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[Johnnie Bell Ballard]
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Photo of Johnnie Bell Ballard
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[O'Neill Hotel - 313 Spring Street]
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Photo of the O'Neill Hotel and Coffee Shop, which was located at 313 Spring Street, Palestine. It was actually the third hotel to sit on the site. In 1873, following the coming of the railroad to town, the Laclede Hotel was built there, but was destroyed by fire in 1876. The following year, a Dr. Manning of Oakwood erected a brick building known as the International Hotel on that location. It was purchased in 1882 by Col. George Burkitt who turned over operations to Mrs. Emma Nolen. During her tenure, the property was known as the Nolen Hotel, but when she moved to St. Louis, Col. Burkitt himself took over the management. That building was razed in 1922 and the "new" O'Neill, maiden surname of Burkitt's Irish born mother, was constructed on the site. The O'Neill boasted not only hot and cold running water in its guest rooms, it was also equipped with an electric Otis elevator and a radio receiving set on the mezzanine for entertainment of the hotel's guests. When Texas Gov. Ross Sterling declared martial law in the East Texas Oil Fields and ordered the National Guard to take it over and shut-in all wells, the O'Neill became the staging center where the command cadre spent its first night "in the field." During the oil boom, the hotel was a favorite meeting place for oil operators, lease hounds and geologists. Among the famous early day oil men who slept under its roof and conducted business out of its rooms were H.L. Hunt, Harold Byrd, Jack Frost and other wildcatters. Those were the "glory days" of the venerable hotel, but not the end. The hotel was sold a number of times, and despite halfhearted attempts to restore it, the condition of the building went downhill. It was demolished …
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[Palestine High School Students]
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Photo of students from Palestine High School posing on the steps to Palestine High School.
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[Palestine Memorial Hospital]
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Photo of the old Memorial Hospital, which is located on the corner of S. Sycamore and Angelina Streets in the south side of Palestine. This building still stands, but no longer houses a hospital. It remains vacant as of the end of 2007.
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[Picking Cotton in Anderson County]
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Photo of workers picking cotton in Anderson County.
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[Railroad Y.M.C.A. - Palestine]
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Photo of the Palestine Railroad Y. M. C. A. before it burned.
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[Roy Herrington, Governor John Connally, and C.O. Miller]
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Photo of former Sheriff of Anderson County, Roy Herrington, standing with former Texas Governor John Connelly and C.O. Miller.
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[Unidentified Group of People]
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Photo of an unidentified Group of People
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[Unidentified Man and Osjetea Briggs]
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Photo of an unidentified man and Osjetea Briggs.
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[Vannoy Cafe]
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Photograph of the interior of the Vannoy Cafe. Several men and a young boy are seated at the counter; one gentleman is standing next to an open seat. Three women are behind the counter. The young woman seated at the window on the right side of the photograph has been identified as Oneta Faye Killebrew Tyer, and the woman standing beside her as Mrs. Jean Vannoy. Various items are stacked on the counter and shelf against the wall. The front door and windows are visible in the background.