Burkeville, Texas

Location of Burkeville

Burkeville is an unincorporated community in northern Newton County, Texas, United States. It sits at the intersection of State Highways 63 and 87 10 miles west of the Sabine River. The Burkeville Independent School District serves the resident students.

Historical development

The town was named for John R. Burke, a well-educated and wealthy man from New York who took up residence there.[1] He donated the land tract that would be used for the county courthouse. The plots for the town were laid out in 1844, and within three years the residents there petitioned to become the county seat. Over several years, the county seat would switch between Burkeville and Newton until the state legislature ordered that Newton should remain the permanent county seat in 1856.[2] The town also served as an arsenal of the Confederacy during the Civil War. Agriculture and trade would keep the economy prospering until the lumber industry would add to the local market. In 1906, a catastrophic fire consumed all of the town's businesses excluding one.[2]

Recreation

The nearby Toledo Bend Reservoir is used for recreation by the locals as well as tourists and freshwater fishing enthusiasts.

Burkeville has a long-standing tradition of football excellence the state of Texas. The Burkeville Mustangs won state in football in 1986 and 2001 in class 1A.

Notable people

Ernie Holmes- Former NFL defensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers (1971-1977) and New England Patriots (1978) and 2x Super Bowl champion. He was part of the legendary Steel Curtain Pittsburgh Steelers' defense along with fellow linemen Joe Greene, Dwight White, and L.C. Greenwood.

References

  1. ↑ Burkeville History - Newton County Texas Archived September 9, 2006, at the Wayback Machine.
  2. 1 2 Handbook of Texas Online - BURKEVILLE, TX

External links

Coordinates: 31°0′0″N 93°40′5″W / 31.00000°N 93.66806°W / 31.00000; -93.66806

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/19/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.