Mabank

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best by every word. Now settle in, because this one starts with land that had a lot of owners before it had much of a town. Way back in the eighteen-forties and fifties, this acreage was originally part of the George T.

Walters Survey, and it passed through the hands of many absentee landowners — including, if you can believe it, Sam Houston himself. That name hanging over a piece of East Texas dirt has a way of making you sit up straight. But nobody was building anything just yet.

The land kept changing hands, and the story kept waiting. Then came 1887. A merchant out of nearby Goshen named John R.

Jones, along with his wife Joella, decided it was time to do something. They platted and developed a town — called it Lawn City, sitting about a mile to the northeast of where we're standing now. A post office came along not long after, and somewhere in there the name shifted to Lawndale.

Nice little town. Growing. Had some promise.

And then the railroad made its decision. In 1900, the Texas and New Orleans Railroad was cutting a route from Kemp to Athens, and it bypassed Lawndale entirely. Instead, the tracks ran straight through the northern part of the Mason-Eubank Ranch.

Now, two men owned that ranch. Thomas H. Eubank, born in 1859 — a man who, just as an aside, would live all the way to 1952, which is a run worth remarking on.

And G. W. Mason — went by Dodge — a rancher and banker, born in 1858, who would pass in 1917.

When those rails came through their land, Eubank and Mason did what men of vision do: they set aside one square mile of their holdings for a town. And the name? Well, you take Mason, you take Eubank, you put the front end of one and the back end of the other together, and you get Mabank.

The marker says so plain as day. Lawndale didn't go quiet — its families and merchants started picking up and moving to the new town. Mabank grew fast.

It boasted a park, a depot, stock loading pens. There was a gin, a post office, a cafe, a hotel, and several mercantile businesses. Later, church lots were set aside for Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian congregations, and the Baptist church went so far as to erect a building to serve as a community house and school.

The economy rested first on farming, then shifted toward ranching. And the story kept adding chapters — clear up to 1966, when Cedar Creek Lake was developed and gave the whole community another reason to grow. Two ranchers, one square mile, and a name stitched together from both of theirs.

That's Mabank.

What the marker says

Originally part of the George T. Walters Survey, this acreage in the 1840s and '50s belonged to many absentee landowners including Sam Houston. In 1887 John R. Jones, a merchant from nearby Goshen, and his wife Joella platted and developed a town called "Lawn City" (1 mi. NE). Soon a post office was established and the name changed to "Lawndale". When the Texas & New Orleans Railroad bypassed Lawndale in 1900 on its route from Kemp to Athens, it ran through the northern part of the Mason-Eubank Ranch. The owners, Thomas H. Eubank (1859-1952) and rancher-banker G. W. ("Dodge") Mason (1858-1917), set aside one square mile of their holdings for a town. The name "Mabank" was formed by combining the names of the two landowners. Lawndale families and merchants began moving to Mabank. The town grew rapidly, boasting a park, depot, and stock loading pens. There was a gin, post office, cafe, hotel, and several mercantile businesses. Later, church lots were set aside for Baptist, Methodist and Presbyterian congregations. The Baptist church erected a building for a community house and school. The economy of the area depended first on farming and later on ranching. The 1966 development of Cedar Creek Lake strengthened the community.