to Van Zandt County "Post Offices, Cities, Towns and People" by Kitty Wheeler of Grand Saline, TX Kitty Wheeler of Grand Saline spent several years researching the post offices, cities, towns and people of Van Zandt County. A portion of her work was published by the Van Zandt County Genealogical Society in "Histories and Biographies of Van Zandt County, Vol. II," which is still in print and available for purchase by sending a check or money order for $60 to the Van Zandt County Genealogical Society, P.O. Box 1388, Canton, TX 75103. This volume contains a portion of her post office research plus over 500 biographies of Van Zandt County citizens. Kitty Wheeler has generously given us exclusive permission to use all or part of her 500 page original manuscript. We are beginning with only part of her entire amazing work but we will complete this site as quickly as possible.
Blaine Post Office Blaine post office was established 26 April 1893. The postmaster and their appointments dates are as follows: JoHn Washington, 26 April 1893; William Brinkly Washington, 20 Mar 1896; Chris C. Perry, 23 Feb 1899; Hannah Perry, 23 Oct 1899; William Brinkley Washington, 29 Mar 1900; discontinued 15 Sep 1900, and moved to Chandler.
It was reestablished 10 Jan 1901, and postmasters were Alice W. Wheat, 10 Jan 1901; and Alex W. Wheat, 19 Mar 1901; discontinued 28 Feb 1907, and moved to Chandler. Blaine had the distinction of being the only black post office in Van Zandt Co. All the ones that served as postmasters were black. On the postal application signed 25 Jan 1893, by John Washington, the first postmaster, and W.J. Stuart, Edom postmaster, the name applied for the new post office was Londy. This is scratched out and above is written the name Blaine. Blaine was first located six miles west of Edom, close to the intersection of VZC Road 4823 and VZC Road 4824. On 3 Jan 1896, when William B. Washington filed an application, it was for a post office to be located eight miles west of Edom at an intersection of VZC Rd. 4823 and FM Rd. 279. The name of the post office was to be Preston. This application was signed by the Blaine postmaster, John Washington. The Washington postal department appointed William B. Washington the postmaster and changed to name Preston to Blaine, moving the site.
The post office remained at the second site until it was discontinued in 1907.
The first postmaster, John Washington, was born 1868, in Texas, son of George and Ann Still Washington, both born in Georgia. George was born in 1833 and Ann in 1837, the daughter of Ira Lucius and Mary E. Still. George and Ann lived in Louisiana prior to moving to Texas with their family sometime between 1857 and 1861.
George was undoubtedly a hardworking, successful farmer for on 18 Mar 1865, he paid $850 cash to Dempsey and Elizabeth Jordan for 50 acres of land located 13 miles southeast of Canton.
On 28 Oct 1876, George added to his land holdings by purchasing from Ira L. and M. E. Still 160 acres about 22 miles southeast of Canton for the sum of $1,280 cash. This land was the west half of the John Mars Headright on the Neches River. It was conveyed by John Mars' wife to his daughter. The west one-third was given by the testator to his daughter Julia who by marriage took the name Julia Taylor. Julia and her husband sold the land to D.S.Tucker and Thomas Barron 29 Aug 1868. One-half of the middle third of the headright was given to another daughter of John Mars who was married to Jesse Howell. After having an infant son, Mrs. Jesse Howell departed this life and subsequently the infant died also.
Mr. Howell sold the land to R.M. Still who passed away 18 Feb 1875. Prior to his death, R.M. Still gave the land to his son, Ira L. Still. After his mother qualified Ira as survivor of the estate, he received a deed to the property 12 Oct 1876, sixteen days later selling the land to his son-in-law.
The 1880 Van Zandt Co., TX census shows Georg's mother-in-law, Mary Still, as a member of his husehold. This suggests that possibly Ira Still passed away between 1876 and 1880.
William Brinkly (Brink) Washington was born 1874, another son of George and Ann Washington. Brink married Elsie Perry, daughter of Brown and Lizzie Perry.
Brown Perry was also a land holder in the M.C. Chirino Ssurvey. On 25 Jan 1879, J. Youngblood conveyed 160 acres to B. Perry, on 27 Feb 1879, Frank Adams conveyed 158 to him and on 11 Jan 1896, T.B. Green, guardian of the estate of E.E. Green, conveyed 125 acres.
On 1 Jan 1906, the following descendants of Brown Perry purchased the above parcels of land from Warren William for the sum of $146 plus 10 percent interest to be paid 1 Nov 1906. H.G. Perry and wife Flecher Perry; Mary Scott and husband Jobie Scott; Maggie Baxter and husband Charley Baxter; Elsie Washington and husband W.B. Washington; and Hannah Raibon.
Information taken from the postal application implies that Blaine was a village and on an early map of Van Zandt County, there are indications of a group of buildings, perhaps stores at the second location of Blaine. A granddaughter of Augustus Chandler Beall, a postmaster at Hamburg, can remember her father used to ride a horse over to Blaine and enjoyed visiting with the black people. Perhaps there was a general store there and as was the custom then, the men folk would gather when crops were laid by or in the winter set around an old potbellied wood stove to swap yarns with one another. There was a cotton gin and a grist mill in the community and also a dipping vat for cattle.
There is a slave cemetery 1/4 mile west of the Mt. Zion Church on the old Hambrick Plantation The only visible sign now being indentations in the ground large enough for a grave. All the old markers have deteriorated and no one knows how many people have been buried there.
Peter Hill, an early settler of the area, was a blacksmith. As a blacksmith Peter Hill made plows, collars, bull tongues, subsoil twisters, etc. Peter's first efforts when he came to Van Zandt were for his master, Burl Hambrick. Not having coal to burn, Peter would cut sweet gum trees into blocks and burn the wood until it became a big block of coal. This was what he used in his forge. The collars he made were plaited, wet corn shucks with a piece of metal crocked around to fit them together to fit the horse.
Many of the residents of the Blaine Community attended church at the Mt. Zion C.M.E. Church. Approximately 116 years ago on the Ephriam Curtis farm in the area, a small box church was built by a group of outstanding, brave, Christian soldiers. Later on, during Reverend M.F. Ragsdale's pastorate, the church was moved out on a dirt road on the A.R. Hill farm. Under the leadership of Reverend L.E. Craig a spacious frame edifice was built.
The first record of the school that served the educational needs of the children of this area was in 1 Sep 1887, when it was stated that the Red Land School, number 58, would have a credit of $97.92 for that school year. During the fall session of 1888, J.A. Lincoldn was the teacher and for the spring session 1889, F.M. McGlossen taught school at Red Land. Quite probably the first school was in a log house, but no record of that was found. The first frame building was a one-room, two-story school, all grades were taught from 1st grad through 8th grade by one teacher. Some of the teachers who taught through the years at Red Land were Prof. Henry Jones, B.B. Curtis, Clara Alexander, Annie Smith, C.M. Martin, B.B. Washington, J.J. Washington, Charley Curtis, Mrs. C.V. Smilie, Mrs. Lula Hogg, Mrs. Cora Pierce, and Mrs. Clara Lewis Caldwell.
Few people today remember there ever having been a Blaine, Texas.
Back to Post Offices Index Page Back to the Genealogical Research Group's Home Page You are the person to visit this page since June 7, 2006
This page last updated 20 July 2006Van Zandt County Genealogical Research Group Website
maintained by
Sibyl Creasey
