DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about this place — so let's get into it. Deep in Tyler County, there's a spot where the ground itself remembers something old. Long before the roads, long before the towns, the Alabama Indians — then a large tribe — made their headquarters right here.
They called their village Ta-Ku-La. And what that name meant was simply: Peach Tree. Now hold that image for a moment, because everything else that happened here grew up around it.
Two trails blazed by early pioneers crossed at this very site. One ran north to south — coming all the way from Anahuac on the Gulf of Mexico, crossing over the Neches River, pressing onward to Nacogdoches. The other cut east to west — starting out of Opelousas, Louisiana, rolling through what is now Moscow, reaching what is now Huntsville, then pushing west all the way to San Antonio.
You start to see what this place was, don't you? Right here at Ta-Ku-La, two of the great arteries of early Texas met. And it didn't stop there.
Other trails diverged from this crossing — fanning out toward the Galveston Bay area, toward San Felipe de Austin, toward Goliad. Trails going every which way, and every one of them passing through a village named for a peach tree. That kind of geography makes a place matter, and this one did.
It became a trading center of real importance. Then came the white settlers. And with their coming, the Alabama Indians withdrew.
The remnant of that tribe is now located about fifteen miles south of here — occupying, the marker tells us, the only Indian reservation in Texas. The village they left behind kept its character in other ways. Some historic homes in Old Peach Tree Village are marked to this day.
And the site is home to the Kirby museum, founded by John Henry Kirby — born right here in 1860, died in 1940 — a man whose career reached across legislating, lumbering, banking, oil development, and railroad building. One village, one crossing, one name that meant Peach Tree. Turns out that's enough to hold a whole lot of history.
What the marker says
In the early 19th century, the Alabama Indians -- then a large tribe -- made their headquarters on this site, and called their village "Ta-Ku-La," which meant "Peach Tree." Two trails blazed by early pioneers crossed here. A north-south trail came from Anahuac on the Gulf of Mexico, over the Neches River, leading onward to Nacogdoches; The other ran east-west from Opelousas, Louisiana, through what is now Moscow, to present Huntsville, then west to San Antonio. Other trails diverged from this: to the Galveston Bay area, San Felipe de Austin, and Goliad. The crossing of the trails made this a trading center of importance. With the coming of white settlers, the Alabama Indians withdrew, and the remnant of that tribe is now located about 15 miles south -- occupying the only Indian reservation in Texas. In Old Peach Tree village, some historic homes are marked. It is also site of the Kirby museum, founded by John Henry Kirby (1860-1940), who was born here, and whose career included service as a legislator, as well as leadership in lumbering, banking, oil development and railroad building.