World War I Memorial
Texarkana, Bowie County, Texas
Marker Inscription
In memory of the men from Bowie County, Texas and Miller County, Arkansas, who made the supreme sacrifice in the service of their country in the World War 1917-1918. They and their comrades fought not for selfish gain nor for one foot of added territory, but for the highest ideal ever upheld by man--the peace of the world. This monument is a symbol of the praise and gratitude which they so justly merit which will forever be accorded them by their countryment. Erected by the Texarkana Memorial Unit, an organization of women banded together to honor their loyalty, their service and the devotion. November 1936.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Dedicated in November 1936, this monument honors the men of Bowie County, Texas, and Miller County, Arkansas, who died in the service of their country during the World War of 1917–1918. Its inscription frames their sacrifice not as a fight for gain or territory but for "the peace of the world." It was erected by the Texarkana Memorial Unit, an organization of women banded together to keep their memory.
Why it matters
The memorial reflects how communities and, especially, women organized to commemorate World War I's fallen and to give lasting public meaning to their loss.
Own a business near here? Add it to the map.
Related events
- · World War I
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
United States Post Office and Courthouse
Texarkana, TX
Texarkana is that rare American city split down the middle by a state line, and this federal building is unique for straddling it — the Texas-Arkansas boundary, fixed in 1841 by the United States and the Republic of Texas, runs straight through its center. For decades each state kept its own post office until the first joint office rose here in 1892; the present 1933 building even wears both states, its base of Texas pink granite and its walls of Arkansas limestone. It stands as a monument to a border that residents cross with every errand.
St. James Episcopal Church
Texarkana, TX
Episcopalians in the young railroad town of Texarkana organized this congregation in 1876, meeting first in a hotel before building on land donated by the Texas & Pacific Railroad. Citizens of every faith chipped in for the first church, and successive buildings were enlarged over the decades. St. James went on to help found or support at least seven other area churches and pioneered local aid to the elderly.
"Ace of Clubs" House
Texarkana, TX
Built in 1884 by J. H. Draughan, the "Ace of Clubs" House takes its playful name from its floor plan: three groups of octagonal rooms — the leaves of a club — open onto a central rotunda, with rectangular rooms forming the club's stem. The rotunda rises into a twenty-foot tower and is finished with a marble mantel, French mirrors, and a spiral stair. The Henry Moore family made it their home from 1894 onward.
Ellis House
Texarkana, TX
Built in 1893 for realtor and loan agent Gaither Booker Ellis and his wife Mary, this two-story Victorian rose in a Texarkana still riding the growth of a young railroad city. Local builder Charles R. Korn gave it an asymmetrical plan, a tower later removed in the 1920s, and porches trimmed with jigsawn brackets on both stories. It survives as a designed expression of Gilded Age domestic taste.