Lebanon was the name of two different communities that were founded in

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 ...

in the 19th Century, neither of which exists today. The first was a town located in Collin County that had a post office designated as Lebanon, Texas, before it was relocated to

Frisco, Texas Frisco is a city in Collin and Denton counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and about from both Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Its population was 200,509 at the 2 ...

. The second was a smaller

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 ...

located in Live Oak County of which only a cemetery remains today.

Town of Lebanon in Collin County, Texas

When the

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

area was being settled by American pioneers in the 1840s, many of the settlers traveled by wagon trains along the old Shawnee Trail, which was also used for cattle drives north from

Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

. This trail later became known as the

Preston Trail Preston Trail, later known as the Old Preston Road, was a road created by the Republic of Texas in 1841 from Preston, Texas on the Red River south to Austin, Texas. This road closely followed an existing trail that led across the area that had been ...

and eventually, Preston Road. The town of Lebanon was founded along this trail to take advantage of this activity and the fertile farmland in the area. It was reportedly named after one of the settler's hometown of

Lebanon, Tennessee Lebanon is the county seat of Wilson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 38,431 at the 2020 census. Lebanon is located in Middle Tennessee, approximately east of downtown Nashville. Lebanon is part of the Nashville Metropolit ...

. The town was granted a U.S. post office in 1860 and by the 1880s it had a church, a school, a cotton gin, a flour mill, a blacksmith, and many other merchants. In the late 1890s, the town of Lebanon hoped that the new railroad being built in the area would run through town. However, the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway chose a route two miles west of the town. In addition, the railroad established a new town along its route in order to provide water for the trains, which sealed Lebanon's fate. The new town of Emerson was established in 1902 three miles northwest of Lebanon, and would rename itself Frisco after the railroad that had created it. Most residents and businesses in Lebanon picked up and relocated to the new town of Frisco. In 1905, the post office in Lebanon was closed down. No longer a town, Lebanon remained a farming community of a dozen houses, a school, and a church. The school closed in 1947 and by 2000 only the church and a couple houses remained from the original town. In 2003, the Lebanon Baptist Church closed after 120 years of services in that location (the current building dating from 1904 after the original 1883 church was destroyed by a storm). By this time the original town site had been annexed into the growing city of Frisco and Preston Road (now a state highway) was being widened to six lanes. To avoid demolition, the church was donated to the City of Frisco and the building was moved to the Frisco Heritage Center where it is now part of the museum as well as being used as a wedding chapel. At about the same time, the last house dating from the town of Lebanon (built in 1895) was also moved to the Frisco Heritage Center. The old town of Lebanon was located near what is now the intersection of Preston Road and John Hickman Parkway in the city of

. Lebanon Baptist Church was originally located on the north edge of the old town, near what is now the intersection of Preston Road and Lebanon Road in Frisco. In addition to the history preserved at the Frisco Heritage Center, references to the original town can be seen in other places in Frisco: The City of Frisco named Lebanon Road in honor of the town; the

Masonic Lodge A Masonic lodge, often termed a private lodge or constituent lodge, is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also commonly used as a term for a building in which such a unit meets. Every new lodge must be warranted or chartered ...

in downtown Frisco is called the Lebanon Masonic Lodge; and the

Frisco Independent School District Frisco Independent School District is a public school district based in Frisco, Texas, United States. The district covers portions of Denton and Collin counties, including portions of the cities of Frisco, Little Elm, Plano, and McKinney as ...

named their ninth high school Lebanon Trail High School (which is less than a mile from the old town's location). In Addition, Inside of the School, the main hall includes a floor stating, "Lebanon, Texas founded in 1860."

Community of Lebanon in Live Oak County, Texas

The unincorporated community of Lebanon in Live Oak County, Texas, was on a dirt road a mile north of Farm Road 1203 and twelve miles southeast of

Three Rivers, Texas Three Rivers is a city in Live Oak County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,848 at the 2010 census. History Mrs. Annie T. Hamilton of Cuero owned a tract of land in the Brush Country where Three Rivers now sits. At the urging of M ...

. A school was built at the site in the 1880s. During the 1890s a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

congregation was organized in the vicinity and used the schoolhouse for its services. A number of revivals were held in Lebanon during the 1890s, sometimes attracting as many as 600 people from communities in Live Oak and Bee Counties. Around 1920, the church was moved to Cadiz, a nearby town in Bee County, and by 1940 Lebanon's Methodist congregation had been disbanded. A map drawn in the late 1930s shows only a graveyard at the site.Sparkman, Ervin L. ''The People's History of Live Oak County'' Mesquite, Texas: N.p., 1981

References

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Live Oak County, Texas Unincorporated communities in Texas