Epperson's Ferry was one of two locations to cross the
Sulphur River
The Sulphur River is a river in northeast Texas and southwest Arkansas in the United States. It is a tributary of the Red River.
Geography
The Sulphur River begins at the confluence of its north and south forks forming (following earlier mean ...
during the first half of the 19th century in Northeast
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, United States, the other being Stephenson's Ferry to the west. One of the last crossings made on Trammel's Trace.
History
By 1854, the early citizens of Bowie and Cass counties were anxious to improve their ability to get their cotton to markets and ports down river, and made an ambitious effort of their own. That year they collected $ 2,400, an incredible amount of money for the time, to clean out the river to allow steamboats to make it as far as Epperso'’s Ferry. They appointed commissioners and gave contracts to clear the Sulphur to eighty feet wide. From the center to thirty feet on either side, all stumps and
logjams were to be removed, and then another ten feet into each bank all overhangs and snags were cleared. Plans were executed to the point that farmers stacked bales of cotton at Epperson's bluff in the spring of 1855 in anticipation of the arrival of a boat able to carry the freight. Low water that year prevented access, but on March 10, 1856, Captain R.C. Hutchinson in his steamer, ''Julia'', made it all the way to Epperson's Ferry.
By that time, railroads were offering more speed and capacity compared to the lower and slower freight by uncertain steamboats on Texas rivers. By 1859 contracts were being let by the Memphis, El Paso, &
Pacific Railroad
The Pacific Railroad (not to be confused with Union Pacific Railroad) was a railroad based in Missouri. It was a predecessor of both the Missouri Pacific Railroad and St. Louis-San Francisco Railway.
The Pacific was chartered by Missouri in 184 ...
for fifty miles of track to the Sulphur Fork in Bowie County, and the brief steamboat era of Epperson’s Ferry was over.
[{{Cite web, last=Harper Jr., first=Cecil, date=, title=Epperson's Ferry, url=https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/eppersons-ferry, archive-url=, archive-date=, access-date=February 7, 2021, website=The Handbook of Texas]
The monument was later moved several miles to a spot off of U.S. Highway 67 east of Maud due to the creation of Lake Wright Patman, which led to recurring floods which would cover the marker during periods of high rainfall.
See also
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Historic trails and roads in the United States
There are many historic trails and roads in the United States which were important to the settlement and development of the United States including those used by American Indians.
The lists below include only those routes in use prior to the c ...
References
History of Texas