Neches 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 ...

in east central Anderson 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 ...

. 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 175 in 2000. It is located within the

Palestine, Texas Palestine ( ) is a city in and the seat of Anderson County in the U.S. state of Texas. It was named for Palestine, Illinois, by preacher Daniel Parker, who had migrated from that town. The city had a 2020 U.S. census population of 18,544, mak ...

micropolitan area.

History

In 1872, the International-Great Northern Railroad was built through the area of Neches. J.J. Davis and Murdock McDonald, local landowners, donated land to be used for the expansion of the townsite and a train station. Neches' first post office, which opened the same year as the town, was called Nechesville. A

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 ...

, two steam-powered

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

s, a

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

, two churches, two general stores, and two saloons were in operation in the community by 1884 and the community had 100 inhabitants living in it. The community shipped

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

. Two

cotton gin A cotton gin—meaning "cotton engine"—is a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, enabling much greater productivity than manual cotton separation.. Reprinted by McGraw-Hill, New York and London, 1926 (); a ...

s and a

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

were then added to the community's business directory by 1890 and had a large growth in population with 400 settlers. A local store owner named J.B. McDonald also acted as

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

in Nechesville and advertised as a supplier of "meats and justice." The community's name was then changed to Neches in 1892. The community then published two newspapers: the ''Southern Poultry Journal'' in 1896 and the ''Neches Tribune'' before the 1930s. Its population decreased to 261 people in 1900 and then grew back to 400 in the 1920s, which stayed around that in the 1930s. Neches had 24 businesses operating, as well as a population zenith of 900 in 1939, making it an extremely successful community. It began to fade not long after. Its population plunged to 280 in 1949 and continued to fall to 111 in 1970. There were three churches, two community halls, and six operating businesses in 1985. Its population grew to 114 in 1990 and then jumped some more to 175 in 2000. Although it is unincorporated, Neches has a post office, with the ZIP code 75779. On May 11, 1953, a possible tornado struck Neches, tearing the roof off of a home. During the

Battle of Nacogdoches The Battle of Nacogdoches culminated on August 2, 1832, after a group of Texians resisted an order issued in July by the commander of the Mexican Army at Nacogdoches, Texas to surrender their arms. The situation soon escalated into a major batt ...

, James Bradshaw brought a company from Neches as a call to arms.Archie P. McDonald, "NACOGDOCHES, BATTLE OF,"

Handbook of Texas Online The ''Handbook of Texas'' is a comprehensive encyclopedia An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular ...

br>
accessed June 22, 2012. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.

Geography

Neches lies at the juncture of U.S. Highway 79, as well as Farm to Market Roads 321 and 2574, along the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

, northeast of

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

and from the

Neches River The Neches River () begins in Van Zandt County west of Rhine Lake and flows for through the piney woods of east Texas, defining the boundaries of 14 counties on its way to its mouth on Sabine Lake near the Rainbow Bridge. Two major reservoirs, ...

in eastern Anderson County. It is also located southwest of

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

and southwest of

Tyler Tyler may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tyler (name), an English name; with lists of people with the surname or given name * Tyler, the Creator (born 1991), American rap artist and producer * John Tyler, 10th president of the United ...

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Neches has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Neches, Texas
/ref>

Education

The first school was built in the community in 1872 and another one appeared in 1884. A

charter school A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of auto ...

called Stovall Academy was in operation three miles from Neches in 1866. It was then moved to the settlement and was renamed the Neches Normal Institute and then Neches High School, which it currently goes by to this day. It also had a school in 1985. Today, the community is served by the

Neches Independent School District Neches Independent School District is a public school district for students grades PK-12 based in the community of Neches, an unincorporated community in Anderson County, Texas (USA). The district recently opened a new elementary/junior high ...

, which is home to the Neches High School Tigers.

Notable residents

*Gary Brown - bass player of

Whiskey Myers Whiskey Myers is an American Southern rock/country group from Palestine, Texas composed of Cody Cannon (lead vocals and acoustic guitar), John Jeffers (lead guitar, slide guitar, lap steel guitar, vocals), Cody Tate (lead and rhythm guitar, voca ...

*Cody Cannon - lead singer of Whiskey Myers *

Lenora Rolla Lenora Rolla (March 4, 1904 – June 29, 2001) was a noted African-American activist, businesswoman, educator, and historian. The granddaughter of former slaves who grew up in poverty, Rolla became a civil rights leader and community activist in ...

, activist, educator, and historian lived in Neches until she turned 5.

References

Sources

* {{authority control Unincorporated communities in Texas Unincorporated communities in Anderson County, Texas