Clarksville City

History

The first settlers arrived in the area before 1845. A stagecoach stop at the home of William W. Walters was later owned and operated by Warren P. Victory. Though first known as "Gilead", the post office was named "Point Pleasant" in 1852. It closed in 1867. The community withered when the railroad bypassed it in 1873, and Gladewater was established. With the advent of the East Texas Oil Field in 1930, so many homes, businesses, and oil-company camps and offices sprang up along the highway that it was called the Main Street of Texas, and street numbers were designated from Longview to Gladewater. The area around George W. Clark's home on the site of the old stagecoach stop became known as "Clarksville". After extensive paving projects and other civic improvements in the 1940s and the construction of Lake Gladewater in 1952, the nearby city of Gladewater had a high tax rate and was extending its boundaries. Industrialists in the area to the east became alarmed at the prospect of being taken into Gladewater and taxed more. A movement to incorporate, spearheaded by several oil companies and the L. W. Pelphrey Company, a general contractor specializing in oilfield construction, culminated in a vote to establish Clarksville City on September 14, 1956. Pelphrey was elected mayor and served until his death in August 1961. The bypassed portion of Old Highway 80 is named Pelphrey Drive in his honor. The population dwindled as drilling reached the state allowable and producing wells became automated. Cities Service Oil Company closed its office and camp in the early 1960s, and Sun Oil Company soon followed. After a population low of 359 in the 1960s, growth was steady. In 1990, Clarksville City had 720 residents and twenty businesses. In 2000, its population was 806. The town…

Geography

Clarksville City is located in northwestern Gregg County along U.S. Route 80, west of Longview and east of Gladewater. The city is bordered by Gladewater to the west, Warren City to the northwest, and White Oak to the east. Lake Deverina on Campbell Creek is in the southern part of Clarksville City. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which are land and , or 2.49%, is covered by water.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  761
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  666
• Northern Mockingbird

  Mimus polyglottos (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  571
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  486
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  481
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  457
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  456
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  451

Most recent

• M 3.5 — 2025-01-18
  0 km WSW of Mooringsport, Louisiana
• M 3 — 2025-01-06
  4 km ESE of Mooringsport, Louisiana
• M 2.9 — 2024-12-22
  7 km WSW of Mooringsport, Louisiana
• M 3.1 — 2024-12-20
  7 km S of Mooringsport, Louisiana
• M 2.6 — 2024-12-19
  9 km SW of Mooringsport, Louisiana
• M 3.1 — 2024-12-19
  2 km S of Mooringsport, Louisiana