The first Federal Court to sit in the State of Texas met in Jefferson in
1879 with Judge Amos Morill on the bench. In a short time the court was
made a circuit, which included San Antonio and Galveston.
Three generations of Jefferson men served succeeding terms as clerks of
the court—W. E. Singleton, W. E. Singleton, Jr., and J. M. Singleton.
These men served for a total of sixty years.
The first court met in the Post Office which had been established in
1842 and was located in the Northeast corner of Polk and Austin Streets,
and was the only Federal building in Jefferson. All records were kept in
this building and when word came that Federal troops would possibly come
through Jefferson and that all valuable papers and documents should be
moved to a spot further interior for safe keeping, local authorities
hastily gathered the court records and sent them to Dallas from which
place they had not been returned after 65 years—though efforts have been
made to have them returned.
THE CITY OF JEFFERSON, TEXAS
as a
MANUFACTURING DISTRICT IN 1871
The undersigned would respectfully invite the attention of capitalists,
at home and abroad, to the manufacturing facilities of the City of
Jefferson and its surroundings, with a view of securing such
co-operation as our railroad prospects and natural advantages seem to
warrant. We say railroad prospects, because our city will shortly become
the Great Railroad Center of Northeastern Texas. Here the International
Trans-Continental and East Line and Red River Railroad will all
intersect ere many more months elapse, thus opening up direct
communications with all the leading business centers in the Union. So
far as railroads are concerned, Jefferson will become the Atlanta of all
that portion of the State known as “Northeastern Texas.” Associated with
this fact is another equally significant in a manufacturing point of
view. We have here within striking distance inexhaustible supplies of
material for the manufacture on an extensive scale of an endless variety
of articles; and for steam purposes we have living waters and fuel in
abundance. Indeed Nature has here strewn upon the earth’s surface and
planted beneath it forests and mines immeasureable in extent and of
inestimable value.
Before proceeding, however, to detail the manner in which these should
be utilized, we should invite attention to a few particulars respecting
the