A History of Orange Page: 31
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A History of Orange
by
R. E. Russell
(Orange, Texas - January 25, 1911)
My friends have often said to me, why don't you write a history of Orange.
They seem to think that I ought to know and remember everything they say to me -
how do you manage to remember everything - do you write it down - no by no
means- I keep it all in my head. I landed here in Orange on 20 day of Jan 1854
therefore I have lived here now going on 58 years quite a while for one to live in one
town. Nevertheless it is true and while I have traveled some I have never found any
place yet that I would give up Orange for- it is the dearest spot on earth to me. The
county of Orange was organized in April 1852- it was at one time a part of Jefferson
and Jasper counties- and at the time my father moved here it was called Green's
Bluff - afterwards changed to Madison and from Madison to Orange and it has
remained so ever since. In 1854 when I came here it was a small village - you might
say - right on the bank of the Sabine - there was nobody living more than three
blocks from the river - everybody carried their wood and water from the river and at
that time there was but very few wells and not more than one or two underground
cisterns - such a thing as wooden cisterns was not known at that early day- at that
time the principal industry was shingle making - everybody made the hand made
shingles from cypress timbers cut and floated down the Sabine River when the river
rose - there was also two or three small sawmills on the river which cut five or 6
thousand feet of lumber a day - and at that time there was no such thing as a circular
saw - the saws that were in use at that time were the old up right saws and it was a
slow process - I now have a cypress door three feet wide all in one solid piece - it
came from out of my fathers old 2 story homewhich was built in 1856 - it stood on
the vacant lot just East of the Whole sale Grocery Co. Building (1 & Front). This is
where I lived from the time I was a child until I was grown and married - from 1854
to 1872 - so you see I have lived here from childhood and have seen the many
changes that have taken place during these many years - I have seen it grow from a
very small hamlet to a Beautiful Thriving and up to date little city of five or six
thousand inhabitants - and yet it seems only a short time since I was a bright happy
boy - happy light hearted and free - knew nothing of sorrow nor care - those were
happy days - they have gone never to return - some say bury the past and never
think of it but that I can not do for I often think of the happy days of my childhood31
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Orange County Historical Society (Tex.). A History of Orange, book, 1998; Orange, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth312851/m1/35/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Orange County Historical Society.