September 29, 2024
Kristi wanted smoked pork chops, and since it would take hours to procure, prepare, and smoke our own, we decided to take the easy route and visit Woody’s Smokehouse in Centerville, Texas, the seat of Leon County.
This opened up an opportunity for an adventure. We’re running out of new roads to explore close to home. Leon County is a logical choice for expanding our sphere. I did a quick survey of the roads near the town and spotted a route that would make the drive home more interesting than taking the interstate.
I presume that Old Bryan Road was the “old” road that people in the area took to Bryan, Texas. It is part of a route that leads to the Old Spanish Road (OSR). The OSR passes just north of Bryan.
Old Bryan Road starts in Centerville along TX-7. It runs south and slightly west before ending at the east frontage road of I-45. It then resumes on the other side of the freeway. This was our starting point. So, after filling ourselves on pork chops, brisket, and macaroni and cheese, we crossed the freeway and headed south.
We plan on making a separate adventure out of the west frontage road of I-45. It runs continuously from north of Fairfield all the way to Madisonville (about 70 miles). It looks like an interesting route with several pretty views, which is strange since it is right next to an “ugly” interstate.
Old Bryan Road heads west from the frontage road, then turns south before ending at County Road 420. It looks to have a bitumen road surface. The drive is easy, but it is narrow in spots. We did not see a lot of traffic.
We did, however, see many tree tunnels. We love tree tunnels!
Leon County is relatively flat but is crisscrossed by a number of creeks. The eastern half of the county is in the Trinity River watershed, and the western half is in the Brazos River watershed.
Cedar Creek was the first large creek we came across. It is located where Old Bryan Road ends at CR 420. I assume that Old Bryan Road–at least in concept–continues along CR 420, but we saw no road signs with that name past the creek crossing.
I love the simple, one-lane bridge over Cedar Creek!
Turning south, we traveled down CR 420. Most of the road is surrounded by woods, but there are a few houses here and there. The trees opened up at the Spring Creek crossing:
A short distance past Spring Creek is the Boggy Creek crossing. There was a little rapid on the east side of the road. Boggy Creek is the “main” creek in the area. Several other creeks, including Cedar and Spring Creeks, flow into it on its way to the Trinity River. It goes under I-45 to the east of the location below, and then passes through Fort Boggy State Park, which is located south of Centerville along TX-75.
CR 420 became FM 2485, which took us to the Old Spanish Road. We turned right (west) and headed toward Normangee, and then turned left onto FM 2289. FM 2289 took us to FM 1452, where we turned left (east) and headed toward TX-21/US 190 just outside of Madisonville.
But along FM 2289 we took a detour up Dawkins Road to visit Randolph Cemetery. We enjoy exploring old cemeteries, but by this time we were both tired and ready to head home. However, we wanted to see if Randolph Cemetery was a potential target for future exploration. It turned out to be an interesting find.
At first glance it looks like pretty much any rural cemetery, but one peculiar feature stood out: a barbed wire fence that ran down the middle.
Why would a cemetery be divided by a barbed wire fence? Was this the result of a property boundary dispute? Were two local families feuding?
No, the answer was somewhat more mundane, and a reminder of a shameful and difficult period in our state’s history.
Randolph Cemetery was a segregated cemetery. Black people were buried on one side of the fence, and white people were buried on the other side.
This is unusual in our experience. Most segregated cemeteries we have seen are not even close to one another. I can only speculate why everyone is buried in the same spot, but divided by a fence.
I spoke to Deon Brooks, the president of the cemetery association. He explained that it was a segregated cemetery. I asked him why the fence still exists and is maintained, and he said that basically no one has taken responsibility for its removal–the cemetery association is charged with simply maintaining the grounds. So, the fence has stayed.
Perhaps it’s a good thing, in a way, because it forces us to ask the question, “Why?” As much racial division as there seems to be these days, it is nothing compared to the days of enforced racial segregation during the Jim Crow era. Young people who go on about “systemic racism” have no idea what it really looks like. As a person in my mid-50s, I remember how minorities were treated when I was young back in the 1970s. As bad as some people think it is now, it is nothing like it was back then. I believe we’re making progress, but we need to have occasional reminders of where we were so that we don’t go back.
OK, on a less serious note, check out that crazy tree in the background of the image above!
We went home via a favorite route, which is documented in the posts, Creeks and Ghost Towns and A Quick Trip.
We are planning on a few more trips into Leon County, hopefully in the near future.