Stephen F. Austin State University

Angelina County

Angelina County is situated between the Angelina and Neches Rivers in the heart of East Texas. Lufkin is the largest city and the county seat. Angelina County split apart from Nacogdoches County on April 22, 1846. Caddoan and Atakapan Indian tribes originally inhabited the area in the late 17th century. Indians lived on the land, until the early 1800s when white settles began to migrate into the area. The county was sparsely populated from the time of the Caddoans up until the 1850s, when settlers began to acquire property and establish farms and plantations.

Angelina County is famous for its lumber. The lumber industry began to thrive after the emergence of the railroad industry in the late 1890s, with the establishment of companies like the Angelina County Lumber Company and the Southern Pine Lumber Company. The lumber industry infused a large amount of wealth into the area, and brought more people into the area with the prospect of job availability. Angelina County also experienced a growth in the raising of livestock.

Angelina County prospered throughout the early decades of the twentieth century, because of the growth of the lumber and railroad industries. The county felt the effects of the market depression particularly hard. Ten percent of the county's population was unemployed due to defaults on bank loans and the lumber company slumps. Through the work of the Civilian Conservation Corps, Angelina County was able to reestablish itself economically.

City / State / Federal - County Commission

Museum/Historic Site

Library/Archive

Genealogy

Documents/Resources

Text: http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hca03 The Handbook of Texas Online, Texas State Historical Association.