Read's Opening
Crockett, Houston County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The wide open expanse of land in this area was known to travelers in the 19th Century as an accessible route to and from the Trinity River. A landmark of the early landscape in Houston County, the prairie became known as Read's Opening after Robert Newton and Susan Asbury Moore Read moved here from Arkansas by 1850. The family established their farm at the opening and began to purchase other land in the area. R. N. Read also took ownership of several commercial operations in Crockett, including a mercantile business that his son later moved to Lovelady, and donated land for an African American Presbyterian church east of Crockett. The Reads moved to Mineola in 1876, but their legacy continues to be a part of Houston County history. (2002)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
This broad prairie was a favored nineteenth-century route to and from the Trinity River before Robert Newton Read and his wife Susan moved here from Arkansas by 1850, giving the landscape its name. The Reads farmed the opening, bought land, ran commercial ventures in Crockett, and donated ground for an African American Presbyterian church east of town. Though the family moved on to Mineola in 1876, Read's Opening remains woven into Houston County's history.
Why it matters
Read's Opening reflects how travel routes and pioneering families shaped the early settlement of East Texas, leaving names and institutions—including a Black congregation—that outlasted their founders.
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Related people
- · Robert Newton Read
- · Susan Asbury Moore Read
Themes & tags
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