Barker Post Office
Barker (Houston), Harris County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The settlement that became Barker developed on the Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad in the late 1890s. G. T. Miller applied for a post office in 1898. It occupied a corner of his store, which also was used as a saloon. The structure was damaged in the 1900 storm, and postmaster Miller moved it to the east side of the Barker-Clodine Road and rebuilt it. He remained postmaster until 1911. Moved to a new location on the Katy Freeway (Interstate Highway 10) in 1967, it was designated a third-class post office in 1969 and a second-class office in 1977. In 1978 the postal service considered closing it, but residents rallied and saved it. Designated first class in 1981, the post office moved to baker road in 1984. (2001)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Barker grew up along the Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad in the late 1890s, and in 1898 a storekeeper opened a post office in a corner of his shop, which doubled as a saloon. Battered by the 1900 storm, it was moved and rebuilt, and over the decades it shifted locations and climbed through the postal ranks. When the service considered closing it in 1978, residents rallied to keep it open.
Why it matters
The little post office traces how railroads seeded new towns across America and how a community's mail service became a point of local pride worth fighting for.
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Related people
- · G. T. Miller
Themes & tags
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