Railroads in Ennis

Behind the plaque's railroads stands a chain of owners. The Handbook of Texas says the Houston and Texas Central, the line that reached Ennis, was sold to Charles Morgan in 1877 and came under Southern Pacific control in 1883, though it kept its own organization until 1927, when it was leased to the Texas and New Orleans. The two merged in 1934, the year the T&NO also acquired the Texas Midland. In 1961 the Southern Pacific acquired the Texas and New Orleans. After 1942, once the Kaufman track was abandoned, Ennis was left with one railroad.

What the plaque says

Railroads in Ennis The Houston and Texas Central Railroad built tracks through Corsicana en route to Dallas in 1871. In 1872 the town of Ennis was platted along this line on 647 acres selected by Captain W. G. Veale. The town was named for railroad official Colonel Cornelius Ennis. The Houston and Texas Central (H&TC) began an extension from nearby Garrett to the town of Paris in 1882. Railroad magnate Hetty Green purchased the line in 1892. The line was extended to Ennis in 1894, and the railroad was named the Texas Midland Railroad. As a result of high community involvement, Ennis became a division point. The H&TC established a roundhouse, machine shops and its northern division headquarters here with the agreement that the shops would never be moved while Ennis could supply water for them. Two lakes were built for this purpose in 1891 and 1895. The Southern Traction Company was chartered on March 12, 1912, and operated an interurban line from Dallas to Corsicana via Ennis beginning October 20, 1913. The interurban line in Ennis ran along McKinney Street, turned onto Baylor Street, continued east one block and then proceeded south on Dallas Street. In Dallas, the interurban connected to Southern Traction's line to Waco. Southern Traction merged with Texas Traction in 1917. The interurban railway was abandoned in February 1941. The rail line to Paris was abandoned between Ennis and Kaufman in 1942, and all Texas Midland lines were closed by 1975. At the dawn of the 21st century, the Houston and Texas Central Railroad line that established Ennis was owned and operated by the Union Pacific Railroad. (2000)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Ellis County Courthouse — 13 mi
  J. Riely Gordon's courthouse of 1897 in Pecos red sandstone and pink granite, with twenty-one carved stone faces and two cornerstones left by a quarrel over its building.
• Petroleum Industry Park — 19 mi
  The pipes and drilling tower mark where a city water well struck oil on June 9, 1894, the start of the first Texas field to produce oil and gas in important quantities.
• Cedar Ridge Preserve — 29 mi
  A 633-acre Audubon Dallas preserve at the western edge of Dallas County, with about nine miles of trails through prairie, woodland and escarpment hills.

More markers nearby

• Town of Ennis — steps away
• Katie Daffan — steps away
• The Southern Pacific Railroad in Ennis — steps away
• Jay Justin Clarke — steps away