Town of Craft
Craft, Cherokee County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Known first as Independence, the town of Craft grew up in the 1890s on the railroad. When a post office was established in 1891, the name Craft was chosen to honor Thomas J. Craft, first postmaster and community leader. In 1896, C. D. and S. H. Jarrat and W. R. Stout began commercial tomato growing and production here. By 1917, 90 percent of Texas' tomatoes were shipped from this area. The town declined in the 1930s but is important for its early role in the East Texas tomato growing and shipping industry.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
First called Independence, the town of Craft sprang up along the railroad in the 1890s and took its name from Thomas J. Craft, its first postmaster and leading citizen. In 1896 local growers launched commercial tomato production here, and within two decades this corner of East Texas shipped an astonishing ninety percent of the state's tomatoes. Though the town faded in the 1930s, its brief boom made it a linchpin of a regional farm economy.
Why it matters
Craft captures how the railroad turned tiny Southern towns into agricultural shipping hubs, briefly making East Texas a national tomato powerhouse before the boom passed.
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Related people
- · Thomas J. Craft
Themes & tags
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