A baby shower and two weddings today! What a day! I had planned to be selling aprons at Cullen-Baker Country Fair, but, alas, I didn't.
Instead, I motored about, putting more than 120 miles on my already aging ride.
There's a Cass County town that I always love driving through. Apparently, the tiny burg has an active Chamber of Commerce, because the people go all out each season with the decorations.
Somebody even put pumpkins in the second story windows of this downtown building. Interesting.
But, this is what I want to show you. Besides being a seasonally decorated town, Hughes Springs has a story dating back to 1813.
Trammel's Trace was the first road into Texas from the Carolinas, Tennessee, Missouri, and Arkansas, issuing waves of Irish, Scot, German, and English settlers into Spanish-held Texas and Caddo Indian area. There's a legend that there were no settlements between Fulton, Arkansas, and Nacogdoches, Texas, along this trail back in those early days of Texas history. The trail was initially an Indian path, changing to a smugglers' trail, changing to a settlers' road, finally changing to a county line.
The Trace was named for Nicholas Trammel Jr., born in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1780, and died in Gonzales, Texas, in 1856. He and his family were traders, horsemen, entrepreneurs, and were known for horse racing. Supposedly, Trammel hid treasure somewhere along the trail. I just hate when people hide things and don't tell anybody.
Trammel's Trace is now part of private land holdings. I have heard around these parts that the wagon tracks are still visible in some areas. I may as well try to find those tracks, ring somebody's doorbell, ask to take pictures. Except that around here, it can be pretty redneck with large, snarling, guard dogs, hidden wire traps, and little old ladies with shotguns. Might be tricky... Maybe I'll take a pecan pie for a bribe.
Hughes Springs is a cool, little town.
See you in the funny papers.
Oh wow. Looks like you had a busy weekend. I didn't make to Cullen Baker either. Stayed home and worked around the yard and enjoyed the sunshine. I just love Hughes Springs. I need to take a Saturday and ride over and look around. I stopped into a shop over there last fall and a lady fixed me a cup of coffee and told me to pull up a chair and have a visit. It was like I had known her all my life and I had just met her for the first time. Such a sweet quaint town and with incredible history. Thanks for sharing.
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