Mertens, a town in Hill County, Texas, ZIP code 76666. (original) (raw)
History in a Pecan Shell
J. K. Walling, a Tennessean is considered to be the first resident in the vicinity. He arrived in 1884 and was joined a few years later by Mississippian A.L. Coleman. It was on Coleman�s property that the town formed. But neither Coleman or Walling were honored by having the place named for them. That honor went to William Mertens, a well-known investor who had a stake in the St. Louis, Arkansas & Texas Railway that arrived in 1887. (See corrections below.)
Walling opened a general store and it was here the first post office opened in 1888.
The population had grown to 75 and the town supported both a gin and a gristmill. The 20th Century dawned and with it came the town�s first bank (1902). A second railroad line crossed the tracks of the first in 1902-03 — and the town incorporated in 1914.
Mertens was given electrical service in 1915 and other infrastructure such as sidewalks and curbing appeared. The town had a weekly paper and the population reached 342 residents for the 1920 Census.
A water system was installed in the 30s, but with the construction of State Highway 22, the outside world beckoned — and the town entered a decline.
The railroads stopped running and over the years businesses and people left. By the 1980s there was only a single brick building to mark where downtown once was.
The 1990 census showed 104 residents which increased to 146 for the year 2000.
Mertens, Texas Namesake
Subject: Mertens, Texas correction
The town of Mertens was not named for the wife of the engineer of the first train. "That honor went to William Mertens, a well-known investor who had a stake in the St. Louis, Arkansas & Texas Railway that arrived in 1887." - Jim King, Webmaster, Texas Railroad History Website, October 6, 2022
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