Marion Texas. (original) (raw)
Present-day Marion after a rain.
Photo Courtesy Sarah Reveley, October 2006
History in a Pecan Shell
Originally a camp for railroad workers, a townsite was laid out with the arrival of the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway in 1877.
It was named after Marion Dove, whose grandfather, Joshua W. Young, owned a plantation that they passed through in 1877.
German settlers moved to Marion and the town was off to a running start by the mid 1880s, with 250 people and most essential businesses, including two cotton gins, church, school and four general stores.
Prior to WWII, Marion had a population of 373, rising to 835 by the late 1980s. The 1990 census was 984, growing to 1,099 for 2000.
Marion Texas Vintage Photos
Sarah Reveley Family Collection:
"Marion, Texas is on FM 78, about 10 miles west of Seguin . Marion was founded in 1877 by Thomas W. Pierce, of Boston in honor of his daughter, Miss Marion Pierce. Pierce was president of the Galveston, Harrisburg, and San Antonio Railroad, and Marion was a major railway stop to get Texas ready for exports being brought in from ports in the Gulf of Mexico. In 1878 it was the largest and busiest depot in Texas." - Sarah Reveley, San Antonio
Wagons in downtown Marion, early 1900s
Photo Courtesy Sarah Reveley
Cowboy pondering the arrival of the "Iron Horse" and it's ecological effects on his lifestyle.
Citizens posing in front of the Marion State Bank
"Mamma was able to name all of the people in the bank photo for me."
Interior of the Krueger Store
"The gentleman behind the counter with the long tie is my grandfather Reno Klein."
Early Entertainment Venue in Marion
Brithday Party attendees on porch of the Millinery shop (see photo below) c. 1920. "Mamma lived in this house until about 1925 when her parents moved to their own house. Auntie then lived there until her death in 1975. Uncle Ralph is in the sailor suit and Mamma is on his right. Aunt Amy is behind him. Mamma was born in 1911 so I guess this was around 1920." - Sarah Reveley
"The pastel blue house is the millinery shop built for my great grandmother, Tina Kailer." - Sarah Reveley
"The feed store started out as the John Hicks & Co. (my grandfather was the & Co) on the main street and got moved to the other location. There's a book about Marion that tells all of that. I've done my Klein family history and the book was a big help." - Sarah Reveley
"The feedstore was originally a part of the grocery store my grandfather worked at. They moved it back when they remodeled. Here's a 1900s photo of the store before they moved it " - Sarah Reveley
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