Navarro County, Texas
Blooming Grove is home to 6 official Texas Historical Commission markers — each one telling a piece of the city’s story. Browse the markers below, then find them on the map and discover more nearby with RoadHistorical.
In 1869, Richard and Susan Gowan gave land on Rush Creek (1 mile southeast) for a Methodist Church and cemetery. Gowan, his neighbors, and others built a white frame chapel for church and school. That building was moved…
View on map ↗The pioneer town of Dresden was originally named for its founder, Ethan Melton (1793-1873), who settled here in 1841. The first post office in Navarro County was established in Melton in 1846. The original three-acre…
View on map ↗The Rev. James E. Ferguson (1824-76), father of Texas Governor James Ferguson, was appointed in 1847 to Richland (later Dresden), the first Methodist circuit in Navarro County. Ethan Melton (1793-1873), the founder of…
View on map ↗The history of Blooming Grove can be traced to the small village of Gradyville, established in the 1860s and named for two brothers, R. J. and W. D. Grady, who operated the general store. When the area was granted a…
View on map ↗Early pioneer Richard Gowan donated land one mile southeast of this site in 1869, on which the citizens of Gradyville (later renamed Blooming Grove), erected a small white building to house a church, community meeting…
View on map ↗In 1899, the Corsicana District of the Northwest Texas Methodist Conference established a college preparatory school. The following year, the University Training School opened at this site under the direction of the…
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