Kilgore · 1965
"Oil City of the World" Founded 1872 with coming of the I.G.N. Railroad. Named for site donor, a Confederate colonel, Constantine B. Kilgore, State Senator and U. S. Congressman. Geographical center of huge East Texas…
View on map ↗Gregg County, Texas
Historical Markers in Kilgore, Texas
Kilgore is home to 23 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.
Liberty City · 1965
Historic rural community in oil-rich Gregg County. Settled before Civil War. Has also been known as Sabine, Mount Moriah, McCrary's Chapel, Goforth and Hog Eye (for an early settler with an "eye" for hogs). Present name…
View on map ↗World's Richest Acre · 1966
Part of fabulous East Texas oil field discovered in 1930. This 1.195-acre tract had first production on June 17, 1937, when the Mrs. Bess Johnson-Adams & Hale No. 1 well was brought in. Developed before well-spacing…
View on map ↗Gum Spring Presbyterian Church (New Danville) · 1970
Named for nearby spring with gum log curb; organized Oct. 7, 1850, by the Rev. J. M. Becton. The 1850 roll: Mr. and Mrs. Meshack Barber, S. S. Barnett, Mrs. T. C. Barnett, Mr. and Mrs. C. W. Scott, Mr. and Mrs. Allen…
View on map ↗Dean-Keener-Crim House · 1975
The one-story east wing of this house, considered the oldest still standing in Kilgore, was built by S. G. Dean about 1876. After buying the structure in 1881, L. J. Keener (1840-88) attached the two-story west wing.…
View on map ↗Site of Alexander Institute · 1978
Before the establishment of public schools, education was provided by small private academies such as the Alexander Institute. a successor to the New Danville Masonic Female Academy, founded in nearby Danville in 1854.…
View on map ↗Lou Della Crim Home · 1981
This bungalow style residence was constructed in 1920 for Lou Della (Thompson) Crim (b. 1868), on the former site of the Hearne Hotel. The farm she owned at Laird Hill (4 mi. S) was part of an oil exploration project…
View on map ↗The Kilgore I&GN-Missouri Pacific Railroad Station · 1984
The town of Kilgore was platted by the International Railroad Company after it purchased land for a townsite from C. B. "Buck" Kilgore, who had donated a 200-foot railroad right-of-way in 1871. Kilgore, a resident of…
View on map ↗Allis-Chalmers Pumps · 1986
These two early pumping units serve as historic reminders of Kilgore's development as an oil boom town. The boom era began on Dec. 28, 1930, when the well known as the Lou Della Crim No. 1 blew in. With it, Kilgore…
View on map ↗First Baptist Church of Kilgore · 1986
On October 11, 1902, the five charter members of this congregation met and formed the Missionary Baptist Church of Kilgore. They were Mr. and Mrs. J. E. Choice, Mr. and Mrs. J. I. Choice, and Miss Lizzie Clinkscales.…
View on map ↗Kilgore High School · 1986
Public education in Kilgore traces its history to classes held in private homes and the establishment of private institutions, most notably the Alexander Institute. Operated by Isaac Alexander, the school moved to…
View on map ↗St. Luke's United Methodist Church · 1986
The Kilgore Methodist Society was organized in 1873 after many residents of New Danville (4 mi. NE) moved to Kilgore, founded in 1872 after the railroad arrived in 1871. They erected a school building in 1873 at Martin…
View on map ↗First Presbyterian Church · 1989
Organized in 1850 as Gum Spring Presbyterian Church in the rural Danville community, this congregation moved to Kilgore in 1874 and later changed its name to First Presbyterian Church. built as a result of the 1930s oil…
View on map ↗Forest Home Baptist Church · 1990
This congregation was organized in 1889 by the Rev. J. R. Goode and eight charter members: Mr. & Mrs. Thomas Jefferson Mercer; Mr. & Mrs. George Augustus Meadows; Mr. & Mrs. Isaac Johnson, Sr.; and Mr. & Mrs. Isaac…
View on map ↗Kilgore College Administration Building · 1990
In response to the East Texas oil field boom, yet in the midst of the Great Depression, Kilgore residents voted to support the establishment of a junior college in 1935. Classes were held in the high school until this…
View on map ↗Kilgore Public Library · 1990
Kilgore's first public library opened in 1933 under the direction of two local women's clubs. With funding from the Federal Public Works Administration, support from the city, and labor from the Works Progress…
View on map ↗Kilgore National Bank Building · 1991
Led in the town's economic development following the 1930s oil boom. Prosperity in the midst of the Great Depression influenced the board of directors to build this structure in 1937. Designed by Henderson architect…
View on map ↗The New Deal Era in Kilgore · 1993
After the discovery of oil here in the 1930s, this site was transformed into a makeshift tent city by thousands of people displaced by a deepening national depression. In an effort to control growth, city officials…
View on map ↗Driller Park · 1998
On April 24, 1947, more than 3,100 fans celebrated the postwar return of baseball as the Kilgore Drillers played the Henderson Oilers on Driller Park's opening day. Erected by the Kilgore Baseball Club for $100,000 on…
View on map ↗Mt. Pleasant Cemetery · 2004
At the close of the Civil War, local African Americans, newly freed from slavery, formed the Mt. Pleasant Colored Methodist Episcopal Church. The Rev. M.F. Jamison served as the first pastor for the group, which was…
View on map ↗Hickory Grove Baptist Church · 2014
Cross Roads Community, located in northern Rusk County and southern Gregg County, recognized a need for a cemetery and church in 1911. In 1912, five acres of land which adjoined the pre-existing Hickory Grove Cemetery…
View on map ↗Danville Community · 2017
Also known as New Danville, this rural community was established around 1847, and reportedly named by S. Slade Barnett and family in honor of their former hometown of Danville, Kentucky. Located along the intersection…
View on map ↗Kilgore Colored and C. B. Dansby Schools · 2017
Formal education of Kilgore’s African American youth is recorded as early as 1873 through Kilgore Baptist Church. On August 27, 1906, Kilgore residents voted to incorporate the Kilgore Independent School District…
View on map ↗Discover Kilgore’s history on the road
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