Route of Old Colony Line Road
Greenville, Hunt County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Early travel artery. Followed the north boundary line of the Chas. F. Mercer colony, a 6,500-square-mile tract granted to Mercer in 1844 by Sam Houston (President of the Republic of Texas) for purpose of bringing colonists into Texas. Southern half of Hunt County once lay in this pioneer colony. Over the road came ox-wagons from Jefferson to supply stores in Greenville, McKinney, Dallas, Fort Worth and the frontier. Settlers from the Old South traveled it in a steady stream of covered wagons. Highway 24 today traces part of the road.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
This early travel artery followed the northern boundary of the Charles F. Mercer colony, a vast 6,500-square-mile tract granted in 1844 by Republic of Texas President Sam Houston to draw settlers into the region. Ox-wagons hauled goods from Jefferson over the road to supply stores in Greenville, McKinney, Dallas, and Fort Worth. Down its ruts came a steady stream of covered wagons carrying settlers from the Old South.
Why it matters
The Old Colony Line Road traces one of the wagon routes that carried Anglo settlement across North Texas, a corridor of migration now shadowed by a modern highway.
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Related people
- · Charles F. Mercer
- · Sam Houston
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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