Center Point is an

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 ...

settled in 1865 by freed slaves. It is located in Camp County in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

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 ...

, nine miles southeast of Pittsburg at the intersection of Farm to Market Road 2057 and County Road 4247. In 1979,

Recorded Texas Historic Landmark Recorded Texas Historic Landmark (RTHL) is a designation awarded by the Texas Historical Commission for historically and architecturally significant properties in the U.S. state of Texas. RTHL is a legal designation and the highest honor the sta ...

No. 9790 was designated to commemorate the founding of Center Point.

Settlement

Center Point was settled by freed slaves in 1865 as one of the Freedman's settlements that resulted from the

Emancipation Proclamation The Emancipation Proclamation, officially Proclamation 95, was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by United States President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, during the Civil War. The Proclamation changed the legal sta ...

. The origin of the settlement's name is said to be from Farm to Market Road 2057 crossing County Road 4247. The 1983 county highway map showed two churches, a cemetery, and a community center. It had a population of 41 in 2000. The Center Point Baptist Church was established in 1873. The community supported a brick kiln, sawmill, and cotton gin.

School

A one-room school established in 1887 served thirty-one black children, during each 100-day term. The school, however, was initially not a very good one. Later school bond improvements brought the educational institution up in 1916 to a four-room building, raising the school quality to one of the best in Camp County by 1936. The first school principals on the 14-acre campus were Mr. and Mrs. L. B. Cash. At its peak, the school accommodated 279 students. Because of the declining community population and enrollment, the school consolidated with

Pittsburg Independent School District Pittsburg Independent School District is a public school district based in Pittsburg, Texas (USA). In addition to Pittsburg, the district serves the town of Rocky Mound as well as all of Camp County with the exception of a very small area that ...

in 1955. In 1996, Recorded Texas Historic Landmark No. 9791 was designated to commemorate the school.

Cemetery

The Texas Historical Commission has noted Center Point Cemetery as CP-C010.

Notable people

Mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

Barbara Smith Conrad Barbara Smith Conrad (August 11, 1937 – May 22, 2017) was an American opera singer. A mezzo-soprano, she performed with the Metropolitan Opera, Vienna State Opera, Teatro Nacional in Venezuela, and many others. She was also an educator, co-d ...

was born in Center Point in 1940. Conrad has performed with opera companies around the world. She has sung at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

and performed for

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

during his 1995

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

visit. She credits the Baptist church in Center Point as the origin of her love of music.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Center Point, Camp County, Texas Geography of Camp County, Texas Ghost towns in East Texas Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks Unincorporated communities in Texas Populated places established in 1865