Sunday, March 8, 2015

A Travel Tip from Patsy...

Here's another Texas treasure for folks traveling through North East Texas.  Jefferson is located about 20 miles north of Marshall, TX on Hwy. 59.  The whole history of Jefferson is too long to be told here, but you can visit Welcome to the Official Web site of the historic city of Jefferson, Texas for more information. 


I would like to relate my experiences in Jefferson many years ago.  When we visited Jefferson, it was Spring Break, and it was raining. We didn't let that stop us from walking around and seeing everything.  We toured the lovely Excelsior Hotel, all furnished in period antiques.  We  would have loved to stay there, but decided it wasn't appropriate for our small children.  We saw Jay Gould's personal railroad car which was quite ostentatious (sterling silver sink), the Opera House, and many of the myriad Victorian homes.

We camped at Caddo Lake State Park.  Caddo Lake is the only natural lake in Texas; the rest are reservoirs formed by dams.  You can take boat tours through the cypress trees; there is also great fishing.  Jefferson, believe it or not, was once the second busiest port in Texas, after Galveston.  Boats came up from New Orleans and St. Louis.  You can still see some of the old docks.

My father had an uncle who lived in Jefferson.  My father remembered visiting him and hearing the boat whistles.  The uncle was a shrewd man who portrayed himself as a country-fied gentleman who sat on his front porch with hound dogs all over the yard.  But he started making syrup and called it Blackburn's Syrup (Blackburn is my maiden name). It is still sold in grocery stores today.  We visited the Blackburn Syrup plant while in Jefferson.

If you like history, Victorian houses, fishing, camping, or anything else I have mentioned, you'll love Jefferson (not to be confused with Jefferson County).

Thanks, Patsy
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