Apple Springs, Texas
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Apple Springs is a small
unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
in Trinity County,
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, United States. According to the
Handbook of Texas The ''Handbook of Texas'' is a comprehensive encyclopedia of Texas geography, history, and historical persons published by the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). History The original ''Handbook'' was the brainchild of TSHA President Wal ...
, the community had a population of 185 in 2000. It is located within the
Huntsville, Texas Huntsville is a city in and the county seat of Walker County, Texas. The population was 45,941 as of the 2020 census. It is the center of the Huntsville micropolitan area. Huntsville is in the East Texas Piney Woods on Interstate 45 and home to ...
micropolitan area.


History

The town was founded shortly after the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
as May Apple Springs. The community took its name from a nearby spring where
May apple ''Podophyllum'' is a genus of flowering plant in the family Berberidaceae, native from Afghanistan to China, and from southeast Canada to the central and eastern United States. The genus was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1753. Taxonomy Th ...
s grew. A post office has been in operation at Apple Springs since 1884. The community moved to the location of the
Groveton, Lufkin and Northern Railway The Groveton, Lufkin and Northern Railway (GL&N) was a standard gauge U.S. shortline railroad located in East Texas. Originally chartered on May 15, 1908, as the Texas Northern Railway Company, it changed its name on August 17, 1908. On December ...
when a track was built between Groveton and
Vair Vair (; from Latin ''varius'' "variegated"), originating as a processed form of squirrel fur, gave its name to a set of different patterns used in heraldry. Heraldic vair represents a kind of fur common in the Middle Ages, made from pieces of ...
. Apple Springs had 75 residents during
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and had three general stores, a gin, a bank, and a cafe. The railroad was abandoned in 1931 and the community moved to State Highway 94. In the mid-1930s, Apple Springs had 12 businesses and 150 residents. The town rose to a population of 285 in 1965, and then progressively declined to about 130 people, with nine businesses, in the 1990s. In 2000, the population was 185 with 21 businesses. On January 19, 1990, a strong F3 tornado damaged around 20 homes, overturned a mobile home and shifted it around 70 feet, and snapped several power poles. On November 23, 2004, a strong tornado occurred in
Davy Crockett National Forest Davy Crockett National Forest is off U.S. Highway 69 lying west of Lufkin, Texas and east of Crockett. It is administered by the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service local headquarters in Lufkin. There are local ranger distric ...
near Apple Springs, stranding seven hunters and severely damaging their vehicles. Along its path, 70-90 percent of trees were downed or damaged.


Geography

Apple Springs is located at the intersection of
Texas State Highway 94 State Highway 94 (SH 94) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Texas that runs between Trinity and Lufkin Lufkin is the largest city in Angelina County, Texas and the county seat. The city is situated in Deep East Texas and about 60 mil ...
and Farm to Market Roads 357 and 2501, northeast of Groveton and southwest of
Lufkin Lufkin is the largest city in Angelina County, Texas and the county seat. The city is situated in Deep East Texas and about 60 miles west of the Texas-Louisiana border. Its estimated population is 35,021 as of July 1, 2019. Lufkin was founded ...
in northeastern Trinity County.


Schools

The community's first school was established in 1884 and had only 28 students enrolled two years later. Apple Springs is home to
Apple Springs Independent School District Apple Springs Independent School District is a public school district based in Apple Springs, Texas ( USA). Finances As of the 2010–11 school year, the appraised valuation of property in the district was $29,249,000. The maintenance tax rate ...
. The district has two schools, Apple Springs Elementary School (pre-kindergarten to grade 6) and
Apple Springs High School Apple Springs High School is a public high school located in Apple Springs, Texas (United States) and classified as a 1A school by the UIL. It is part of the Apple Springs Independent School District located in northeast Trinity County. In 2 ...
(grades 7 to 12), with approximately 140-165 students. In 2004-2005, the school district received an "Academically Acceptable" rating from the Texas Education Agency (TEA). In 2002, Apple Springs High School was recognized by ''
Texas Monthly ''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...
'' as one of the top ten high schools in Texas in its economic group, based on ranking by the National Center for Educational Accountability.


Economy

Brookshire Brothers Brookshire Brothers, is an employee-owned American supermarket chain headquartered in Lufkin, Texas, founded in 1921 by brothers Austin and Tom Brookshire. Brookshire Brothers is a private corporation that is wholly owned by employees. Brookshir ...
has a store in Apple Springs.


Notable person

Jesse Jarue Mark Jesse Jarue Mark (1906-1971) was one of the first African-Americans to gain a PhD in botany, and likely to be the first at Iowa State University, where he joined the faculty. He was also a Rockefeller Agriculture Fellow. Early life Jesse Jarue ...
, African American who earned a Ph.D. in botany, was born in the community.


References

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Texas Unincorporated communities in Trinity County, Texas