Stephen F. Austin State University

Little Gregg County Town Boasted Two Railroads (June 2015)

Little Gregg County Town Boasted Two Railroads

By Van Craddock

The Southern Pacific railroad arrived in the new village of Longview in 1871, but it wasn't long before the line got some competition.
By 1872 the International Railroad was laying track to serve Longview.
The Southern Pacific, acquired by the Texas and Pacific in March 1872, was an east-west route and operated a downtown depot. Meanwhile, the International was building a north-south line that would link Longview with the Gulf Coast.
In November 1872, the Galveston News reported: "We are officially informed that 137 miles of (International) road are now in operation … and the road will be in full operation to Longview by Jan. 1. Our readers will therefore bear in mind that in 30 days from this time they may take the cars from Galveston, or from Houston, and proceed direct to Shreveport (La.) by steam engine."
The International, which reached Longview in January 1873, opened a small depot located about a mile east of downtown. The area became known as Longview Junction, or simply "The Junction." The International consolidated with another line in September 1873 to become the International and Great Northern Railroad.
Little Longview thrived with two lines serving the community. In January 1876 a Dallas newspaperman reported from the Gregg County seat: "The International and Great Northern, as well as the Texas and Pacific, appear to be as fully employed as their capacities justify. Both their passengers and trains are daily filled with regular passengers and immigrants."
However, the original Longview Junction depot was Spartan at best. The I&GN "should see to it that better accommodations are extended to travelers at the Junction," said the Dallas paper.
"There is not a lamp around the building … no fire, water or lamp in the sitting room, and no person to be found who would give passengers information regarding trains, though the sitting-room floor was almost covered with men asleep. Proper attention to the wants of travelers has been neglected."
In late 1889 construction finally began on a new, improved depot. However, on Oct. 20 "the new depot at Longview Junction, which was in course of construction, was blown down" by a windstorm. It must have been quite a storm. Accompanying lightning struck the Longview Opera House and damaged the steeple atop First Baptist Church.
The Junction depot was rebuilt and opened in 1890. For a number of years a mule-drawn (and later electric) streetcar provided transportation between the T&P and I&GN depots. A year later the fancy Mobberly Hotel was built at the Junction.
While accommodations eventually improved for Junction travelers, the area was well known for its lawlessness. Saloons and games of chance were common, as were fights and occasional gunfire.
For example, in May 1876, an I&GN conductor named Parsons walked into a Junction hotel and, according to one newspaper account, "approached the proprietor, Gibbs, uttering ugly words and pointing a pistol at Gibbs' face. He fired and Gibbs fell - not from injury but to hide behind the counter."
Parsons claimed Gibbs had insulted his wife. "No censure was heard against Parsons' conduct, except regret at his bad aim," said the paper, "although the public could hardly spare Gibbs, who keeps a good eating house, which is scarce in Texas."
The city of Longview finally annexed the Junction, home to a thousand or so people, in 1904. The Junction still serves as a railroad center with Longview's Amtrak service operating from a depot on Pacific Avenue. The recently renovated depot today is the third busiest Amtrak station in Texas.