Thanks to Linda McCoy Henderson for submitting this information.

The small town of Douglassville, Texas lies atop a hill in the northern portion of Cass County about 4 miles from the banks of the Sulphur River. The town evolved from its near location to WILLIAMSON PETTY’S ferry which was one of the best places to cross the Sulphur River for miles around. This ferry was established in 1850 and became widely known throughout the states. The town was named for COLONEL JOHN C. DOUGLASS who moved from Georgia in 1850, and erected a home of rough hewn logs. This home remained standing until 1996 when it was dismantled to be restored in a new location, possibly Jefferson.

Most of the settlers who made Douglassville their home arrived from Georgia and Alabama. Early families included MCCOY, JACKSON, DOUGLASS, COLLIER, BROOKS, CRAWFORD, HEATH, HELDT, HUNT, and STONE. Later the families of ALSUP, GREEN, HARDIN, and MCWHORTER came. These early citizens brought with them the traditions, customs, and speech patterns of their deep southern heritage. Here, they became fiercely loyal to their new home as evidenced by the number of present day citizens who can trace their ancestry back to these original families.

By 1851, these citizens had already started their children in a private school erected in the township. One of the early schools was taught by MISS SARAH BELL, a Canadian. MR. JOSH CRAWFORD was a teacher in a later school. The Douglass Academy, a three story structure, followed. School at this site was conducted by PROFESSOR GRANBERRY.

Along with these schools, churches and businesses were established, and the little township soon had a practicing physician and Masonic Lodge. The first business was owned and operated by JAMES C. G. R. PATTON. MAJOR WILLIAMS established a store at a later date and DR. HELDT was the first physician in the community. Other physicians were DRS. COOK, OLIVER, HOWE, CLOPTON, TERHUNE, and DALLAS. The Masonic Lodge No. 191 AF&AM was chartered January 23, 1857 being first known as Havana Lodge. Its first location was on the ELSA TURNER farm about 6 miles east of Douglassville. The Methodist Church was established in the 1850s when WILLIAMSON PETTY donated land from his survey. The trustees were A. N. CHAPELL, HARDY A. JACKSON, J. S. EVERETS, THOMAS J. WHITE, J. F. MATHEWS, S. S. MORRIS, C. PALMORE, AND JOSEPH PHILLIPS.

Douglassville has not grown much since it began. Today it has several businesses, the largest being the BOWIE CASS ELECTRIC CO-OP. It has two churches, the Methodist founded in 1856 and the Baptist which was constituted in 1869. The Douglassville Masonic Lodge is still a chartered lodge. One thriving business which operated for many years, but is no longer in existence, was PO BOY MORRIS’s sale barn which had a large cow sale every Wednesday with patrons attending from miles around. The present population of Douglassville is 192. Its citizens are proud of their town and continue to preserve their rich heritage.