Northeast Texas | |
|---|---|
.jpg)   .jpg) .jpg)  .jpg) | |
 Northeast Texas counties in red | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Texas |
| Largest city | Tyler |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 1,152,223[1][2][3][4] |
Northeast Texas is a cultural and geographic region in the northeast corner of theU.S. state ofTexas. Geographically centered on twometropolitan areas strung alongInterstate 20—Tyler in the west andKilgore,Longview,Marshall to the east,[5] the areas ofGreenville,Mount Pleasant,Sulphur Springs,Paris, andTexarkana in the north primarily alongInterstate 30, andJacksonville andPalestine to the south are also major cities within the region. Most of Northeast Texas is included in the interstate region of theArk-La-Tex.[6]
The region is unique in that it is the only portion ofEast Texas that is not within the direct sphere of influence of eitherDallas/Fort Worth orHouston. This generally weakens the area's visibility as areas in the far south ally themselves with Houston and areas to the west ally themselves with Dallas. These areas are on the fringe of those cities' spheres of influence, so are not as visible as smaller cities such asGrapevine orDeer Park, which are closer to the respective centers of power.
In the mid-19th century, Marshall and Jefferson constituted a sphere of influence that led the entire state into theConfederate States of America, and during theMexican andRepublic periods,Nacogdoches andSan Augustine were the most developed and influential cities in Northeast Texas. Nacogdoches rebelled against Mexican rule in theFredonian Rebellion and had one of the first newspapers to run the phraseRemember the Alamo!; while none of these three cities is a major population center in its own right on the state level any longer, all four are still major cultural centers, with Nacogdoches and Tyler being well-established centers of higher learning.[7][8] Many of the largest cities in Northeast Texas still follow a ruralSouthern way of life, especially in dialect, mannerisms, religion, andcuisine.
The geography ofNortheast Texas is composed mainly of thePiney Woods, a mixedforest ofdeciduous andconiferflora.[9] The Piney Woods cover 23,500 sq mi (61,000 km2) of gently rolling or hilly forested land. These woods are part of a much larger region ofpine-hardwood forest that extends intoLouisiana,Arkansas, andOklahoma. Northeast Texas lies within the Gulf Coastal Plain and receives more rainfall, 35 to 50 in (890 to 1270 mm), than the rest of Texas.[10]
TheSabine River is the major river in Northeast Texas, and flows through Longview and several other cities.[11] TheRed River also flows through the region and forms the northern border with Oklahoma and a portion of Arkansas. In Northeast Texas and the rest ofSouth, small rivers and creeks collect into swamps called "bayous" and merge with the surrounding forest.Bald cypress andSpanish moss are the dominant plants inbayous. The most famous of these bayous in Northeast Texas is theCypress Bayou surrounding the Big, Little, and Black Cypress Rivers aroundJefferson. They flow east intoCaddo Lake and the adjoiningwetlands cover the rim and islands of the lake.
Some of the major lakes in the area include:Jim Chapman Lake,Lake Tawakoni,Lake Fork,Cedar Creek Reservoir,Pat Mayse Lake,Lake Palestine,Caddo Lake,Lake O' the Pines, andWright Patman Lake.
The climate of the region is warmer and wetter than most of Texas and its geography is more hilly and forested. Its culture is similar to that ofSoutheast Texas, but does not have as much of aCajun influence.
According to Visit Northeast Texas, the following counties are considered to be part of Northeast Texas:[12]
| City | Population (2020) |
|---|---|
.jpg) Tyler | 105,995[13] |
Longview | 81,638[14] |
Texarkana | 36,193[15] |
.jpg) Greenville | 28,164[16] |
 Paris | 24,476[17] |
.jpg) Marshall | 23,392[17] |
.jpg) Palestine | 18,544[17] |
 Mount Pleasant | 16,047[17] |
 Sulphur Springs | 15,941[17] |
 Jacksonville | 13,997[17] |
.jpg) Kilgore | 13,376[18] |
 Henderson | 13,271[18] |
.jpg) Athens | 12,857[18] |
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Culturally, Northeast Texas is more closely akin to Arkansas, Northern Louisiana, and evenMississippi than it is toWest Texas. Northeast Texas is in theBible Belt creating a strongFundamentalistChristian sentiment.[19] During theCivil Rights movement several communities clashed overintegration. In presidential elections since 1950, both Smith County (county seat Tyler) and Gregg County (county seat Longview) have been reliably Republican.
Much of modern Northeast Texas culture has its roots in traditions that go back for generations.First Monday Trade Days is a monthlyflea market held inCanton, Texas. The market is actually held on the Thursday through Sundaypreceding the first Monday of each month. It purports to be the largest and oldest continually operated flea market in the United States,[20] and is a popular event in the area.
The East Texas Oil Museum, located on the campus ofKilgore College inKilgore, Texas, houses the authentic recreation of oil discovery and production in the early 1930s from the largest oil field inside U.S. boundaries.[21]
Tyler has a rich culture and has been nicknamed the "Rose Capital of America" because of its large role in the rose-growing industry;[22] about 20% of commercialrose bushes produced in the U.S. are grown in Tyler and Smith counties and more than half of the rose bushes are packaged and shipped from the area. It boasts the nation's largest municipalrose garden and hosts the Texas Rose Festival each October, which draws more than 100,000 spectators annually and has garnered nationwide attention.[23]
TheNortheast Texas Children's Museum is located inCommerce. The museum provides playful and creative learning experiences for children in the Northeast Texas area. Many school districts from theDallas/Fort Worth Metroplex and the Northeast Texas area take field trips to the museum.
TheAudie Murphy American Cotton Museum, located inGreenville, is dedicated to military veterans and showcases various exhibits and displays.Medal of Honor recipientAudie Murphy, born in Hunt County and worked in Greenville before entering the military, is honored at the museum. The museum also showcases cotton, as cotton was Hunt County's largest cash crop in the early 20th century, and the museum features a "History of Cotton" exhibit.
The economy of Northeast Texas is primarily centered within theTyler andLongview metropolitan statistical areas, the latter within the Ark-La-Tex region alongside theTexarkana metropolitan area. Within the Tyler and Longview conurbation,Brookshire Grocery Company operates as a multistate conglomerate owning Brookshire's and Super1Foods;[24] other major corporations with a presence in the area includeSynthesizers.com,Eastman Chemical,[25]AAON Coil Products,AT&T, andWalmart.
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Northeast Texas has a number of higher-education institutions, includingThe University of Texas at Tyler,East Texas A&M University,Texas A&M University at Texarkana,Stephen F. Austin State University located in Nacogdoches,East Texas Baptist University,LeTourneau University, eight public and two private community colleges, a branch of theTexas State Technical College at Marshall, three historically black colleges,[26] and a number of church-affiliated private institutions. The public colleges and universities of the region also collaboratively provide degree and course opportunities through the Northeast Texas Consortium of Colleges and Universities.
The community colleges of Northeast Texas share a history of emerging from the "junior college" movement of schools focused on providing the first two years of the college degree. Although most added technical programs with associate of applied science degrees following the community college movement of the 1960s, the schools still place a strong emphasis on liberal arts and the academic associate of arts and associate of science degree programs. They often include the full range of college sports, including football, and host dormitories, and are known for their "high kicking" drill teams. Community colleges in the region includeKilgore College,Paris Junior College,Northeast Texas Community College near Mt. Pleasant,Texarkana College,Panola College in Carthage,Tyler Junior College,Trinity Valley Community College in Athens and with campuses in Terrell and Palestine, andAngelina College in Lufkin. Jacksonville hosts the two smaller private two-year colleges of the region,Jacksonville College (Baptist) andLon Morris College.
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Interstate 20.svg)
Interstate 30.svg)
Interstate 369
U.S. Highway 59
U.S. Highway 67
U.S. Highway 69
U.S. Highway 79
U.S. Highway 80
U.S. Highway 82
U.S. Highway 84
U.S. Highway 175
U.S. Highway 259
U.S. Highway 271
U.S. Highway 287{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)