Marshall, Texas
City in the United States in Harrison County
About Marshall
Marshall is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat of Harrison County and a cultural and educational center of the Ark-La-Tex region. As of the 2020 census, Marshall had a population of 23,392. The population of the Greater Marshall area, comprising all of Harrison County, was 66,726 in 2018.
Marshall and Harrison County were important political and production areas of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. This area of Texas was developed for cotton plantations. Planters brought slaves with them from other regions or bought them in the domestic slave trade. The county had the highest number of slaves in the state, and East Texas had a higher proportion of slaves than other regions of the state. The wealth of the county and city depended on slave labor and the cotton market.
From the late 19th century to the mid-20th century, Marshall developed as a center of the Texas and Pacific Railway. After World War II, activists in the city's substantial African-American population worked to create social change through the civil rights movement, with considerable support from the historically black colleges and universities in the area.
The city is known for holding one of the largest light festivals in the United States, the "Wonderland of Lights". It calls itself the "Pottery Capital of the World" for its sizable pottery industry. Marshall has various nicknames: the "Cultural Capital of East Texas", the "Gateway of Texas", the "Athens of Texas", the "City of Seven Flags", and "Center Stage", a branding slogan adopted by the Marshall Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How Marshall is governed
Form of government not yet listed.
1 of 14 positions listed. Gray dashed boxes are placeholders waiting for a name.
Residents of Marshall
Registered voters elect the officials below.
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Mayor
Executive
- Amy Ware per Wikidata
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
- marshalltexas.net
Looking for your county, state and federal representatives too? See who represents 75670 or everyone in Texas.
Population over time
From 23,523 in 2010 to 23,392 in 2020 (−0.6%).
Show the numbers
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 23,392 |
| 2010 | 23,523 |
History
Republic of Texas and Civil War (1841–1860)
Marshall was founded in 1841 as the seat of Harrison County after failed attempts to establish a county seat on the Sabine River. It was incorporated in 1843. The Republic of Texas chose the land donated for the seat by Peter Whetstone and Isaac Van Zandt after Whetstone proved that the hilly location had a good water source.
Marshall quickly became a major city in the state because of its position as a gateway to Texas; it was on the route of several major stagecoach lines. Later, one of the first railroad lines constructed into Texas ran through it.
The founding of several colleges, including a number of seminaries, teaching colleges, and incipient universities, earned Marshall the nickname "the Athens of Texas", in reference to the ancient Greek city-state. The city's growing importance was confirmed when Marshall was linked by a telegraph line to New Orleans; it was the first city in Texas to have a telegraph service.
By 1860, Marshall was the fourth-largest city in Texas and the seat of its richest county. Developing the land for cotton plantations, county planters held more slaves here than in any other county in the state.
When Governor Sam Houston refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederate States of America, Marshall's Edward Clark was sworn in as governor. Pendleton Murrah, Texas's third Confederate governor, was also from Marshall.
Marshall became a major Confederate supply depot and manufacturer of gunpowder for the Confederate Army. It hosted three conferences of Trans-Mississippi and Indian Territory leaders.
The exiled Confederate government of Missouri made Marshall its temporary capital. The city took the nickname of the "City of Seven Flags". This was a nod to the flag of Missouri in addition to the six flags of the varying nations and republics that have flown over the city.
Also during the Civil War, after the fall of Vicksburg, Marshall became the seat of Confederate civil authority and headquarters of the Trans-Mississippi Postal Department. It may have been the target of a failed Union advance that was rebuffed at Mansfield, Louisiana.
Toward the end of the Civil War, the Confederate government shipped $9.0 million in treasury notes and $3.0 million in postage stamps to Marshall. It may have intended Marshall as the destination of a government preparing to flee from advancing armies.
Reconstruction and the railroad era (1865–1895)
Marshall was occupied by Union forces on June 17, 1865. During Reconstruction, the city was home to an office of the Freedmen's Bureau and was the base for federal troops in the region. In 1873, the Methodist Episcopal Church founded Wiley College to educate freedmen. African Americans came to the city seeking opportunities and protection until 1878.
Although freedmen comprised the majority of voters in the county and supported the Republican Party, establishing a biracial government, in the post-Reconstruction era, the White Citizens Party, led by former Confederate General Walter P. Lane and his brother George, took control of the city and county governments by fraud and intimidation at elections. Their militia ran Unionists, Republicans, and many African Americans out of town. The Lanes ultimately declared Marshall and Harrison County "redeemed" from Union and African-American control.
Despite this, the African-American community continued to progress. The historically black Bishop College was founded in 1881, and Wiley College was certified by the Freedman's Aid Society in 1882.
Marshall's "Railroad Era" began in the early 1870s. Harrison County citizens voted to offer a $300,000 bond subsidy, and the City of Marshall offered to donate land north of the downtown to the Texas and Pacific Railway if the company established a center in Marshall. T&P President Jay Gould accepted the incentive, locating the T&P's workshops and general offices for Texas in Marshall. The city immediately had a population explosion from workers attracted to the potential for new jobs there.
By 1880, the city was one of the South's largest cotton markets, with crops and other products shipped by the railroad. The city's prosperity attracted new businesses: J. Weisman and Co. opened there as Texas's first department store. When a light bulb was installed in the Texas and Pacific Depot, Marshall became the first city in Texas with electricity. During this period of wealth, many of the city's now-historic homes were constructed. The city's most prominent industry, pottery manufacturing, began with the establishment of Marshall Pottery in 1895.
Despite the prosperity of the railroad era, some city residents struggled with poverty. Blacks were severely discriminated against under Jim Crow laws and customs. At the turn of the 20th century, the Democratic-dominated state legislature passed segregation laws and disenfranchised most blacks and Hispanics, as did all the states of the former Confederacy in this period. These minorities were essentially excluded from the political system for more than 60 years. Unable to vote, they were also excluded from juries and suffered injustices from all-white juries. In addition, from 1877 to 1950, Harrison County had 14 lynchings, most in the early 20th century, and more than any other county in Texas.
In the rural areas of Harrison County, more interaction occurred between whites and African Americans than in the city, and whites and blacks were often neighbors, but Jim Crow rules were strongly imposed on African Americans.
Early and mid-20th century
In 1909, a field of natural gas was discovered near Caddo Lake; it was exploited to supply city needs. Under the leadership of John L. Lancaster, the Texas and Pacific Railway reached the height of its success during the first half of the 20th century. Marshall's ceramics industry expanded to the point that boosters called the city the "Pottery Capital of the World".
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.