| Howland Memories |
Frank Henderson kindly sent this photo and recollections of Howland, Texas:
"Robin, I am attaching a picture of an old store in Howland, Tx, that I took a few years back. When I was a young boy we use to visit my
Grandmother's house in Howland. She lived just down the road from the store, so my Dad would walk us to the store for a float or vanilla
coke. Those were the good old days, that our children will never get to experience. The store was run by members of my
Grandmother's family.
I was hoping to get a photo of my Granny's house, but it has already been torn down. The only thing left on the lot is the old well, where
we would get our water. The old outhouse is gone also. I still remember the crawdad holes all over the place as well as cotton fields.
We use take our baths in an old #2 tub. My sister's never let me forget, because I always was the first to get a bath."
Howland is in Lamar County, and lies about 100 miles northeast of Dallas. Howland was settled in the 1880s, and at first operated under
the name of Grove, but was re-named either to honor (and gain favor, perhaps?) a local railroad owner, or was asked to get a new name
because of postal confusions with nearby Honey Grove.
Howland was quite a large town in its day, with stores, cotton gins, doctor's offices, and a school. Before the Great Depression wiped
out many of the area farms, the downtown held over 12 businesses. By the 1960s, however, the railroad ceased coming through
Howland, and the town gradually diminished in size.
Howland is yet another ghost on the Texas prairie.
"Robin, I am attaching a picture of an old store in Howland, Tx, that I took a few years back. When I was a young boy we use to visit my
Grandmother's house in Howland. She lived just down the road from the store, so my Dad would walk us to the store for a float or vanilla
coke. Those were the good old days, that our children will never get to experience. The store was run by members of my
Grandmother's family.
I was hoping to get a photo of my Granny's house, but it has already been torn down. The only thing left on the lot is the old well, where
we would get our water. The old outhouse is gone also. I still remember the crawdad holes all over the place as well as cotton fields.
We use take our baths in an old #2 tub. My sister's never let me forget, because I always was the first to get a bath."
Howland is in Lamar County, and lies about 100 miles northeast of Dallas. Howland was settled in the 1880s, and at first operated under
the name of Grove, but was re-named either to honor (and gain favor, perhaps?) a local railroad owner, or was asked to get a new name
because of postal confusions with nearby Honey Grove.
Howland was quite a large town in its day, with stores, cotton gins, doctor's offices, and a school. Before the Great Depression wiped
out many of the area farms, the downtown held over 12 businesses. By the 1960s, however, the railroad ceased coming through
Howland, and the town gradually diminished in size.
Howland is yet another ghost on the Texas prairie.
| Red River Historian comments: I used to drive through Howland every day on my way to East Texas State University. Way back then, I lived in a wonderful little farm house in Brookston, another Lamar County ghost. I was always intrigued by the old buildings that hugged the road - thanks to Frank Henderson, I now know a lot more about them. Learn more about ghost towns in the Red River Valley in the newest book by Red River Historian Press! Click the cover on the left to buy it from Amazon, or go to the Red River Historian Press to buy from this website. |
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| Questions or comments? E-mail me: robin@redriverhistorian.com |
