Forreston, Texas
Unincorporated community in Ellis County · Not an incorporated municipality
About Forreston
Forreston is an unincorporated community in Ellis County, Texas, United States. It lies on U.S. Route 77, 8 miles (13 km) south of the county seat of Waxahachie. Its population was estimated to be 238 in 2008, but it is not listed in the 2010 census.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How Forreston is governed
Forreston appears to be an unincorporated community or a census-designated place, so it may have no city government of its own — services usually come from Ellis County and its elected officials. The chart below is a generic template; readers can correct it if Forreston does have local officials.
Form of government not yet listed.
0 of 14 positions listed. Gray dashed boxes are placeholders waiting for a name.
Residents of Forreston
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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History
The roots of Forreston date to 1843, when the area was known as Howe's Settlement, named for an early settler in the region. In the middle to late 1840s, the community was renamed Chambers Creek. It received its first post office in 1846. It was the original county seat of Navarro County until 1850, when the organization of Ellis County placed the town within the new county.
From the early 1850s to the late 1880s, Chambers Creek remained a small farming community, providing a school and a church for local residents and farmers. In 1890, the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad (KATY) was built through the area, and businesses began to spring up along the tracks. The community was renamed Forreston, after Carr Forrest, a local landowner who was the first postmaster and who donated the land on which the new rail depot was built. By the 1940s, Forreston had three cotton gins, several businesses and a population of 350. Throughout the 20th century, the town remained a shipping point for local farming and commerce.
The population declined and, by 2000, it had only some 200 residents.
Forreston was featured in the March 1999 issue of Texas Monthly in the article entitled "The Best of Small-Town Texas". In August 2007, Forreston was featured in "Shop Vintage with Ken Weber" in the publication, D Magazine. The spread was encouraged by Bon Ton Vintage, a shop founded in 1984 by the retired jazz musicians Barbra and John Kauffman, which claims to have the "largest collection of vintage clothing in Texas".
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.