Paschall

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Paschall, out in Wise County. Now settle in, because this one's got layers. Robert A. and Molly Paschall rolled into this part of Texas in 1876, and they weren't just passin' through.

These folks put down roots the way a live oak does: slow, deliberate, and with every intention of outlasting everyone who doubted them. By 1890 they'd purchased 160 acres near Salt Creek, and that land became the anchor for everything that followed. Then comes 1902, and here's where it gets interesting.

The post office for Paschall, Texas opened up, not in some grand brick building, not in a dedicated civic hall, but right there in the Paschall home. And if that wasn't enough to keep a household busy, that same home also housed the Paschall-Cottondale Telephone Company. One house.

A post office AND a telephone company. You get the feeling Molly Paschall didn't have a lot of idle afternoons. Meanwhile, the farm families settling in around them weren't sittin' on their hands either.

They built a one-room schoolhouse, named Gravel Hill, and they founded a Sabbath school, a literary society, and a Farmers Alliance. A whole community, stitched together out of hard work and good intentions, right there near Salt Creek. Now, the marker is honest about what came next.

The community declined in the early twentieth century. That's a quiet line carrying a lot of weight. But here's the thing; the Paschalls never left.

Six generations of that family have lived in this area. Six. The post office may have closed, the telephone company moved on, Gravel Hill may have gone quiet, but the family that started it all?

Still here. Some roots just don't let go.

What the marker says

Robert A. and Molly Paschall settled in this area in 1876 and purchased 160 acres of land near Salt Creek in 1890. In 1902 the Paschall, Texas post office was established in their home which also housed the Paschall-Cottondale Telephone Company. The community of farm families which settled in the surrounding area built a one-room schoolhouse enamed Gravel Hill, and founded a Sabbath school, literary society and Farmers Alliance. The community declined in the early 20th century. The Paschall family has lived in the area for six generations. (1997)