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HISTORY OF ROXTON
CHURCH NEWS
By 1886 there was almost 7,000 miles of railroad track within the state of Texas, with plans to add another 1,000 miles in the coming year. The Gulf, Colorado and Sante (GCSF) planned to run their Dallas line north to connect with the Frisco line that was building in from Fort Smith.
Beside the money problem, L. A. Cunningham, who was employed by the Paris Committee to secure right-of-ways, reported that land owners around Roxton and on into Paris either wanted to much money for right-of-ways or didn't want the railroad to cross their land at all.
Mr. L. A. Cunningham was employed by the Paris Committee to secure right oof ways. In 1886 Mr Cunningham approached Dr. M. D. Maness, who owned most of the land needed for the railroad to go through Roxton, about securing a right-of-way and he was refussed. M. D. "Diller" Hackleman, one of the three merchants, decided the railroad would be good for Roxton. He then purchased a large block of land about three-quarters mile west of old Roxton and granted the railroad a 600 ft. wide right-of-way.
Then on October 4, 1886, John W. and Mary Denton sold a 100 ft.wide right-of-way to the railroad for $183.75. Soon other land owners jumped on the band-wagon and sold right-of-way to the railroad at a reasonable price. The Committee had now come up with their portion of the money and all was set to lay the track from Ladonia to Paris.
May 24, 1887 GCSF drove the last spike on the line from Dallas and soon afterwards passenger trains were placed on the line. This gave Roxton a very desirable outlet to both the north and south.
With the coming of the railroad, the stores on the top of the hill wanted to be near the tracks and they built along the streets on both sides of the railroad. After the stores moved, citizens began to buy lots and build homes near the stores and near the railroad, thus establishing Roxton in it's present location.
