Sign Up  /  Login

Starrville Stagecoach LbNA #28129

Owner:Adoptable
Plant date:Jan 6, 2007
Location:
City:Winona
County:Smith
State:Texas
Boxes:1
Planted by:JKC
Found by: TX parrothead
Last found:Jun 20, 2015
Status:FFFFFFFFFFFF
Last edited:Jan 6, 2007
Starrville was once a major stop-over for stagecoaches and freight carriers traveling between Dallas and Shreveport. Some accounts list it as the location for the first state fair. At one time it even had 2 colleges among its many schools and businesses. It was originally named Gum Springs for the local baptismal and swimming hole, and then it was renamed for a Methodist minister, Joshua Starr, who bought and owned much of the surrounding property. There was also a large military encampment there as they were en route to Little Rock during the civil war. When local land owners refused to let the railroad run tracks through the town, it began to decline and many of it's businesses and residents moved to nearby Winona.

*thanks to Bloomin Grandma Jo for rescuing the box and changing it's location after some changes at the cemetery.

Directions to the letterbox:
From Tyler take Hwy 271 N to FM 757. Go north on FM 757 until you reach the junction of SH 16. At this stop sign, look to your right, and you will see the Historical Marker. We were able to just pull up beside the marker and read it from the car. Turn around and go back the way you came down FM 757. Go approximately 3/10 of a mile and you will see the sign for the Starrville Cemetery. Turn left into the cemetery. Go straight on the drive, and you will soon see the shelter. Veer slightly toward your left and follow the curve around. You will see a low pipe fence. Stop here. Look north and you will see a small fenced-in family plot at the far edge of the cemetery. Walk toward this fenced area, and you will see the grave stones inside. Some read the last name 'Butler'. *Walk behind Butler plot to Willie and Alphonso Butler stones. Facing Alphonso, look in corner where new fence and old fence meet. Stagecoach is in corner under large pieces of branch.

As always, please reseal and rehide well.
Let us know of condition etc.