DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Before 1886, this stretch of what's now Dallas County was quiet farm and ranch land — a handful of settlers, wide skies, and not much else to hurry a person along. Then the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railroad came sniffing around, and everything started to shift.
The railroad indicated a desire to build tracks right through the vicinity, and a man named William Sachse — born in 1820 — made a decision that would outlast him by well over a century. He donated land for the purpose. In return, the company agreed to lay out a townsite, construct a train station, and name the stop after him.
William Sachse died in 1899, but that name wasn't going anywhere. Now, the story doesn't end with a handshake and a depot. Fast-forward to 1956, and Sachse is still a small place — population pushing almost four hundred — but the infrastructure hadn't quite kept pace with the people.
Dallas County's road and bridge department was handling the streets. The sheriff's office was handling law enforcement. Folks were pulling water up from shallow wells and handling sewage through individual septic systems.
Not exactly the makings of a modern municipality. Here's where it gets interesting. Lake Lavon's construction in 1948 and the creation of the North Texas Municipal Water District in 1951 had started bringing water to communities all around the area — but not to Sachse.
Why? Because Sachse wasn't an incorporated town. The district was prohibited from sending water their way.
So if the people of Sachse wanted water — real, reliable, piped-in water — they were going to have to do some paperwork first. Incorporate. Elect a mayor and city aldermen.
Sell bonds. On April 14, 1956, residents voted to incorporate, and before long another election was held to approve the sale of ninety thousand dollars in bonds for the construction of a water supply system. The construction contract also called for the erection of a small cinder block pump station right here at this site.
Modest building. Cinder block walls. But that little pump station became the city hall during the early years of the town's incorporation — the place where meetings were held, where decisions were made, where a community figured out what it was going to be.
It served that purpose until city offices were moved to another site in 1966. A railroad man donates some land, a railroad company names a stop, and seventy years later a cinder block pump house becomes the beating heart of a town that almost didn't get its water. That's Sachse.
What the marker says
Prior to 1886, this area served as farm and ranch land for a handful of settlers. During that year, the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railroad indicated a desire to built tracks through the vicinity and William Sachse (1820-1899) donated land for this purpose. In return, the company agreed to lay out a townsite, construct a train station, and name the stop Sachse. By 1956 Sachse was no longer a tiny rural settlement. The community would soon reach a population of almost 400, but residential services were lacking. Dallas County's road and bridge department maintained the streets and the sheriff's office provided law enforcement. Residents and businesses used shallow wells for water access and individual septic systems for sewage disposal. Although Lake Lavon's construction in 1948 and the creation of the North Texas Municipal Water District in 1951 provided water for surrounding communities, Sachse was prohibited from receiving water from the district because it was not an incorporated town. Incorporation, the election of a mayor and city alderman, and the selling of bonds to pay for the water improvements were all necessary steps in getting the much needed water supply to the residents of Sachse. Residents voted to incorporate on April 14, 1956, and another election was soon held to approve the sale of $90,000 in bonds for the construction of a water supply system. The construction contract also provided for the erection of a small cinder block pump station at this site, which was used during the early years of the town's incorporation as the city hall. The building was the site of numerous meetings and countless decisions regarding the growth and development of Sachse until city offices were moved to another site in 1966. (2009)