Field Guides
Palestine, Texas
(Anderson COUNTY)
Historic brick streets, pine forests, and a vibrant railroad heritage.
Highlights
Palestine is an old-school East Texas town that serves as the county seat of Anderson County. The city fancies itself as the historic preservation capital of Texas, a designation well earned. Over 1800 official historic resources document a rich history dating back to 1846. For all the history, the most impressive thing about Palestine and the surrounding area is its natural beauty.
Lake Palestine touches the northeast corner of Anderson County, a 30-minute drive from Palestine. A large lake stretching 18 miles provides plenty of opportunities for any water activity. Particularly inviting is the fishing for Texas favorites, catfish and largemouth bass. If you are looking for something more exotic, fishing guides specializing in alligator gar will help you find and land this unique specimen. Spring can be dazzling with a hike through the Dogwood trails, number one on the list for those who enjoy the outdoors.
The best way to combine Palestine’s history and natural beauty is a visit to the Texas State Railroad Depot. As with many East Texas towns, the railroad provided the lifeblood from the late 1800s to the middle of the 20th century, moving unimaginable amounts of timber to the rest of the country. Herbert Melville Hoxie, a major railroad executive and chief lieutenant to Jay Gould, made Palestine his home. The city became a major hub, both for the lines and as a manufacturing and repair center for the railroad cars.
There is not as much traffic today, but excursions out of the depot will let us relive the glory days. The Polar Express is an annual Christmas highlight for the young and young at heart throughout the region and beyond. Trips during the year take you on a relaxed ride through some of the prettiest scenery anywhere.
To get the lowdown, you can visit the Palestine Visitors Center.
The County Courthouse
As with most county seats, the courthouse anchors the town. Anderson County boasts an impressive Beaux-Arts-style structure built in 1914 and renovated in 1986. The courthouse occupies the highest point in the city. The building has a raised basement with three stories, so the combination of the elevation and structure produces a commanding presence. The exterior columns begin at the top of the basement, where the building material changes from brick to stone, enhancing the verticality of the building.
The current courthouse is the county’s fourth, replacing a similar structure that burned in 1913. The original jail, however, sits nearby, no longer in use for outlaws but a callback to rowdier times.
Things To See And Do
Beyond the lake, train, and dogwood park, Palestine offers a variety of historic sites.
Texas Ten is a sucker for restored theaters, and Palestine offers a winner. The Texas Theater houses the Palestine Community Theatre and offers a charming venue for events and concerts.
The Curious Museum is open on Saturdays for the younger set to stretch the imagination.
Public art is abundant in Palestine, and several walking tours and “find them” challenges highlight murals, sculptures, and other works of art that lift the soul.
Food, Drinks, and Music (Eat Local!)
Restaurant Aubergine offers “elevated cuisine” in a gorgeous setting. It is far and away the best “special occasion dinner” in the area, although it is BYOB. Queen St Grille in the Redlands Hotel downtown is another upscale dining option with a modern, casual vibe. Rump’s in nearby Tennessee Colony is a local favorite for barbecue and grilling.
If Tex-Mex is your style, the best can be found at Mario’s Mexican Grill and Little Mexico (50+ years in Palestine). Those are just for starters. Feel the heat at El Toro Mexican Restaurant, Rancho Grande, Amada’s Cocina, and Los 3 Amigos. The go-to in Frankston is Marco’s, and in Elkhart, try Restaurante y Plateria Mi Sueno. There is nothing like a Mexican breakfast to start your day. For that, locals recommend La Chapparras.
Great comfort food is a given in East Texas. Here you go, in no particular order: 4J’s Family Restaurant; Home Grill Steakhouse; Bird’s Egg Cafe (for a traditional diner breakfast); MAMA Seafood for seafood…and burgers; and The Lake Grill in Frankston for everything.
On the more casual side, Switch earns the best reviews for pizza, which it cooks brick oven style. Hambone’s takes advantage of its relatively close proximity to Louisiana to offer delicious Cajun food and occasional live music. It is always a party except on Sunday and Monday. The exact same can be said for Nunas Cajun. Take your pick; you cannot go wrong. Lunch is best at Old Magnolia, a sandwich shop with vintage shopping available while you wait. During the week, if you like subs or dogs, you could try Subs and Dogs. Imagine that.
Last but certainly not least, check out great baked goods at either Eilenberg’s Bakery, which bills itself as the state’s oldest operating bakery (since 1898). Eilenberg’s ships its pastries and cakes worldwide… or Oxbow Bakery—just as good, if about a century younger. These folks serve up pies that rival Grandma’s.
Those looking for entertainment beyond food will likely end up at Pint and Barrel (craft beer, wine, and pub food), Shelton Gin Bar (similar late-night revelry and live music), or Tahwahkaro Distillery (for whiskey aficionados).
Restaurant Aubergine
110 County Road 406
Palestine, TX 75803
(903) 729-9500
Reservations are required. Call for times.
Queen St. Grille
400 North Queen St.
Suite 108
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 723-2404
Closed Sunday-Monday
Tuesday – Friday 11:00 am – 2:00 pm & 5:00 pm – 9:00 pm
First Saturday Brunch 9:00 am to 2:00 pm
Bar Hours:
Tuesday – Thursday 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Friday – Saturday 4:00 pm to 10:00 pm.
Rump’s
120 FM 3328
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 928-2227
Friday–Saturday only 10:00 am to 8:00 pm
Mario’s Mexican Grill
1717 W. Palestine Ave.
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 729-0309
Monday–Thursday 11:00 am – 9:30 pm.
Friday–Saturday 11:00 am – 10:30 pm.
Sunday 11:00 am – 9:00 pm.
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 729-8588
Sunday–Thursday 11:00 am–9:00 pm
Saturday–Sunday 11:00 am–10:00 pm
Sunday–Monday 11:00 am–9:00 pm
Tuesday–Saturday 11:00 am–10:00 pm
500 N. Mallard St.
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 480-0983
Closed Monday
Otherwise, Daily 7:00 am–3:00 pm
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 731-9151
Closed Monday
Otherwise, Daily 7:00 am–3:00 pm
Frankston, TX 75801
(903) 481-2052
Monday–Saturday 10:30 am–9:00 pm
Sunday 10:30 am–3:00 pm
Restaurante y Plateria Mi Sueno
412 US Hwy. 287
Elkhart, TX 75839
(903) 764-2412
Closed Sunday
Otherwise, Daily 7:00 am–6:00 pm
La Chapparras
2010 W Oak St,
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 723-0271
Closed Monday
Tuesday-Friday 6:00 am-2:00 pm.
Saturday 7:00 am- 2:00 pm.
Sun- 8:00 am- 2:00 pm
4J’s Family Restaurant
111 An County Road 1405,
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 948-8849
Closed Sunday-Monday
Tuesday-Thursday 11:00 am-7:00 pm
Friday 111:00 am-9:00 pm
Saturday 11:00 am-8:00 pm
Home Grill Steakhouse
223 W Crawford Street,
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 723-5192
Closed Monday
Tuesday- Thursday- 11:00 AM- 9:30 pm
Friday – Saturday- 11:00 AM- 10:00 pm
Sunday- 11:00 AM – 9:00 pm
Bird’s Egg Cafe
1601 W Palestine Ave,
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 729-6891
Monday-Friday 5:30 am- 11:00 am
Saturday 5:30 am-11:30 am
Sunday 5:30 am- 1:30 pm
Mama Seafood
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 729 0747
Monday – Saturday 11:00 am -8:30 pm
Sunday 11:00 am – 2:00 pm
The Lake Grill
8900 Ruby Lane
Frankston, TX 75763
Main: (903) 320-1112
Alternate: (903) 876-2253
Monday-Tuesday 8:00 am – 3:00 pm.
Wednesday-Thursday 8:00 am – 6:00 pm.
Friday 7:00 am – 10:00 pm.
Saturday 6:00 am – 10:00 pm.
Sunday 6:00 am – 5:00 pm.
Grill Hours: Friday and Saturday 8:00 am—9:00 pm, Sunday and Thursday 8:00 am—3:00 pm.
Switch
1615 S Royall St,
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 729-7700
Closed Sunday-Monday
Tuesday to Thursday 4:30 pm – 9:00 pm.
Friday 4:30 pm- 10:00 pm.
Saturday 2:30 pm – 10:00 pm.
Hambone’s
213 E Crawford Street
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 729-2663
Closed Sunday-Monday
Tuesday-Thursday 11:00 am 9:00 pm
Friday and Saturday- 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Nunas Cajun
204 US Park Rd. 70
Palestine, TX (State Railroad Park)
(903) 723-6862
Friday-Saturday only 4:00 pm-9:00 pm
120 W Oak St,
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 729-4410
Closed Sunday
Midday Monday-Saturday
Subs and Dogs
407 W Palestine Ave,
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 729-5356
Closed Weekends
Monday -Friday 9:30 am to 7:00 pm
Ellenberg’s Bakery
512 N. John Street,
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 729-0881
Closed Sunday
Monday-Friday 7:00 am–3:00 pm
Saturday 8:00 am–2:00 pm
Oxbow Bakery
215 E. Crawford Street
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 723 5100
Thursday-Saturday Only 10:00 am-3:00 pm
Pint and Barrel
302 E Crawford St.
Palestine Texas 75801
(903) 727-2711
Closed Sunday
Monday-Friday 11:00 am – Midnight
Saturday 11:00 am – 1:00 am.
Shelton Gin Bar
310 E Crawford St,
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 727-2700
Closed Sunday-Monday
Tuesday-Friday 4:00 pm – 2:00 am
Saturday 6:00 pm – 2:00 am
Tahwahkaro Distillery
100 N. Church Street
Palestine, TX 75801
(903) 231-5464
Closed Sunday-Thursday
Friday 3:00 pm – 10:00 pm.
Saturday 12:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Or by reservation
Where To Drop A Dime (Shop Local!)
Downtown shopping with specialty boutiques can be found on Oak and Sycamore streets.
Stores of interest might be:
Old Town Vintage and More and Duncan Depot for antiques and vintage finds
The Barnyard Boutique (bonus points for having an ice cream bar in the house)
Crimson Room
Broken Boutique (on Main St.)
The Redlands Boutique is for women’s clothing, gifts, and accessories. The Redlands also has a nifty small art gallery.
For more wholesome finds of the nutritious variety, try the Farmer’s Market every Saturday.
Special Places to Lay Your Head (Stay Local!)
The Redlands Hotel offers a deep sense of the city’s history and a great location. Spacious suites are a bonus. The owner, who renovated the hotel with her husband, is a delightful storyteller.
The Ranch at Walston Springs for a rustic B & B getaway or a full-scale wedding.
Falcon Point is a large, short-term rental option at the simultaneously ritzy and rustic Reserve at Montalba
Hummingbird Hollow is a popular wedding venue and a top-notch B&B, as evidenced by its inclusion on the official Foodies in Texas list.
Pine Dunes offers lodging on the golf course in Frankston (see the golf section below).
For the Professional Traveller (Campgrounds and RV Parks)
Special Events
March is busy in Palestine. There is a festival honoring old-time music in general, the dulcimer in particular, and a nearly month-long series of events for the Dogwoods, all on top of the traditional Mardi Gras celebration.
Palestinians go all out to honor Texas’s Independence during the month of April with The 1836, a unique celebration of historic Western culture. Covered wagon races are the centerpiece, but there are all types of interesting events and people. .
Palestine hosts canoe enthusiasts from all over for the Neches Wilderness Race, a 22-mile meander down the Neches River, on the first weekend of August.
Late October sees the Hot Pepper Festival, with live music, parades, and, most of all, food events built around the little miracles that are hot peppers.
Throughout the year, a local organization does six weekends where fantasy meets performance art, and Renaissance meets Comic-Con through the Faire of Champions.
Fore! (Golf Courses)
Nearby, Frankston offers a Texas jewel at the renowned Pine Dunes Resort. This is a must for a serious, semi-serious, or aspiring to be a serious golfer. Other tracks in the county include Wildcat Golf Club, a nine-hole course with alternate tee boxes in Palestine, and Elkhart Golf Course in, you guessed it, Elkhart.
Getting to Anderson County
Anderson County sits in the heart of East Texas, approximately four hours and 15 minutes by car east northeast from the state’s geographic center in Brady, Texas. The closest large city is Tyler, Texas, which is about one hour by car northeast of Palestine. Palestine sits at the intersection of State Highway 79 (running southwest from Jacksonville and Marshall), State Highway 287, running southeast from Corsicana, and State Highway 84, running west from a series of smaller Texas towns. All three highways feed a loop around Palestine, with Highway 84 terminating there. All to say, Palestine is not close to any interstates and can be safely considered rural.
If you are flying, the Dallas-Fort Worth International and Dallas Love Field Airports are the closest major international airports, somewhere between an hour and forty minutes (Love Field) and two hours and ten minutes (DFW International) away. Southwest Airlines dominates air traffic in and out of Love Field, with Delta having a small presence. All major airlines other than Southwest service DFW International.
Tyler is the closest regional airport, offerng American Airlines flights exclusively.
Tyler also offers two fixed base operators for private planes. Closer smaller airports include Palestine Municipal Airport, Cherokee County Airport (Jacksonville, Texas 35 miles away) and C. David Campbell Field (Corsicana, 53 miles away).
History
The area was originally home to various Native American tribes, including Waco, Tawakonis, Kickapoo, and Comanche. Anderson County traces its present configuration to an 1826 land grant given by the Spanish to David Burnet that included what is now the county. Burnet was unable to settle his grant, but his successors placed a smattering of settlers in the area. The first settlement was “Fort Sam Houston,” not to be confused with the famous Army post now in San Antonio. The fort served as a rallying point for defense against the local Native Americans.
In 1836, one of the most famous Indian attacks in Texas (and United States) history decimated Parker’s Fort in what is now Limestone County, resulting in the abduction of Cynthia Parker. The survivors fled to Fort Houston. As a result there are Anderson County residents related to Cynthia Parker. Eventually, the settlers drove the Native Americans away from Fort Houston, and the area became more settled. On petition of the growing population in 1846, the legislature created Anderson County, its land subtracted from Houston County. The Parker clan was also responsible for establishing the Pilgrim Primitive Baptist Church in Elkhart, the first Baptist church in Texas.
The citizens named the county after Kenneth Anderson, the last vice-president of the Republic of Texas. A commission chose the new county seat, a 100-acre tract at the county’s center. The commission chose Palestine as the name of the county seat to honor the hometown (Palestine, Illinois) of the family of one of the commission members, John Parker.
The county wholeheartedly supported the Confederacy during the Civil War and resisted Reconstruction afterward. Its politics has always been conservative, supporting the segregationist wing of the Democratic party until the 1960s and shifting to the GOP with (actually slightly ahead of) the rest of East Texas.
The county’s economic fortunes first derived from agriculture and timber harvesting. In the 1880s, railroad lines with associated manufacturing concerns boosted the county’s prospects. The overall population, particularly the number of people living in Palestine, grew rapidly. More good fortune came in 1926 when oil in sufficient quantities for commercial production was proven in the county. The oil boom lessened the impact of the Great Depression on Anderson County.
More manufacturing activity followed the oil discovery. In addition the State placed three large prisons in the county, which provides a major source of employment.
Today, the county still has significant agricultural, timber, and oil activity, along with notable manufacturing and prison operations as its economic base. As of 2023, the Census Bureau estimates the county’s population at 57,736, a slight decline from 2020, The Census Bureau ranks Anderson as the 56th most populous of Texas’ 254 counties.
The county’s ethnic make-up is fairly typical of rural East Texas, with approximately 58% of the population being white, non-Hispanic, 19% of the population Hispanic, 19% of the population African American, and 3% of the population either mixed or other. Likewise, the age, income, and education profile of the county mirrors much of East Texas as the population skews older, less educated, and earning less compared to Texas overall.
Palestine has produced a startling number of professional athletes, particularly football players. Chief among them is Hall of Famer Adrian Peterson. Alfred Masters was the first African American to serve in the United States Marine Corps. John Reagan was a leading politician in Texas for decades. He served in a wide variety of capacities, most notably as the Postmaster General of the Confederacy and as the first Railroad Commissioner in post-reconstruction Texas. He also founded the Texas State Historical Society.
The remainder of Anderson County also produced its share of notables. Frank Beard, the ZZ Top drummer, was born in Frankston. Lenora Rolla, a renowned Texas civil rights leader, was born in rural Anderson County before moving to Fort Worth as a child. Herbert Reynolds, a president of Baylor University, was also from Frankston.
Primary Sources: