Centralia is an unincorporated populated place

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in Trinity County, Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Located on Farm Road 357, it lies 15 miles northeast of Groveton

Groveton, Texas

Groveton is a city in Trinity County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,107 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Trinity County.-Geography:Groveton is located at ....

. In 2000, the estimated population was 53 residents.

Historical development

The town was originally settled around the time of the Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, with the town square being established the following decade. As the town was located between Nogalus Prairie

Nogalus Prairie, Texas

Nogalus Prairie is an unincorporated populated place and farming community in Trinity County, Texas, United States. It is located on Farm Road 357, just west of Centralia, and 13 miles northeast of Groveton...

 and Apple Springs

Apple Springs, Texas

Apple Springs is a small unincorporated town in Trinity County, Texas, United States. The town was founded shortly after the Civil War as May Apple Springs. The town rose to a population of 285 in 1965, and then progressively declined to about 130 people, with nine business, in the...

, it was given the name Centralia. In 1874 the post office was opened and over the next 11 years, the town would grow to have a population of 150 residents, along with the addition of two general stores, several stream sawmill

Sawmill

A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....

s and gristmill

Gristmill

The terms gristmill or grist mill can refer either to a building in which grain is ground into flour, or to the grinding mechanism itself.- Early history :...

s. As late as 1914, the population would be at its peak at 300. Subsequent to World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, businesses would begin to close with the town’s population dwindling down over the next several decades.