Caney Creek
Caney Creek, a spring-fed perennial stream, rises five miles east of
Huntsville in east central Walker County (at 30°42' N, 95°26' W) and
flows north seventeen miles to its mouth on Harmon Creek, near the
southwestern edge of Lake Livingston (at 30°51' N, 95°26' W). The upper
creek lies within the boundary of Sam Houston National Forest. The
stream traverses gently rolling to nearly level terrain surfaced by
sandy and loamy soils. Along the banks of the creek grow pines,
including loblolly and shortleaf, and hardwoods, including elm, hickory,
oak, and sweet and black gum. Settlement near the upper creek began in
the mid-1820s and on the lower creek in the mid-1830s. The Dodge
community was established on the upper creek after the Civil War.
In the early 1870s, Riverside was founded as a station on the Houston
and Great Northern Railroad near the creek's mouth. For a number of
years after World War II,
Sam Houston State Teachers College (later Sam Houston State University)
maintained a country campus on the west bank of the middle creek on the
site of an abandoned German prisoner-of-war camp (see GERMAN PRISONERS OF WAR). TSHA
Caney Creek is a historical community in Walker County, Texas, that no
longer exists as a distinct populated place but remains an area with
scattered rural residences.It originated as a rural settlement along
the creek of the same name and is not incorporated, with no post office
since 1905.
Location:
Southeastern Walker County, at the intersection of
Farm-to-Market Roads 1375 and 1791, on Caney Creek, about 10 miles
southeast of Huntsville (the county seat). Coordinates: approximately
30.65°N, 95.43°W.It appears on the New Waverly U.S. Geological Survey
Map.
History:
Settlement in the area began in the mid-1830s amid the broader
development of East Texas timberlands and agriculture. The Caney Creek
community was established in the late 1860s on the east bank of the
creek, opposite New Caney in Montgomery County. A post office operated
from 1871 to 1882 and was reestablished from 1894 to 1905, after which
mail was routed to nearby towns. In the mid-1880s, the community
featured a steam sawmill and cotton gin, Baptist and Methodist
churches, a school, a physician, and a population of 60. By the
mid-1890s, the population had grown to 100, supported by lumber,
cotton, and farming activities.
Current Status:
The community began to decline after World War I,
likely due to shifting economic opportunities and rural depopulation.
By the early 1990s, only a few widely scattered houses remained, with
no active infrastructure or recorded population. Today, the area is
unincorporated rural land within the Sam Houston National Forest
vicinity, with nearby communities like New Waverly (about 8 miles
south) providing amenities.
Texas State Historical Association
https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/caney-creek-walker-county