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Potential of railroad main topic at Fannin County Commissioners regular meeting
By Allen Rich
Feb 9, 2010

"We have a very unique railroad," Tom Long, a board member of the Fannin Rural Rail District, told Fannin County Commissioners Court at a regular meeting Monday morning. "This railroad was one of the first large Texas projects and built largely by Chinese labor.  It has the potential to be recognized as a historical site."

Mr. Long isn't the only one with that opinion.

"With significant historical features and few changes since the 1930s, the entire rail corridor between Paris and Bells could potentially qualify for listing in the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district," wrote historian Peter Ketter in an analysis for the Texas Historical Commission. "Historic train stations in Bonham and Paris also remain in their original locations," Ketter adds.

Sam Rayburn and Dwight Eisenhower traveled down these tracks.  Harry and Bess Truman even spent the night in a sleeper car at the Bonham Depot. Populist presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan campaigned all along the route, delivering his eloquent speeches to crowds from the back of a passenger car.

If politics doesn't flip your switch, perhaps sports is more interesting.  Did you know Jim Thorpe and most of his New York Giants got off the train in Bonham to play an exhibition game against the Chicago White Sox and their tough little pitcher, a boy that grew up near Ector, Texas that went by the name "Reb" Russell?

Perhaps you prefer Texas history.  This railroad was first conceived by J.W. Throckmorton, J.C. Hill, L.C. Compton, W.T. Scott and Rufus Doane who were granted a charter in 1852.  If Throckmorton's name rings a bell, that's because he went on to be governor of Texas during Reconstruction and that is his statue pointing to the sky in downtown McKinney. Throckmorton would have already been familiar with Bonham, having volunteered in 1847 to serve as a private under Captain Robert Taylor, a Bonham resident, during the Mexican War.

The railroad would eventually change hands and change names several times before reaching Bonham in 1873.

Tom Long sits on the hood as Fannin County Commissioner Pat Hilliard pilots a trackmobile across Bois d'Arc Creek bridge east of Bonham. Early records indicate that the first "engine" on the initial 27 miles of track that eventually made its way to Bonham were actually three yoke of oxen that would pull the railroad car uphill. At the top, the oxen were loaded onto the car and it was allowed to "coast" as far as gravity would allow.

If you are not a history buff, consider the economic and environmental aspects.  Mr. Long says the rail district has shippers in place in Honey Grove that could provide revenue once the track was repaired. 

While the cost of repair is somewhat prohibitive - estimated to be in the neighborhood of $4 million to get the track operational between Honey Grove and Paris - North Texas Municipal Water District is currently considering how to transport rock for the dam on Lower Bois d'Arc Reservoir. 

Rail transportation is cheaper and greener than any other mode available. Fannin County would receive a small percentage of the assessed value of rolling stock that passes through the county. 

"That's why this board [Fannin Rural Rail District Board of Directors] was formed...to get freight in and out of Fannin County," Mr. Long said. "This can be a major economic machine. Fannin Rural Rail District will soon control the trackage from Old Ector Road to Paris, Texas."

While no one can deny this railroad's rich history and on some level the potential to transport freight certainly exists, perhaps the tourism and entertainment potential for this remarkable stretch of track is the most intriguing aspect of all. 

Consider, for instance, that the Texas State Railroad in Rusk has concrete bridges, while some of the bridges between Bonham and Paris are pile ballasted deck-type bridges that were common 80 years ago and developed specifically to deal with the geologic conditions in North Texas. Stationary bridges would fall victim to the seasonal swelling and contraction of the gumbo soil common to this part of Texas.  They called this movement "the gumbo heaves," and the ballast-type bridges were designed to float on the rock ballast. Bridges of this type are now rare.

While engineers would be fascinated by bridge construction techniques, this scenic stretch of historic 85-lb. rail has a far more important advantage over the Texas State Railroad - accessability. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's July 1, 2008 estimate, the Metroplex is home to 6.3 million residents that could easily make the drive to Bonham and back home in a day.

Reader Railroad is still planning to move operations to Bonham, Long said, and possibly also have a shop in Honey Grove.

According to the Reader Railroad websitse, this renowned steam-powered short-line railroad is the last exclusively-steam-powered common carrier standard gage railroad left in North America.  This short-line railroad started in 1880 when Lee Reader came to Nevada and Ouachita Counties in Arkansas to erect a sawmill.  It's long and rich history continues today as the reader continues its steam only operations.

Reader Railroad intends to feature an entertainment package and offer tourist rides on this scenic stretch of track, while also contracting for film and commercials.