Hoshall
Lufkin vicinity, Angelina County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The Houston East and West Texas (HE&WT) Railroad came through Angelina County in 1882 and a community named Bitterweed Flat developed here. In 1913 W. E. Hoshall purchased land and timber rights in the area and began shipping logs from Hoshall Switch on the HE&WT in Bitterweed Flat. In 1917 Luke E. Wright established a sawmill and town with churches, schools, and a commissary at the switch site. The company town was named Hoshall and consisted of Anglo and African American citizens. The sawmills closed and by 1940 all that remained was the cemetery and the mill pond. Sesquicentennial of Texas Statehood 1845 - 1995
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
When the Houston East and West Texas Railroad reached Angelina County in 1882, a settlement called Bitterweed Flat grew up along the line. W. E. Hoshall bought land and timber rights in 1913 and began shipping logs from a switch there, and in 1917 Luke E. Wright built a sawmill and a company town — named Hoshall — complete with churches, schools, and a commissary, home to both Anglo and African American workers. When the mills closed, the town emptied, until by 1940 only a cemetery and a mill pond remained.
Why it matters
Hoshall is a classic East Texas timber ghost town, one of hundreds of company communities that boomed and vanished with the sawmill economy.
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Related people
- · W. E. Hoshall
- · Luke E. Wright
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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