Site of Willis Cigar Factory
Willis, Montgomery County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Following the Civil War, area farmers found the climate and soil conditions of Montgomery County were ideal for the production of tobacco. The varieties grown here were of the highest quality, winning international awards in Chicago and Paris. At the height of local tobacco production, there were eight cigar operations in Willis. One, the Willis Cigar Factory, was located at this site. Founded by Kentucky native Capt. Thomas Wesley Smith (1829-1901), a Civil War veteran and former sheriff, it remained in operation until the early 1900s. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836 - 1986
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In the decades after the Civil War, Montgomery County farmers discovered their soil and climate were superb for tobacco, and the leaf grown around Willis earned prizes as far away as Chicago and Paris. At its peak the small town supported eight cigar-making operations, an unlikely industrial boom for rural East Texas. The Willis Cigar Factory on this spot was one of them, run by Kentucky-born Civil War veteran and former sheriff Capt. Thomas Wesley Smith until the trade faded in the early 1900s.
Why it matters
It captures a forgotten chapter of the postbellum South, when a Texas town briefly competed on the world tobacco market before shifting economics and taxes ended the boom.
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Related people
- · Capt. Thomas Wesley Smith
Themes & tags
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