Hubbard, Texas, Hill County. (original) (raw)

History in a Pecan Shell

Once known as Slap-out, Texas or McLainsboro, Texas, the town was established around 1860. It was renamed after former Governor Richard B. Hubbard around 1881 when the St. Louis Southwestern Railroad of Texas built a depot. The post office was granted, the first newspaper published and a bank (private) opened all in the year 1881. The town was later added to the route of the Trinity and Brazos Valley Railroad, making it a two-railroad town.

In 1895 while drilling for drinking water, the city hit hoit mineral water - making the town a (minor) resort town. (See Dog Drinks Water - Saves Town by Mike Cox.) From its earliest reported population of 250 (1884), it had doubled by the early 1890s and was 2,700 by the mid-1920s.

The Great Depression, WWII and the decline of water resorts took its toll on Hubbard. The population was only 1,772 by the early 1950s - increasing to 1,872 by the late 1980s and then declining to the current 1,586. Hubbard lost some downtown buildings to a 1973 tornado but still retains some picturesque residental streets and is worth a visit.

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