T. & O. Lumber Company signed by H. D. Applegate of Applegate, Texas 1906

Beautifully engraved certificate from the T. & O. (Texas and Ohio ) Lumber Company of Applegate, Texas issued in 1906. This historic document has an ornate border around it with a vignette of an eagle holding a shield and spears in its claws. This item is hand signed by the company’s president ( A. P. Laughlin)and secretary and is over 94 years old. The certificate was made out to H. D. Applegate and endorsed by Applegate on the verso. Applegate, Texas was named after H. D. Applegate.

APPLEGATE, TEXAS. Applegate was on the Gulf, Beaumont and Great Northern Railway between Roganville and Jasper in east central Jasper County, about sixty-eight miles north of Beaumont. The railroad was extended north from Roganville into northern Jasper County in 1901-02, thus opening large expanses of timberland to major lumbering operations. As part of this expansion the Jasper Lumber Company, of which H. D. Applegate was an officer, began to acquire large amounts of land in Jasper County. The stop named after Applegate was established sometime after 1905. The Jasper Lumber Company was reorganized as the Texas and Ohio Lumber Company and had extensive property rights in the area as well as 2˝ miles of tram lines. The mill at Applegate, however, did not succeed as well as many others in the county. The company went into receivership, and the Applegate post office was discontinued in 1909. The mill at Applegate, which once had a population of about 300, was removed in 1912. Highway and geological survey maps of the 1980s did not designate the site.