Tira, Texas. (original) (raw)

History in a Pecan Shell

Settler Jimmy Chapman arrived about 1850 and the community was originally named for him. After the Civil War the town was big enough to support a Methodist church and in 1898 the community was granted a post office under the name Tira, a misspelling of the biblical city of Tyre.

A cotton gin was in operation by 1900 - followed by a school. By 1914 the population was 100 people with a grocery, 3 general stores and two gins. The post office closed in 1919, but strangely enough, the town prospered without one.

By the mid 1930s the town had a population of 200 but when the school was consolidated with other schools - it spelled the biginning of the end. The population dropped to only 40 by 1952.

The last business closed its doors in 1961 and the town seemed doomed to oblivion. But in 1966 the population was back up to 115 in 1966 and it increased to 249 by the mid 1980s. Several new businesses opened and in 1990 there were 237 Tirans.

1920s Hopkins County Map showing Tira
(Near Delta County line)
Courtesy Texas General Land Office

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