Community history tells of early days of Sacul

A Sacul community history written in the 1950s by J. D. Gresham, a native, was given Heritage recently  Sacul is in the northwest corner of the county, just inside the Rusk and Cherokee county lines.  Here is Mr. Gresham's narrative.

The history of this community, Sacul, would fill many pages.  Originally, the township was in the Tolivar community which covered a large area. The post office, Tolivar, was located about halfway between the present towns of Cushing and Sacul, and was in the home of B. W. Pye, who was the postmaster.  This post office covered an area now composed of the Cushing and Sacul areas.

With the construction of the Texas and New Orleans Railroad, the town of Sacul was laid out and established on land belonging to the Lucas family and W. T. Williamson.

This land is located on the Moses Walters 13 league survey, which was granted to the said Moses Walters sometime prior to 1840 when Texas was a Republic.

With the creation of the town, the founders thought to call the place Lucas, but they discovered that there was already a post office in Texas named Lucas, so they simply spelled Lucas backward and came up with the name Sacul.  This town was established about 1901.

The law firm of Lindsey and Harris of Nacogdoches was given power of attorney over the township, and no lot or parcel of land in the town could be sold without the signature of Lindsey and Harris to the deed.  This power of attorney was granted to Lindsey and Harris by John T. Lucas and W. T. Williamson.

Mr. Clark owned the present James H. Gresham place, having sold it to James H. Gresham in 1893.

Some of the early business firms in Sacul were Jones and Baucom, groceries and general merchandise; Vandevor and Dill, general merchandise: and B. T. Burk, hardware; J. T. Gregory came to Sacul from Panola County in 1904 and established a grocery and general merchandise business which he ran until his death a few years ago. The first meat market was established by the Gresham Brothers, Tom, Lewis and Arthur.  The first drug store was owned and operated by J. C. Hull.  One of the first medical doctors was Charles C. Williamson.  Then came Dr. L. W. Smith and a Dr. Boucher.  The drug firm of Moore and Cranford was established in 1906 and has been operated continuously since then by Arkan Cranford, the sole owner for many years.

The history of Sacul would be very incomplete without the mention of J. C. (Uncle Jack) Allen who was a familiar figure on the sidewalks until his death several years ago.

The present Sacul State Bank was organized about 1914.

SACUL, TEXAS. Sacul, at the junction of Farm roads 204 and 1648, twenty-one miles northwest of Nacogdoches in northwestern Nacogdoches County, was founded just after 1900. It began when the Texas and New Orleans Railroad was built through the area. The townspeople originally wanted to name their community Lucas after the original owners of the land, but postal officials denied the application because there was already another town with that name. The citizens then resubmitted their application with the name Sacul-Lucas spelled backwards. The Sacul post office was established in 1903, and a school had opened by the next year. By 1914 Sacul had an estimated population of 400, served by Baptist and Methodist churches, six general stores, three grocers, two cotton gins, a hardware store, a bank, a sawmill, and a blacksmith. Sacul continued to prosper during the 1920s, but its population began to decline during the 1930s as a result of the Great Depression.^qv In the mid-1930s Sacul had ten businesses and an estimated 250 residents. After World War II^qv its population continued to decline, and many of its businesses closed. By 1965 the town reported 170 residents and four businesses; in 1990 its population was still estimated at 170.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Nacogdoches County Genealogical Society, Nacogdoches County Families (Dallas: Curtis, 1985).

Christopher Long

"SACUL, TX." The Handbook of Texas Online. <http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/view/SS/hls1.html> [Accessed Sat Jul 1 18:25:53 2000 ].

The Handbook of Texas Online is a joint project of The General Libraries at the University of Texas at Austin and the Texas State Historical Association.