Carthage, Texas
City in the United States in Panola County
About Carthage
Carthage is a city in and the county seat of Panola County, Texas, United States. The city is situated in deep East Texas, 20 miles (32 km) west of the Louisiana state line. Its population was 6,569 at the 2020 census.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How Carthage is governed
Form of government not yet listed.
0 of 14 positions listed. Gray dashed boxes are placeholders waiting for a name.
Residents of Carthage
Registered voters elect the officials below.
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Mayor
Executive
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The city's chief elected official. Presides over the executive branch, proposes the budget and represents the city.
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City Manager / Administrator
Executive
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The professional administrator who runs day-to-day operations (in some cities appointed by the council instead of the mayor).
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Police Chief
Administration & departments
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Leads the police department.
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Fire Chief
Administration & departments
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Leads the fire and emergency services department.
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Public Works Director
Administration & departments
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Streets, water, sewer, and city buildings.
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Finance Director
Administration & departments
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The budget, taxes, and city accounts.
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Planning & Zoning Director
Administration & departments
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Land use, zoning, building permits.
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Parks & Recreation Director
Administration & departments
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Parks, programs, and public facilities.
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City Council
Legislative
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The elected body that passes ordinances, sets the tax rate and approves the budget.
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City Clerk
Administration & departments
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Keeps the official records, runs meeting agendas and, often, local elections.
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City Attorney
Administration & departments
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The city's lawyer; advises officials and prosecutes ordinance violations.
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Boards & Commissions
Legislative
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Citizen advisory bodies, such as planning, zoning appeals and library boards.
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Municipal Court
Judicial
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Hears traffic, ordinance and other minor cases.
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Municipal Judge
Judicial
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Presides over the municipal court.
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- Website
- carthagetexas.com
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Population over time
From 6,779 in 2010 to 6,569 in 2020 (−3.1%).
Show the numbers
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 6,569 |
| 2010 | 6,779 |
History
Carthage was founded in 1847, two years after Texas was admitted to the United States. During the Civil War, men from Carthage and Panola County served as Confederate soldiers. African-American resident Milton M. Holland, formerly enslaved, served as a Union sergeant and earned a Medal of Honor.
Carthage was established in 1834 and became the county seat. The Harrises were early settlers and named the town after their former home of Carthage, Tennessee. When Carthage established in 1848, it was named after Carthage, Mississippi.
After the Civil War, population growth was slow, but large amounts of cotton, corn, sweet potatoes, oats, and sugarcane were produced in the county. The city began to expand in 1888 when a railroad reached Carthage, along with telegraph and telephone lines.
During the Great Depression, a gas field was discovered near Carthage. After World War II, this gas field was developed and proved to be the largest in the United States. The city flourished, with the population increasing from about 1,300 to 5,000. During this period, a courthouse and a high school were built. In 1947, Panola County Junior College was established in Carthage and founded KGAS-AM 1590, which began broadcasting in 1955.
As a result of 19.6% population growth between 1970 and 1980, documented by U.S. Decennial Census; Panola General Hospital was established in 1997. Today, the now-named ETMC Carthage operates a 24-hour emergency department, designated a Level IV trauma center by the state of Texas.
On August 22, 1998, the Tex Ritter Museum in Carthage was the site for the grand opening of the Texas Country Music Hall of Fame, honoring those who have made outstanding contributions to country music and born in the state of Texas.
On September 16, 1998, KGAS-FM began broadcasting a country music format in Carthage; it was featured in Bernie, the 2011 American biographical black comedy crime film directed by Richard Linklater.
1996 murder of Marjorie Nugent
After losing her husband, widow Marjorie Nugent, an 81-year-old resident of Carthage, became friends with Bernie Tiede, the assistant funeral director in town. In late 1996, townspeople did not see her, but thought perhaps she had moved to join her out-of-town family. When the family could not reach her, they filed a missing-person's report. Nine months after her death, her friend and companion, 39-year-old Bernie Tiede, was brought in for questioning by police and confessed to killing her. He claimed she had emotionally abused him.
He shot her four times in the back with a .22 rifle in November 1996. A mortician, he cleaned her body and placed it in a freezer in her house, where it was not discovered until 1997. Tiede continued his community activities for several months after her death. He was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. After a habeas corpus challenge, he was paroled on a $10,000 bond in 2014, but in 2016, Tiede had a resentencing hearing and was sentenced to 99 years to life.
Panola County District Attorney Danny Buck Davidson said initially that few in the community questioned no longer seeing the elderly woman. He said, "That's what you do when you're a con guy and you move in. He had her cut all ties, so ultimately the only person she had to rely on was him. Mrs. Nugent was a human being. She didn't deserve her fate at the hands of Bernie." Tiede apparently killed the wealthy woman to get control of her money, spending an estimated $3 million of Nugent's $10 million. Davidson said Tiede used some of it for philanthropy: "He sent people to college. He donated to musicals, plays and bought instruments at the college. That was all done with Mrs. Nugent's money. After she was in the freezer, he really jumped out there as a benefactor."
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.