DUANE
The story
Hubbard G. Hatchett (1808-1889) moved to Texas with his family in 1846. They bought property in Cherokee County on this site two miles west of the Angelina River in a community called Atoy.
Hatchett built a two-room double pen cabin, common in his native Tennessee, in 1847. In January 1850 Hatchett leased the Rusk Ferry on the river crossing and took over its operation. Among those who used the ferry was Gen.
Sam Houston in 1857. Ferry passengers often lodged in private homes within a few miles of the river. A second story was added to the Hatchett home, which the family operated as an inn.
After Hatchett's wife Evlina died in 1862, other family members continued to operate the ferry until 1888 when the county installed a bridge nearby. The house remained in the family until the mid-1930s, and was demolished in 1977. (1998)