCERNED ABOUT THE CITY'S REPUTATION AS A ROWDY AND LAWLESS INDUSTRIAL TOWN. KNOWN AS THE "FIGHTING PRIEST," FATHER QUINON PROVIDED THE LEADERSHIP NECESSARY FOR THE FORMATION OF THIS CHURCH. ESTABLISHED AS ST. VITAL'S, IT ORIGINALLY SERVED A PARISH COMPRISED PRIMARILY OF GERMAN, AUSTRIAN, IRISH, AND POLISH IMMIGRANTS. 

SIGNIFICANT GROWTH BEGAN IN 1896 WHEN THE REV. J. M. MORAN (1859-1922) OF IRELAND WAS ASSIGNED AS THE FIRST RESIDENT PRIEST OF THE PARISH. THE CONGREGATIONAL NAME WAS CHANGED TO ST. MARY'S IN 1912 AND A SCHOOL AND CEMETERY WERE ESTABLISHED IN THE 1920s. 

PROMINENT CHURCH LEADERS HAVE INCLUDED THE REV. GEORGE BERBERICH (d.1947) OF GERMANY, WHO CAME HERE IN 1929, AND HIS BROTHER THE REV. MSGR. JOSEPH BERBERICH (d.1980), WHO JOINED HIM IN 1937. THROUGH THEIR GUIDANCE, ST. MARY'S CATHOLIC CHURCH DEVELOPED AS A LEADER IN COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT, IN QUALITY EDUCATION, AND IN THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AREA MISSIONS.

(1981)

ST. PAUL CHRISTIAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH

THIS AFRICAN AMERICAN CONGREGATION HELD INFORMAL WORSHIP SERVICES IN HOMES AND LATER IN A NEARBY BUILDING BEFORE CHURCH TRUSTEES JOSIAH HARDIN, WILLIAM HOLMES, PETER ROGERS, JULIUS SANDERS, AND SILAS HARDIN ACQUIRED A TOWN LOT HERE FOR CHURCH BUILDING PURPOSES IN 1894. THAT YEAR A WOOD FRAME SANCTUARY WAS BUILT AND THE CONGREGATION FORMALLY ORGANIZED AS THE SAINT PAUL CHRISTIAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH. 

ACCORDING TO LOCAL TRADITION, THE CONGREGATION CHOSE TO NAME THEIR CHURCH FOR SAINT PAUL BECAUSE OF HIS HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT MISSIONARY UNDERTAKINGS. LED BY THE REV. E. A. STRONG, A NEW WOOD FRAME CHURCH BUILDING WAS CONSTRUCTED HERE IN 1945. GROWTH IN THE CONGREGATION'S MEMBERSHIP PROMPTED THE BUILDING OF A NEW BRICK SANCTUARY AT THIS SITE IN 1969. A NEW PARSONAGE WAS PURCHASED IN 1989, AND IN 1989-90 THE CONGREGATION PURCHASED TWO ADJOINING LOTS FOR FUTURE EXPANSION PURPOSES. 

THE CONGREGATION SPONSORS SEVERAL CHURCH PROGRAMS INCLUDING A SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHING PROGRAM, BIBLE STUDY, CHRISTIAN YOUTH FELLOWSHIP AND YOUNG ADULT FELLOWSHIP. ITS MISSIONARY SOCIETY, WHICH INCLUDES THE ANNIE ROSE CIRCLE, WILLIE GREEN CIRCLE, AND YOUTH CIRCLE, PROVIDES RELIGIOUS GUIDANCE FOR THE COMMUNITY.

(1994)

ST. PAUL'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH

THIS CHURCH WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1863 UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF THE REV. JOSEPH WOOD DUNN, AN AREA MISSIONARY. THE EARLIEST SERVICES WERE CONDUCTED IN THE HOME OF JEROME SWINFORD. HIS MOTHER-IN-LAW MARY W. TRUMBLE LATER DONATED LAND AT THE CORNER OF FOURTH AND MAIN FOR CONSTRUCTION OF THE FIRST CHURCH BUILDING. THE WOMEN'S GUILD PROVIDED FUNDS FOR THE GROWING MISSION BY SELLING CAKES AND SERVING MEALS. IN 1920, DURING THE PASTORATE OF THE REV. EDGAR N. LEBLANC, ST. PAUL'S BECAME A PARISH. SINCE THE 1860s, THE CHURCH HAS BEEN ACTIVE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ORANGE.

(1981)

ST. THERESE CATHOLIC CHURCH

WITH ROOTS IN THE MISSIONARY WORK OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC SOCIETY OF ST. JOSEPH, THIS PARISH FIRST GATHERED FOR WORSHIP IN 1924. IN THAT YEAR, FATHER ALEXIS LA PLANTE, JOSEPHITE PASTOR OF BLESSED SACRAMENT CATHOLIC CHURCH IN BEAUMONT, SAID MASS FOR THREE AFRICAN-AMERICAN FAMILIES IN ORANGE AND REPORTED IT AS A PROMISING PLACE FOR THE FORMAL ESTABLISHMENT OF A BLACK CATHOLIC MISSION. 

FOR THE NEXT 12 YEARS, PRIESTS FROM BLESSED SACRAMENT AND FROM OUR MOTHER OF MERCY IN BEAUMONT HELD WORSHIP SERVICES FOR THE GROWING CONGREGATION IN PRIVATE HOMES AND OTHER RENTED OR BORROWED SPACES. IN 1936, A BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, PRIEST DONATED FUNDS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A CHURCH BUILDING IN ORANGE, AND IT WAS DEDICATED IN HONOR OF ST. THERESE, THE PATRON SAINT OF CATHOLIC MISSION WORK. FATHER MICHAEL MCCORMACK SERVED AS FIRST RESIDENT PASTOR WHEN A RECTORY WAS ACQUIRED IN 1941. 

AS A RESULT OF ORANGE'S BOOMING ECONOMY AS A CENTER FOR SHIPBUILDING DURING WORLD WAR II, THE TOWN'S POPULATION INCREASED AS DID THE MEMBERSHIP AT ST. THERESE. A NATIONAL STREET PREACHING INSTITUTE WAS BEGUN IN 1943, AND IN 1945 A SCHOOL AND PARISH HALL WERE CONSTRUCTED TO SERVE THE CONGREGATION. 

THROUGHOUT THEIR HISTORY, THE MEMBERS OF ST. THERESE CHURCH, THE SECOND OLDEST CATHOLIC CONGREGATION IN THE CITY, HAVE GATHERED AS A COMMUNITY TO WORSHIP TOGETHER AND TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE TO THOSE IN NEED. THE PARISH STANDS AS A SIGNIFICANT PART OF ORANGE'S HERITAGE.

(2001)

THE ORANGE LEADER

TRACING ITS ORIGINS TO 1875, THIS NEWSPAPER HAS SERVED ORANGE FOR OVER A CENTURY. IT BEGAN AS "THE ORANGE WEEKLY TRIBUNE" OPERATED BY A. P. HARRIS, GENERAL MERCANTILE MERCHANT. THROUGH SUBSEQUENT OWNERS AND MERGERS WITH OTHER NEWSPAPERS, THE MASTHEAD UNDERWENT SEVERAL NAME CHANGES, INCLUDING "THE ORANGE LEADER," "THE ORANGE LEADER AND WEEKLY TRIBUNE," "THE ORANGE DAILY TRIBUNE," "THE CITIZEN-RECORD CONSOLIDATED," AND "THE ORANGE LEADER" AGAIN. OVER THE YEARS THE NEWSPAPER HAS KEPT THE COMMUNITY INFORMED ON MATTERS OF LOCAL, STATE, NATIONAL, AND INTERNATIONAL CONCERN. 

TEXAS SESQUICENTENNIAL 1836-1986

THE SAWMILL INDUSTRY IN ORANGE COUNTY

ORANGE COUNTY'S SAWMILL AND TIMBER INDUSTRY BEGAN WITH HAND-OPERATED LOGGING OPERATIONS RUN BY PIONEER SETTLERS IN THE 1820s. IN 1835 ROBERT BOOTHE ESTABLISHED THE AREA'S FIRST MECHANIZED SAWMILL, AND IN 1841 PAINE & BENDY ESTABLISHED THE FIRST STEAM-DRIVEN SAWMILL. 

CYPRESS WAS THE PRIMARY TIMBER HARVESTED UNTIL THE LATE 1850s WHEN THE PROCESSING OF NATIVE PINE BEGAN. SAWMILL COMPANY TOWNS AND LOGGING CAMPS WERE ESTABLISHED THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY AS THE NUMBER OF MILLS BEGAN TO RISE IN THE LATE 1870s. INCREASING QUANTITIES OF LOGS WERE TRANSPORTED BY RAFT ON THE SABINE AND NECHES RIVERS TO AREA TIMBER OPERATIONS. MANY MILLS BURNED AND WERE NEVER REBUILT.

IN THE EARLY 1900s THE AREA'S SAWMILL AND TIMBER INDUSTRY UNDERWENT A PERIOD OF CONSOLIDATION AND A TRANSITION FROM RELIANCE ON WATER TRANSPORTATION TO THE USE OF THE RAPIDLY EXPANDING RAILROAD NETWORK. BY 1909 THE MILLER LINK, A. E. SMITH CYPRESS, AND LUTCHER & MOORE'S UPPER AND LOWER MILLS DOMINATED THE AREA'S TIMBER INDUSTRY. BY 1931, HOWEVER, THE LAST OF THESE FOUR MILLS, THE LUTCHER & MOORE UPPER MILL, HAD CLOSED. 

FOR MORE THAN 100 YEARS THE SAWMILL AND TIMBER INDUSTRY'S COMPANY TOWNS, LOGGING CAMPS, AND TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM HELPED DEFINE ORANGE COUNTY LIFE.

(1995)

UNITED STATES NAVAL INACTIVE SHIP MAINTENANCE FACILITY

AT THE TERMINATION OF WORLD WAR II, THE UNITED STATES HAD THE LARGEST NAVAL FORCE OF ANY COUNTRY IN HISTORY. PRUDENT MILITARY LEADERS DECIDED AGAINST SCRAPPING SURPLUS VESSELS, IN FAVOR OF PRESERVING THEM SO THEY COULD BE ACTIVIATED QUICKLY IN CASE OF EMERGENCY. IN AUGUST OF 1945, THE DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY ANNOUNCED THAT ORANGE WOULD BE ONE OF THE LOCATIONS FOR THE STORAGE OF RESERVED VESSELS. THE ABUNDANT FRESH WATER SUPPLY OF THE SABINE RIVER MADE ORANGE AN IDEAL LOCATION FOR SUCH A FACILITY, BECAUSE OF THE NECESSITY TO MINIMIZE MARINE GROWTH AND CORROSION. ALSO, THE EXISTING SHIPYARD ADJACENT TO THE SITE COULD BE USED FOR REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE OF THE "MOTHBALLED" FLEET. HOWEVER, IT WAS STILL NECESSARY TO CONSTRUCT A BERTHING AREA FOR THE INACTIVE SHIPS, AND A PERMIT FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF TWELVE PIERS WAS OBTAINED.

THE FACILITY WAS NAMED THE U.S. NAVAL STATION, ORANGE, TEXAS, IN NOVEMBER OF 1945. THE FIRST VESSEL TO REPORT FOR INACTIVATION WAS THE USS MATAGORDA, WHICH ARRIVED ON NOVEMBER 5. WHEN THE KOREAN WAR BEGAN IN 1950, THE FACILITY REACTIVITED OVER THIRTY SHIPS, AFTER WHICH MANY WERE RETURNED FOR STORAGE. THE FACILITY AT ORANGE WAS ONE OF FIFTY-TWO TO BE CHOSEN IN 1961 BY THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE TO BE CLOSED OR PHASED DOWN. THE FACILITY REMAINED OPERABLE, BUT THE MILITARY PRESENCE WAS REDUCED TO TWENTY-FIVE OFFICERS AND ENLISTED MEN, AND LARGE NUMBERS OF CIVILIANS WERE HIRED TO CONTINUE OPERATIONS. ON DECEMBER 28, 1975, THE NAVAL INACTIVE SHIP MAINTENANCE FACILITY AT ORANGE WAS CLOSED. BY 1980 ALL REMAINING VESSELS WERE TRANSFERRED TO OTHER LOCATIONS, SOLD TO FOREIGN NATIONS, OR SOLD FOR SCRAP. 

(2008)

MARKER IS PROPERTY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS

U.S.S. AULICK

ON SEPTEMBER 9, 1940, A FEDERAL CONTRACT WORTH $82 MILLION WAS ISSUED TO THE CONSOLIDATED STEEL COMPANY TO CONSTRUCT 12 FLETCHER CLASS NAVAL DESTROYERS HERE IN ORANGE, TEXAS. THIS AND OTHER CONTRACTS COUPLED WITH THE SUBSEQUENT BUILDING OF MAJOR SHIPYARD FACILITIES ALONG THE CITY'S RIVERFRONT LIFTED THE CITY OUT OF A PROLONGED AND DEEP ECONOMIC DECLINE WHICH BEGAN IN THE EARLY 1930s WITH THE CLOSING OF AREA SAWMILLS. 

THE COMMUNITY CELEBRATED THE LAYING OF THE KEELS OF THE U. S. S. AULICK AND U. S. S. CHARLES AUSBURNE ON MAY 14, 1941. THE AULICK BECAME THE FIRST NAVAL DESTROYER TO BE BUILT IN TEXAS AND ON TEXAS INDEPENDENCE DAY, MARCH 2, 1942, IT WAS CHRISTENED AND LAUNCHED AMID A CROWD OF 6,000 PEOPLE. THE AULICK REPRESENTED THE SECOND U. S. NAVAL WARSHIP TO BE NAMED AFTER WAR OF 1812 NAVY VETERAN JOHN H. AULICK (1787-1861). 

BY 1946 ALL 12 DESTROYERS AND OVER FOUR HUNDRED OTHER SHIPS HAD BEEN COMPLETED HERE AT A COST OF OVER $876 MILLION. ORANGE'S WELL-DEVELOPED SHIPYARDS ENCOURAGED MAJOR COMPANIES TO BUILD PLANTS ALONG THE RIVERFRONT. SEVERAL PETROCHEMICAL AND INDUSTRIAL CONCERNS FOLLOWED SUIT IN THE 1950s AND 1960s. WARTIME SHIPYARDS OPERATED BY CONSOLIDATED, LEVINGSTON, AND WEAVER CONVERTED TO PEACETIME ACTIVITIES.

(1993)

WEAVER SHIPBUILDING

JOE WEAVER ESTABLISHED JOSEPH WEAVER AND SON SHIPYARD IN ORANGE IN 1897. GEORGE LEVINGSTON, LATER FOUNDER OF LEVINGSTON SHIPBUILDING COMPANY, ACQUIRED AN INTEREST IN WEAVER AND SON IN 1898, AND THE COMPANY BUILT BARGES FOR THE GALVESTON NAVIGATION DISTRICT. LEVINGSTON LATER SOLD HIS INTEREST IN THE COMPANY TO JOE WEAVER'S SON, L.E. "ED" WEAVER. JOSEPH WEAVER AND SON BUILT BARGES, STEAM TUGBOATS, AND PERFORMED REPAIR WORK. ALTHOUGH WORLD WAR I BROUGHT A SLIGHT INCREASE IN PRODUCTION TO WEAVER AND SON AND THE ENTIRE ORANGE SHIPBUILDING INDUSTRY, PRODUCTION SLOWED AGAIN AFTER THE WAR. THE DEATH OF JOSEPH WEAVER IN 1930 SIGNALED THE BEGINNING OF A NEW PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN L.E. WEAVER AND HIS SON, L.A. WEAVER. UPON L.E. WEAVER'S DEATH IN 1941, THE COMPANY'S NAME WAS CHANGED TO WEAVER SHIPYARDS WHEN OTHER WEAVER FAMILY MEMBERS JOINED THE PARTNERSHIP. 

WORLD WAR II AGAIN INCREASED PRODUCTION AT THE WEAVER YARD, WHEN CONTRACTS TO CONSTRUCT WOODEN MINE SWEEPERS AND SUB CHASERS WERE AWARDED IN 1941 AND 1942. THE WOODEN VESSELS DID NOT ATTRACT THE MAGNETIC MINES USED BY THE GERMANS, AND WERE DESIGNED TO PATROL THE WATERS ADJACENT TO THEIR HOME BASES. THE FIRST MINESWEEPER, YMS 66, WAS LAUNCHED ON JANUARY 31, 1942.

AFTER THE FRENZIED ACTIVITY OF WORLD WAR II, WEAVER SHIPYARDS CONTINUED TO BUILD SMALL VESSELS INCLUDING WOOD AND STEEL SHRIMP BOATS AND ALSO CARRIED ON WITH ITS SHIP REPAIR WORK. THE WEAVER FAMILY SOLD THE COMPANY IN 1975, BUT REGAINED CONTROL IN THE LATE 1980s. THE WEAVER SHIPYARDS SITE CONTINUES TO BE OWNED BY THE WEAVER FAMILY AND REMAINS INVOLVED IN MARITIME WORK THROUGH LEASE AGREEMENTS. 

(2008)

MARKER IS PROPERTY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS

WILLIAM HENRY STARK

A NATIVE OF SAN AUGUSTINE COUNTY, WILLIAM HENRY STARK (1851-1936) LIVED IN BURKEVILLE AND NEWTON BEFORE MOVING TO ORANGE IN 1870. HERE HE WORKED IN THE EARLY AREA SAWMILLS AND BECAME ACQUAINTED WITH EVERY PHASE OF THE LUMBER INDUSTRY. 

IN 1881 STARK MARRIED MIRIAM MELISSA LUTCHER (1859-1936), THE DAUGHTER OF HENRY JACOB LUTCHER, A PARTNER IN THE LUTCHER AND MOORE LUMBER COMPANY. STARK JOINED HIS FATHER-IN-LAW'S FIRM AND, BECAUSE OF HIS KNOWLEDGE OF MILLING OPERATIONS, WAS SOON PLACED IN CHARGE OF TWO MILLS IN LOUISIANA. 

STARK'S SUCCESS IN THE LUMBER INDUSTRY LED HIM TO INVEST IN OTHER BUSINESSES, INCLUDING IRON AND COAL PRODUCTION, REAL ESTATE, AND RANCHING. HIS PROGRESSIVE IDEAS, INCLUDING DEEP WATER PORTS ON THE SABINE RIVER AND AN IRRIGATION SYSTEM THAT PROVIDED STIMULUS FOR THE REGION'S RICE INDUSTRY, LED TO INCREASED GROWTH FOR THE CITY OF ORANGE. STARK ALSO SERVED AS A REGENT FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS, 1911-15, AN OFFICE LATER HELD BY HIS SON LUTCHER STARK, WHO BECAME CHAIRMAN OF THE UNIVERSITY BOARD. 

THE MANY CONTRIBUTIONS W. H. STARK MADE TO ORANGE ARE REFLECTED IN THE CITY’S STEADY GROWTH, INDUSTRIAL STRENGTH, AND COMMUNITY PRIDE.

(1982)

SITE OF WORLD WAR II P.O.W. CAMP

DURING WORLD WAR II, OVER 50,000 GERMAN PRISONERS OF WAR WERE INTERNED IN OVER 70 TEXAS P. O. W. CAMPS. BASE CAMPS WERE ESTABLISHED AT MILITARY BASES THROUGHOUT THE STATE. THE BASE CAMPS OPERATED A NUMBER OF BRANCH CAMPS IN THEIR RESPECTIVE AREAS. 

DETAILED FROM A BASE CAMP AT HUNTSVILLE, ABOUT 140 GERMAN PRISONERS WERE HOUSED IN A U. S. ARMY TENT CAMP NEAR THIS SITE IN 1944. LOCATED ON LAND OWNED BY THE LUTCHER MOORE LUMBER COMPANY, THE CAMP WAS BUILT WITH CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS AND LABOR PROVIDED BY THE ORANGE COUNTY FARM LABOR COMMITTEE OF THE U. S. AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION SERVICE. 

TRANSPORTED TO THEIR WORK DETAILS BY ARMY TRUCKS EACH DAY, THE GERMAN PRISONERS WORKED AS LABORERS IN AREA RICE FIELDS, HELPING TO BRING IN THE HARVEST OF FARMERS WHOSE EMPLOYEES HAD GONE TO WAR. THE WORK OF THE PRISONERS BECAME A CRUCIAL ELEMENT IN THE AREA'S WARTIME FOOD PRODUCTION, AND MANY OF THE PRISONERS ENJOYED GOOD WORKING RELATIONSHIPS WITH THEIR EMPLOYERS. 

ALTHOUGH THE ORIGINAL PRISON CAMP OPERATED FOR ONLY A SHORT TIME IN 1944, PRISONERS TRANSPORTED FROM CAMPS IN CHINA, TEXAS, AND EDGERLY, LOUISIANA, WERE ONCE AGAIN EMPLOYED ON ORANGE COUNTY FARMS IN 1945.

(1991)