Eastland County, Texas
Cities, Towns & Communities
Carbon | Cisco | Desdemona | Dothan | Eastland – county seat | Gorman | Kokomo | Liberty Hill | Mangum | Merriman | Nimrod | Old Shinoak Springs | Olden | Pioneer | Ranger | Rising Star | Romney | Sabanno | Scranton | Staff
History
Formed from Young and Bexar Territories; Created February 1, 1858; Organized December 2, 1873; Named in honor of Captain William Mosby Eastland 1806-1843; Hero of San Jacinto; Member of the Mier Expedition who drew the first black bean at Salado, Mexico and was executed, on March 25, 1843; Eastland, the county seat. –
Early Settlers of Eastland County. First known Eastland area inhabitant was Frank Sanchez (d. 1867), who grazed herds here in the 1850s. The United States in 1853 established Army posts at Fort Phantom Hill, in present Taylor County, and Fort Belknap, in present Young County, giving the frontier protection against hostile Indians. This opened a modest influx of settlers, including families named Bell, Birden, Birt, Blair, Ellison, Fitzwaters, Flannagan, Gilbert, Herring, Highsaw, McGough, Mansker, Melburn, Oliver, Owens, Richards, Shirley, Singleton, Upton, and Wyatt, from “old states” of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North and South Carolina, and Tennessee. The county was created, but not organized, in 1858. The U.S. Census for 1860 showed 99 residents. When Texas seceded from the Union in 1861, and Army garrisons withdrew, many pioneers left or took refuge at Blair’s Fort, in southeastern part of the county. Post-Civil War settlers included such leaders as Dr. Edwin Daniel Townsend, who arrived from Kentucky in 1871. The county was organized in an election held Dec. 2, 1873, with Merriman designated county seat (in violation of legislation creating the county). In 1875 the government was moved to Eastland, founded that year by investor Charles U. Connellee (1851-1930). Historical Marker erected in 1972, located at the public library.
Courthouses
Eastland County has had two county seats – Merriman, 1873-1875, and Eastland, 1875 to present. Three Eastland County Courthouses have been built in Eastland.
Location
Eastland, TX 32° 24′ 5.472″ N, 98° 49′ 3.2232″ W
See map: Google Maps, Yahoo! Maps, MapQuest
