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History in
a Pecan Shell
Originally called
Norwood when it was started in 1886, it was renamed after a
local settler when the post office was granted in 1906. The first
store in the community opened in 1912. At its high-water mark (no
population figures available) the town had the school, a blacksmith,
a cotton gin and two stores. The population for 1940 is recorded as
100 but after WWII
the community had evaporated. |
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Benoit Schoolhouse
Photographer's
Note:
"All that is left are a few houses and the old school...pictured
here. I couldn't really see inside due to the configuration of the
rooms inside, but I suspect that it had two rooms. With the roof
being in fairly good shape, and the windows being sealed up...the
building should last for a very long time." - Stephen
Taylor, December 27, 2005
My father,
Arnold B. Werner, was one of eight children raised on a small ranch
near Benoit. They all attended grades one through eight in the Benoit
schoolhouse.
My father was born in 1913, and would have attended the school about
1919 through 1927. He said it was a two room school. One for grades
one through four, and the other room was for grades five through
eight. There was a fireplace in the middle wall which heated both
rooms in the winter. He and his brothers and sisters rode a wagon
pulled by horses or mules to the school. The boys would chop wood
for the fireplace before school.
The school was closed sometime in the 1930's or 40's, and served
as a community center after that. I visited the schoolhouse with
my nearby relatives a couple of times in the 1960's, and it was
still in good condition. Mrs Robinson, a very nice lady, still lived
in the house across the street. There were also several other vacant
houses. - Clint Werner, February 01, 2017
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Benoit, Texas
Forum
Subject: Salado
and Benoit Circa 1910
A web search for Benoit, Texas, led me to your excellent site. My
father, Maj. Gen. Thomas R. Rampy was born and reared in Salado.
He wrote a detailed account of those years (1898-1916) in a book
titled "Choice and Chance." I have posted it (PDF), including many
photos, on the web at: http://www.upamerica.org/family/trrbook.htm.
I believe those of your readers who are familiar with Salado
would find the first of the three sections to be a good account
of how things were on a Central Texas farm a hundred years ago.
The town of Benoit was featured in an incident recounted in my father's
book (above). He relates a tale of travel from his home to that
tiny village in Runnels
County by train in 1910: A
RAILROAD ADVENTURE
Thanks for the great job you are doing to preserve our precious
past. - Gordon Rampy, Warrenton, Virginia, August 11, 2007
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| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories,
landmarks and recent or vintage photos, please contact
us. |
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