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Wynnsborough to Winnsborough to
Winnsboro, Texas
Heritage, History & Today
https://www.trailscountryreporter.com/historical-info.html
The modern first settlers are recorded as John E. Winn and W.R. McMillan, came to area prior to 1854. They came through an area known as the "Crossroads", the original name of the town for two Indian trails that crossed in the area and the headwaters of Indian Creek that passes under Texas State Highway 11 through downtown today and flows southward.
The migrating pioneers were attracted to the rich farming, forestry and clay land on the edge of the piney woods region of East Texas. There, the men purchased 351 acres in the Gray B. King tract. They opened the first post office in 1855, along with their mercantile business. “Uncle Henry” Robinson built McMillan’s house, the first in Winnsboro. It was located near the northeast corner of the crossroads.
The United States Post Office was first established 6 March 1855, so historians can rightfully claim that date as the official founding date of Winnsboro as a recognized town. W.R. McMillan was the first postmaster, and the post office ran until 7 February 1868, and later re-opened and re-established on 25 June 1874. During the time the town had no post office, citizens got their mail in either the communities of Webster (a few miles south) or Cornersville (a short two-miles distance to the east). Some historians report that area was known to have rich deposits of clay near Cornersville for making pottery by the earlier Indians who inhabited the area.
In 1876, Mrs. Ophelia Cook conveyed 100 acres of land interest and 200 foot of right away near the Crossroads to the East Line and Red River Railroad Company. Originally, the settlement was named Wynnsborough, but the name was changed to Winnsborough upon the post office's opening. People in Webster and Cornersville began their move to Winnsborough with the coming of the railroad. In 1878, the name of the town was changed to Winnsboro. John R. Wright was appointed post master on 16 September 1893.
The East Line (later part of the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad, or "Katy") and Red River railroad tracks crossed in 1878, enhancing economic growth and vitality of timber, cotton, and agricultural shipping.
Another historical record also indicates the town was first named “Crossroads” and then later named in 1854 after the town’s founder, John E. Winn. It is also told (by now deceased official town historian Bill Jones) that the original spelling of the official town name, Winnsborough, was changed because the newspaper masthead did not have the space to print the long name. Bill Jones, passed away in 2022, yet for years he wrote periodic columns in the town’s historic newspaper, the Winnsboro News. Many of the archived papers are now in the custody and preservation of the Winnsboro Historical Commission by the City of Winnsboro.
Two versions of The Winnsboro News have existed as a newspaper in Winnsboro, Texas, since the early 1900s.The first version, founded on September 24, 1908, as a weekly newspaper, merged the pro-alcohol "Winnsboro News" and anti-alcohol "Winnsboro Messenger" to unify local coverage.
It continued under various owners, including Judge R. M. Smith and later Grayford M. Jones, who built its plant. Archival records, like those from the Library of Congress, show it ran continuously from 1908 until it closed around 2021–2022, with some digitized issues from the 1920s listed as Winnsboro Weekly News, likely a subtitle variation rather than a separate entity. The second version is a new, independent online-news-focused (not in print "newspaper") launched after the original's closure to fill the local news gap. It provides community coverage on sports, government, schools, and events, but it's not connected to the original beyond the shared name and mission. Find the online Winnsboro News monthly at https://winnsboro-news.com/
Here's where to find some of the back issues of various iterations of The Winnsboro News. https://gilbreath.advantage-preservation.com/
Enjoy some pages from the 1920's Winnsboro News and pages from yesteryear in the comments at the Facebook social media page titled Winnsboro History & Heritage:
https://www.facebook.com/WinnsboroTexasHistory
(c) 2019 C.G. Willis | Trails Country Reporter Please provide Credit Citation to the author
cgwillis@TrailsCountryReporter.com
Article Originally published at
www.trailscountryreporter.com/history-of-winnsboro.html
ABOUT THE WINNSBORO HISTORY MUSEUM
==============================
The Winnsboro History Museum is located at the old Train Depot at 100 East Broadway (Hwy.11) at the intersection of Main Street (Hwy. 37) in Winnsboro, TX. Their mailing address is PO Box 357, Winnsboro, Tx, 75494/ Phone (903) 347-2668 OR Email is info@winnsbortxmuseum.com
Their website is www.winnsborotxmuseum.com/resources.
If you are interested in volunteering at the Museum, please contact the museum at winnsborotxmuseum@gmail.com or (903) 347-2634.
PLEASE ENJOY THE BEAUTY OF THE WINNSBORO, TEXAS AREA. This video is presented as a courtesy with a single license for use. All Rights Reserved of original copyright holder; please contact for use or redistribution. CONTACT US. Thank you.
TRAILS COUNTRY
TRAVEL TOURISM NEWS
Wood County Recognized with Award as “Best Weekend Road Trip” in Texas
Wood County, Texas [9/12/2023] — The Wood County Economic Development Commission (WCEDC) announced today that Wood County has been recognized with a prestigious award as a premier tourist destination for other Texans.
Official Best of America recognized Wood County as the “Best Weekend Road Trip” for other Texans, and memorialized the honor with a video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCx3iOJdZeg&feature=youtu.be
"We are ecstatic to receive this award which is a reflection of all the hard work put forth by the people who live in Wood County,” said Christine Thomas, Executive Director of the WCEDC. “Everyone, residents, and businesses alike, has played a role, whether through their tax dollars or volunteerism at the many exciting events that we host throughout the year.
“It’s also important to recognize the businesses in Wood Country which have done a great job of welcoming visitors, in turn making Wood County a regular destination for people from Dallas and Houston and all points in between,” she added.
“These are exciting times. We look forward to building upon the recognition, doing everything we can to maintain our attraction to the tourist community.”
This is not the first time the county has been recognized. Last year, it was highlighted by CultureMap at https://sanantonio.culturemap.com/news/travel/07-19-22-travel-texas-wood-county/ [Read full release here]
PLEASE SHARE THE BEAUTY OF THE WINNSBORO, TEXAS AREA. THIS PROMOTIONAL VIDEO SOURCED UNDER OPEN RECORDS AND PUBLIC DOMAIN ACCESS AT YOUTUBE.COM; PROMOTED BY THE CITY OF WINNSBORO AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT; PAID FOR WITH PUBLIC FUNDS. THE OFFICIAL CITY OF WINNSBORO WEBSITE IS LOCATED AT WWW.CITYOFWINNSBORO.ORG.
Wood County Area. It's East Texas.
Wood County has a population of 45,000 plus
and Market Trade Area of 250,000 in an eight county contiguous radius census tract.
the East Texas area of Wood, Smith, Hopkins and Franklin, counties.
Over 90 named Lakes / Bodies of water, Dining, Shopping, Great Living.
It's Proximity: The Wood County Area is Rural yet is close enough
to major metropolitan. areas of the Dallas / Ft. Worth (85 Miles) Area and Tyler (40 miles).
It's just A tank away for a day!
It's laid back at a different pace than many suburban cities crawling with traffic, smog and lines.
It's Shovel Ready for Measured Growth.
Planned Potential. Good Folks. In the Right Corner
of Texas.
Winnsboro Center for the Arts Announcement
The Winnsboro Center for the Arts announced Community Choir Auditions are open to the public on Tuesday, February 3, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. The Choir director is Fran Leddy.
Pat Byrne is performing on The Bowery Stage on Saturday, February 7 @ 7:30 p.m.
Reserved w/Table $40 | Gen. Admission $30.
Click on the puppy dog to link to the
Winnsboro Animal Shelter.
Winnsboro History Museum
Be sure and visit the Winnsboro Historical Museum: The museum is open from 1-4pm on Fridays and 10am-4pm on Saturdays. Location is 100 Broadway at the old Train Depot, on the southeast corner of Broadway (Hwy. 11) and Main (Hwy 37) in Winnsboro, TX. Call (903) 347-2634 and schedule group visits by appointment.
TRAILS COUNTRY REPORTER & PRODUCTIONS
CLICK MOST ANY IMAGE TO LINK TO MORE INFORMATION.
This is a Trails Country breaking news and useful information. Gateway to Piney Woods Forest Trails, Tourism, History, Heritage, Travel and Dining. It includes events, tourism and "where is it" info packed site. It includes highly useful links to weather, power outage links, emergency phone numbers, school calendars, area lakes access, tourism sites and news. The site primarily Winnsboro and Wood County Texas, east Texas, north Texas and travels in the southern United Staes.
Click here for Wood County Co-op (TX) and SWEPCO.)
Wood County TX Conditions @ NOW FROM WOOD COUNTY AIRPORT, TEMP, RAIN, WIND NOAA National Weather Service NOW
KETK Tyler - East Texas Matters KLTV Channel 7 Weather
WFAA Dallas Area Weather TXDOT Drive Texas Current Road Conditions
Internet & Phone Outages - Around the World
Winnsboro ISD's Current Superintendent & Superintendent Emeritus Arrested (again) by Sheriff Officers, Thursday, Feb. 5
[Winnsboro, Wood County, TX - Thursday, 2/5/2026]
The current Superintendent Aaron Nation, on administrative leave with pay, and current Superintendent Emeritus Brian David Wilcox, were arrested by Hopkins County Sheriff's office on Thursday.
Sources state the men were requested to turn themselves in to Hopkins County Sheriff's Office this morning voluntarily or they would would be arrested involuntarily; it is not known if they turned themselves in voluntarily or not, yet show both men were booked into county jail sometime after midnight.
The county booking details reflect $50,000 bond for each Nation and Wilcox, or $25,000 per charge. The two charges for each man in the booking record correspond to two Texas Penal Code sections.
The first charge for each man is “Tampering with or Fabricating Physical Evidence” where a a person commits an offense if, knowing an investigation or official proceeding is pending or in progress, they alter, destroy, conceal, make, present, or use any record, document, or thing (with intent to impair its availability/verity as evidence or affect the outcome). This falls under Texas Penal Code § 37.09.
The second charge for each man is “Unlawful Interception, Use, or Disclosure of Wire, Oral, or Electronic Communications.” This aligns with the wiretapping/interception law. It prohibits intentionally intercepting, disclosing, or using wire, oral, or electronic communications without proper authorization/consent. Subsections (d) and (g) specify certain violations (e.g., related to knowing about or obstructing authorized interceptions), often classified as state jail felonies (unlike the standard second-degree felony for other parts of the section). This felony charges is under Texas Penal Code § 16.02.
These are Texas state laws, Penal Code Title 8 for §37.09 on offenses against public administration; Title 4 for §16.02 on inchoate offenses including interception of communications). The charges appear to stem from an incident on or around February 2, 2026, with the person charged is currently booked as of February 5, 2026.
The school board did not take action in their special called meeting on January 31 to hire an interim superintendent, and that left the current acting superintendent, Dr. Cody Holloway, at the helm of the district for the time being. This leaves the district currently carrying the financial burden of paying three people for various positions as superintendent.
Winnsboro ISD Board of Trustees Select Interim Superintendent - Feb. 7
{With Contributions by Michael Walpole, as our Editor Recovers from Surgery]
Michael Walpole covered the filming of the Winnsboro ISD (Texas) school board of trustees meeting at 10 a.m. on Saturday, February 7, 2026, and posted to social media.
Walpole wrote, “Here's my recording of this morning's special meeting of the WISD school board. Cory Thompson was the sole speaker during the public forum section of the meeting. He asked the board several questions regarding the hiring of a new interim superintendent, including what their criteria were for the selection process, the potential cost of any such new contract, how much authority the new interim superintendent would actually have, and how the interim superintendent's performance would be evaluated going forward.
“None of his questions were answered either during this portion of the meeting or at any point later.
“The board went into closed executive session for a bit over two hours, and when they returned they handled the new business items on the agenda.
“First, they acted to remove Duncan McAdoo as authorized representative on banking and investment accounts, and replace him on those accounts with Kristie Amason.
“The last item of business was to hire Jeff Conovan as the new interim superintendent for the district. Mr. Conovan then spoke briefly on his qualifications, after which the meeting was concluded.”
(End of Walpole’s post)
===================
As a couple of additional news notes, McAdoo relocated for a new job and moved with his family from the Wood County area late last year. In the previous board meeting, they voted to elect Kristie Amason as board secretary.
WISD published social media posts and copies of emails sent to employees reflects the school district has had four superintendents in the last few months.
(1) Aaron Nation, serves as Superintendent, now placed on administrative leave with pay by the board in January 2026.
(2) Brian David Wilcox, superintendent EMERITUS, as stated in a release by the district. They also refer to him vaguely as “former” superintendent and “former” employee, leading to public confusion. The statement also read Wilcox pay is through August 2026, but conflicting data with a Region 7 contact stated, "it should only be through March 2026"; an 'emeritus' position is to assist a new superintendent over a short period of only two to three months. (See in-depth article below, PDF link)
(3) Dr. Cody Holloway serves as ACTING superintendent.
(4) And now the new hire, Jeff Conovan, was selected to serve INTERIM superintendent.
So, technically, the district is paying for the position of THREE superintendents:
REGULAR (Nation), arrested twice with four felony charges
EMERITUS (Wilcox) arrested twice with four felony charges
INTERIM (Thompson), new hire
These are adjectives; east Texas TV news is not catching this fact in their reporting, leading to further communications confusion by the District. The Inconsistent word-smithing frame confusion narrative to the public and taxpayers.
OTHER NEWS STORIES
Winnsboro Independent School District News
Superintendents arrested - January 17, 2026 (Click to read feature article); In depth exposé article, frequently updated as new information is reported.
In the January 31 WISD School Board meeting at 10:30 Saturday, members named trustee Kristie Amason as the new secretary for the board.
The board additionally declared the seat vacated and the unexpired seat up for the next election. which is on May 2, with the filing deadline on February 14. The seat previously occupied by Duncan McAdoo, who relocated away from the community.
In other business, after a two hour executive closed door meeting, the board voted to instruct the school district's attorney to return the proposed settlement agreement in the Kelly case back to the mediator. Mr. Green, the board chair, further added that "there is no settlement at this time."
For a full in-depth feature article on the Kelly lawsuit against the district, click here.
Things to See & Do
LOCAL EVENTS & AREA LAKES INFO
WOOD COUNTY & AREA LAKE INFO
Four County Lakes PLUS world renowned Lake Fork CLICK ON ANY BLUE LINK FOR LOCATION, MAPS, BOAT RAMPS, AMENTIES
- LAKE FORK - Lake Levels, Boat Access, Maps, Sabine River Authority Info, Lake Fork Chamber Links & Resources
- In the Counties of Wood, Hopkins & Rains
- Lake Winnsboro TPWD
- Lake Winnsboro ACCESS (points for boats)
- Lake Holbrook TPWD
- Lake Holbrook ACCESS (points for boats)
- Lake Quitman TPWD
- Lake Quitman ACCESS (points for boats)
Beach in Wood County
Come enjoy one of the most incredible white-sand beaches and some of the clearest water in the Pineywoods of Northeast Texas at beautiful Lake Hawkins.
https://lakehawkinsrvpark.com/facilities/beach/
Beach / Day Use, Open 8 am to dark
$5/person* (Cash, credit card, Apple Pay accepted)
Children 4 and under are free
* $10 per person for HOLIDAYS and holiday weekends (Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day). We reserve the right to shut the gate at any time due to capacity limits. No need to call and reserve a day pass. Just show up and pay at check-in window. Recreational Facilities, Beach Area, Picnic Area, Boat Ramp, Fishing Pier, Volleyball Courts, Dock, Swimming, Other Amenities & Services, Ice, Restrooms, Showers, Store.
LAKES OF WOOD COUNTY
Current Lake Levels, Access, Docks, Fishing, Marinas, Parking and More: www.trailscountryreporter.com/lakes-a-z-list.html;
Lake Winnsboro (get worms at Tractor Supply in town at 801 E Coke Rd · (903) 342-0009 (opens at 8 a.m.), or the Winnsboro Lake Store Marina at 630 Co Rd 4890 · (903) 629-3214 (Also opens at 8 a.m.)
It's good business & Living here in the Piney Woods of East Texas!