History of Panola County
"Panola County is in northeastern Texas, bordered on the east by Louisiana, on the south by Shelby County, on the west by Rusk County, and on the north by Harrison County. The center of the county lies at 32°10' north latitude and 94°20' west longitude. Carthage, the county seat, is twenty-six miles south of Marshall, sixty-five miles southeast of Tyler, and fifty miles north of Nacogdoches. The name Panola is derived from ponolo, the Cherokee word for "cotton." Located in the East Texasqv Timberlands region, Panola County covers 842 square miles of gentle rolling plains and small hills drained by the Sabine River, which cuts across the county diagonally from northwest to southeast. Trees in the county include short-leaf and loblolly pine, oak, maple, hickory, elm, and gum, as well as wild fruit trees such as the plum or sloe and flowering trees such as dogwood, redbud, magnolia, cedar, and holly. Scenic trails pass through 4,000 acres of timberland owned by the International Paper Company. The woodland, once densely populated with small game, now supports deer, squirrel, and quail hunting in season. New stocks of wild turkey have been placed in local forests, but they are still protected from hunters. Freshwater lakes include Hendrick's Lake, Hill's Lake, Clear Lake, and Fish Lake. Reservoirs built in recent years include Murvaul Lake, Martin Lake, and Toledo Bend. The soil is largely sandy loam with clay subsoil. Annual rainfall in Panola County averages 43.9 inches; temperatures range from an average low of 34° F in January to an average high of 94° in July. The growing season lasts 240 days. The county derives much of its income from the extraction of oil, gas, and coal; in 1990, 1,356,000 barrels of crude oil were produced in the county. Other industries include sawmills, poultry and egg processing, and the manufacture of plastic products."The Handbook of Texas Online
"Panola County sits on the Texas-Louisiana border bounded by Harrison County north, Shelby County south, and Rusk County on the west. At one time or another France, Spain, the United States, Mexico, and the Republic of Texas claimed the area and many times squabbles broke out among these nations for the land.
Native Indians: Tejas
First Anglo settlers: 1833 and 1835.
Panola County was created from Shelby and Harrison counties in 1846. The first county seat was Pulaski but it was moved within two years to Carthage. The name Panola was taken from the indian word 'ponolo' meaning cotton."
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