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The
1886 Second Empire style Germany-Babb House on Lee Street just west
of downtown. A Recorded Texas Historic Landmark.
Photo courtesy Milton Babb, December 2006 |
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Greenville
by Milton Babb
The town of Greenville became the county seat when the first Texas
legislature created Hunt County in 1846. Greenville was named for
Republic of Texas Congressman Thomas J. Green, a freedom fighter in
the Lone Star's war for independence from Mexico. |
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Greenville
street scene
Lee Street looking east
TE old postcard |
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| With the arrival
of the railroads in the 1880s, founders soon envisioned Greenville
not as a settlement, but as a city. Cotton flourished in the blackland
prairie, creating an economic engine that soon transformed the town.
The "cotton capital of the world" soon boasted the world's largest
inland cotton compress, a population of several thousand, and six
railway lines. First-class hotels, an electric streetcar line and
a thriving business community gave leaders a vision for the future.
Fortunately, much of the Victorian-era architecture remains to give
Greenville an identity quite apart from typical suburbia. |
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Greenville's
1909 Beaux Art style U.S. Post Office
Photos courtesy Milton Babb, December 2006 |
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Greenville
Today
Today, downtown
Greenville offers visitors a step back in time. The Greenville Railroad
Museum is housed in the 1895 Katy Depot. Antique emporiums and specialty
shops line Lee Street and Washington Street (the original northern
boundary of Mercer's Colony). The Hunt County Heritage Garden is a
delight to the senses and a learning experience of which plants do
well in native Texas soil.
Concerts in the 1938 Art Deco Municipal Auditorium range from the
Dallas Symphony Orchestra to Ray Wylie Hubbard. Elvis played there
in 1955.
A self-guided historical walking tour informs visitors how
the Greenville Majors beat the New York Yankees, why early civic leaders
shot a stream of water over the courthouse
and why acts from John Philip Sousa to the Marx Brothers to Houdini
came to Greenville in early days. - Milton Babb, December 1006
Greenville
Hotels
Book Your Hotel Here & Save |
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L
- Detail of the 1902 Beckham Hotel Annex.
R - "The 1930s 1930s Texan Theater now houses a home decor and
custom quilt shop." - Photos courtesy Milton Babb, December 2006
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Greenville
Attractions
/Architecutral Landmarks
Hunt
County Courthouse
The Audie Murphy/American
Cotton Museum: 600 I-30 East 903-450-4502 Exhibits and artifacts
from local history, including cotton growing and processing equipment,
and Audie Murphy memorabilia from WWII's most decorated soldier.
A bronze statue of Audie Murphy is the centerpiece of the veterans
memorial on the museum grounds.
The Genealogy
Room at W. Walworth Harrison Public Library houses an extensive
collection of records for family researchers. In Ja-Lu Park off
Stonewall Street. 903-457-2997
Victorian and
turn-of-the-century homes in the older residential area
Peace Garden
sculpture garden in Forest Park Cemetery, Bus. Hwy 69 S.
Nearby Destinations
Less than 30 miles away are Lake Lavon and Lake Ray Hubbard
to the east, and Lake Tawakoni to the south.
Greenville
Tourist Information
Greenville
Chamber of Commerce: 903-455-1510
2713 Stonewall St.
Chamber website:www.greenville-chamber.org/
City website: www.ci.greenville.tx.us
Greenville
Hotels
Book Your Hotel Here & Save
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Gargoyle
Morgan and Gotcher Building on Stonewall Street in Greenville.
Photo courtesy Milton Babb, December 2006 |
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Gargoyle
1925 Stringer Mortuary Building on Stonewall Street
Photo courtesy Milton Babb, December 2006 |
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The
1903 Carnegie Library in Greenville. Razed in 1953
Photo courtesy texasoldphotos.com |
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original Tower 64 around 1930. The track straight ahead is looking
toward Commerce, Texas on the
St. Louis Southwestern (Cotton Belt). Track to the left is the Missouri,
Kansas and Texas toward Denison.
Structure that can be seen in the distance is the MKT Hunt Yard office
in Greenville, Texas." - Photo courtesy Katy Railroad Historical
Society |
Greenville
Stories
Grin
and Bear It
by Milton Babb
"There's nothing worse than a drunken bear in a department store..."
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