Everything Cleveland is known for
Songs written about the waterways and highways that run near Cleveland.
New Caney, Texas, sits comfortably in Montgomery County, a place that might seem quiet at first glance. But this little corner of the Houston metro has sent some impressive folks out into the world.
Cut and Shoot, Texas, might sound like a place ripped from a Western, and in some ways, it is. The name itself came from a 1912 dispute over who could preach at the local church, an argument that nearly came to knives. A young boy declared he was going to "cut around the corner and shoot through the bushes." The name stuck.
The story of Cut and Shoot is etched in the very timber that once defined this part of Montgomery County. It’s a story that begins with hardscrabble lives and a fierce independence. Back in the early days of the 20th century, disputes over those valuable timber rights turned neighbor against neighbor. The tension finally boiled over, as the story goes, when a young boy, caught in the middle of a heated argument, declared he was going to "cut around the corner and shoot through the bushes." The name stuck, a testament to the raw emotions that shaped the town's beginnings and a reputation that even caught the attention of Ripley's Believe It or Not. While the wild days are long gone, something of that spirit remains. Today, Cut and Shoot offers a slower pace of life, a friendly wave from folks you pass on the street. The roar of the sawmill has been replaced by the sounds of construction, as more and more families are drawn to the area. But the Friday night lights still shine bright, especially when the Cut and Shoot team faces off against Conroe.
Charles L. Cleveland, judge and Texas legislator, was born in Breckenridge County, Kentucky, on August 25, 1824, son of Jesse Alexander Harrison and Sarah (Lander) Cleveland. Following the death of Sarah Cleveland, Jesse Cleveland and his children moved to the future Brazoria County, Texas, in 1833 where Jesse made a reputation and a fortune for himself by inventing a reputedly successful treatment for yellow fever despite his lack of medical training. Charles went to work at the age of thirteen for one of the first newspapers in Texas, the Texas Republican . Later he worked for the Telegraph and Texas Register , published in Columbia (now known as West Columbia), which was then the seat of the Republic of Texas . Cleveland attended Rutersville College in Fayette County, Texas, and graduated with a Master of Arts degree in 1842. Upon graduation Charles Lander Cleveland moved to Galveston where his father was living and studied law with Judge Benjamin Cromwell Franklin . In 1845 or 1846 Cleveland was admitted to the bar at Liberty, Texas, where he maintained a practice for the next twenty-five years. Cleveland married Mary Ann Booker (Hardin) in 1849; the couple had nine children. In 1856 Cleveland was elected to the state legislature from Liberty County and served in the Sixth Legislature. Cleveland was a delegate to the Secession Convention from Liberty and Polk counties, and a signer of the ordinance of secession . Cleveland was elected judge of the First Judicial District in 1861and served on that bench until 1866 when he was removed as an impediment to Reconstruction . Judge Cleveland was also active in the Democratic party and was a delegate to the 1854 Democratic state convention from Liberty County and a Galveston delegate in 1873 and 1876. In 1871 Judge Cleveland left his practice in Liberty and moved permanently to Galveston where he formed a new partnership with Judge Asa Hoxie Willie . In 1886 Cleveland was appointed a federal judge for the special criminal district of Galveston and Harris counties, a position he would fill until his death. In addition to his legal career Judge Cleveland was a practicing Methodist and a high-ranking member of the Masons. He was a stockholder or sat on the board of directors for several Texas businesses including the Texas Banking and Insurance Corporation, Gulf Loan and Homestead Company, Southern Cotton Compress Company, Texas Cotton Press and Manufacturing Company, and the Galveston Gas Company. Cleveland was also Chairman of the Board of the Island City Protestant Orphans Home, later know as the Galveston Children's Home . Cleveland owned more than 50,000 unimproved acres of land in several central and west Texas counties. He donated the land on which a station for the Houston East and West Texas Railway was built on the condition that the station bear his name, and when the town, Cleveland, Texas, grew around the station, it adopted his name as well. Judge Charles Lander Cleveland died on February 9, 1892.
Lewis Buckner Hightower, Sr., legislator and judge, often known as "the Bear-Hunting Judge," was born on October 20, 1838, in Florence, Lauderdale County, Alabama, a son of John Oldham and Apphia (Allen) Hightower. The elder Hightower, an attorney, moved the family to Texas in 1842 and then to Lafayette County, Arkansas, in 1844. He served as a circuit court judge and as a member of the state legislature and was shot to death in Lewisville, Arkansas, in 1848. The younger Hightower moved to Texas and studied at Austin College in Huntsville and later at the Baylor Law School at Independence, graduating there in 1859. He then returned to Huntsville to open his law office, but his fledgling practice was quickly interrupted by the Civil War . Hightower first served with Company I, Bates's (Fourth) Regiment Texas Volunteers, and later Company I, Brown's (Thirty-fifth) Texas Cavalry Regiment. He was elected as its captain on March 27, 1863. After the war Hightower resumed his law practice and as a Democrat was elected in 1876 to the Texas legislature from Willis in Montgomery County; he served only one term. He later settled in the Gladstell community near Cleveland in northern Liberty County. He was appointed by Governor Lawrence S. (Sul) Ross to the Ninth Judicial District bench in July 1888, and then in November 1888 won election to the office over two challengers. He was never challenged again and held the office until his death. His most celebrated case came in August 1889, when Governor Ross appointed him as a visiting judge in Fort Bend County during the Jaybird-Woodpecker War . Hightower was a renowned bear hunter and was often known to dismiss court to make time for hunts. He is credited with having killed some 200 bears during his lifetime. He once explained, "I practice law for recreation and hunt bear for a livin'." Judge L. B. Hightower died at his home near Cleveland on January 13, 1918, and was buried in Wells Cemetery in Liberty County. He had been married four times and was the father of twenty children. In 1860 he married Sallie Riggins (d. 1863); in 1868, Cora A. Polk; in 1874, Jacquelina Moore (1852–1884); and in 1886, Jane Lockhart (1864–1945). Three of his sons held elective office: L. B. Hightower II, as chief justice of the Ninth Court of Civil Appeals (1916–32); Lockhart Valentine Hightower, as sheriff and county clerk of Liberty County; and T. J. (Tommy) Hightower, as district attorney and county judge of Liberty County.
After settling here in the 1890s, Noble Garvey (1875-1941) became a leading merchant, landowner, and bank president. Interested in civic improvement, he served on the city council and county planning board and was president of the Chamber of Commerce. He and his wife Lillian Henderson Garvey erected this spacious residence before 1915. Garvey selected the longleaf pine and other lumber from local mills. The Garvey home was the center of social life in early Cleveland. Originally located at College and Crockett Street, it was moved to this site in 1964. (1978)
The town of Cleveland traces its beginnings to 1878, when local attorney and politician Charles Lander Cleveland (1824-1892) deeded land to the Houston East and West Texas Railroad, stipulating the building of a railway depot and the establishment of a town to be named Cleveland. By 1879 the settlement boasted a sawmill, two boarding houses, railroad interests, and a number of homes. Churches and schools were established and the town continued to grow, with an economy based on timber and railroad industries. The city was officially incorporated in 1935. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836 - 1986
Cleveland is on U.S. Highway 59 forty miles northeast of Houston in northwestern Liberty County. The recorded history of the area began in 1836, when the General Land Office offered land in the county in exchange for military service. In 1854 Father Peter La Cour, who was evidently the first priest resident in the county, built a church and convent near the present townsite. The community formed after 1878, when Charles Lander Cleveland deeded 63.6 acres of land to the Houston, East and West Texas Railway with a request that a station bear his name. Since 1900 Cleveland has served as the junction of this line (now the Southern Pacific) and the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe (now the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe). The town was not incorporated until 1935. The forests around Cleveland, including Sam Houston National Forest , which is located just to its north, are a resort for many inhabitants of the Houston area, who come to camp, hike, hunt, and fish. Cleveland has several historic sites and public recreational facilities, including two parks. The Austin Memorial Library Center offers a wide range of services to the community, and a Little Theater and annual rodeo provide entertainment. Commercially, Cleveland has been a shipping point for timber, lumber, and lumber byproducts since the 1870s. Oil, gas, cattle, farm products, and sand and gravel are important to the town's economy. The general trend toward urbanization of the entire area is reflected by the fact that in 1965 Liberty County was added to the Houston Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population of Cleveland grew from 1,200 in 1930 to 5,977 in 1980. In the early 1980s an industrial park, new shopping centers, and new businesses were built to meet the growing demand. In 1990 the population was 7,124, and in 2000 it was 7,605.
In 1919, the Eagle Point Oil Company sold land which became the Louise Hardie Cleveland subdivision, a residential neighborhood north of the main commercial district of Cleveland. Hill and Sara Mcclanahan moved into this home in 1923. All three of their children were born in the front bedroom. Hill Mcclanahan operated a general store and grocery on Houston Street. In 1940 the Mcclanahans sold the house to W. H. Southward, who owned the property until 1967. The one-story, craftsman-style bungalow features a steeply pitched roof, tongue and groove siding and a prominent front porch with four unique support posts, each with a cypress trunk above a brick column. 				 Recorded Texas Historic Landmark – 2011
65 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.
Cleveland, Texas, sits on land that was once a dense pine forest, part of the vast wilderness that stretched across Southeast Texas. The Atascosito Road, an early Spanish trail, ran nearby, a whisper of civilization…
After settling here in the 1890s, Noble Garvey (1875-1941) became a leading merchant, landowner, and bank president. Interested in civic improvement, he served on the city council and county planning board and was…
You're driving past the Tom Hill House, built in 1923. This wasn't just any house; it was home to Thomas Coleman Hill, a respected leader in Cleveland. Hill owned a general store and insurance agency, served three terms…
The town of Cleveland traces its beginnings to 1878, when local attorney and politician Charles Lander Cleveland (1824-1892) deeded land to the Houston East and West Texas Railroad, stipulating the building of a railway…
Charles L. Cleveland, judge and Texas legislator, was born in Breckenridge County, Kentucky, on August 25, 1824, son of Jesse Alexander Harrison and Sarah (Lander) Cleveland. Following the death of Sarah Cleveland,…
Lewis Buckner Hightower, Sr., legislator and judge, often known as "the Bear-Hunting Judge," was born on October 20, 1838, in Florence, Lauderdale County, Alabama, a son of John Oldham and Apphia (Allen) Hightower. The…
Cleveland is on U.S. Highway 59 forty miles northeast of Houston in northwestern Liberty County. The recorded history of the area began in 1836, when the General Land Office offered land in the county in exchange for…
In 1919, the Eagle Point Oil Company sold land which became the Louise Hardie Cleveland subdivision, a residential neighborhood north of the main commercial district of Cleveland. Hill and Sara Mcclanahan moved into…
Cloverland, Texas, got its name honestly. Back in 1927, when the town was officially established, the fields around here just bloomed with clover. Not just patches of it, but thick carpets of the stuff, so the name…
You're driving past the final resting place of Andrew Jackson Isaacks, a man who lived a full life right here in Texas. Born in Mississippi way back in 1817, Isaacks fought in the Texas Revolution in 1835, helping to…
You're driving past the site of Oak Shade Baptist Church, a fellowship born from a meeting in a log schoolhouse way back in 1857. <break time="400ms"/> Missionaries from the Union Baptist Association saw the need for a…
You're driving through Liberty County, passing the area once known as Tarkington's Prairie. Back in the mid-1820s, Burton B. Tarkington and his wife Sarah left Indiana and settled here, west of the Trinity River. They…
You're cruising past what's left of Wells' Store, a hub for Tarkington's Prairie back in the day. Built around 1875 by D. W. Proctor & Company, this place wasn't just a store. It was the community's living room, a spot…
You're driving through Liberty County, near Cleveland, where you might see a unique piece of Texas history. Back around 1870, fourteen charter members founded the Rural Shade Baptist Church in the Tarkington's Prairie…
You're driving through Tarkington Prairie, a place that's been home to dispersed farming communities since the 1820s. But what's really interesting is how many schools sprung up here. From 1857 to 1957, there were…
You're driving through Shepherd, a town born from the Trinity River's trade and the arrival of the railroad. Originally near Old Drew's Landing, this area was a vital port for settlers shipping cotton and tobacco. But…
You're driving through Splendora, Texas, a town with a name as pretty as its origins. Back in the late 1800s, this place was just called Cox's Switch. But in 1896, the man who helped bring the railroad here, Charles…
You're driving past the site where John Cherry lived, a veteran of the Texas War for Independence. Born in Ohio in 1808, he arrived in Texas with his father back in 1818, settling near a Coushatta Indian village. In…
You're driving through Shepherd, Texas, a town named for the man who founded it: Benjamin Armistead Shepherd. He wasn't just a local merchant; Shepherd was a titan of Houston's early economy. Starting as a clerk, he…
You're driving through Shepherd, a town born from a railroad dream. In 1875, Houston banker B. A. Shepherd arrived here, near an old Coushatta Indian village, with plans to build a town along the proposed Houston, East…
You're driving through Shepherd, a town that owes its start to railroad barons and a banker named B. A. Shepherd. Right here, you're passing the site of the Shepherd Methodist Church, organized way back in 1882. The…
You're driving through Shepherd, Texas, in San Jacinto County. For over sixty years, this area was home to the Coushatta tribe. From about 1835 to 1900, they lived here, farming small plots and working for wages when…
You're driving past the Reinhardt Homestead, established in 1918 by Conrad Reinhardt. He and his wife Lillie Bell raised their family right here, living on the property until their deaths. The house you see, built…
New Caney, Texas, sits comfortably in Montgomery County, a place that might seem quiet at first glance. But this little corner of the Houston metro has sent some impressive folks out into the world.
You're driving through Cut and Shoot, Texas. This cemetery, New Bethlehem Cemetery, has served residents since the early 1900s, but it wasn't used at first. By the 1930s, area flooding made other cemeteries…
Cut and Shoot is one of the few American towns named for a sentence somebody almost yelled. In 1912, the little settlement east of Conroe was tearing itself apart over an argument inside the local church. The dispute…
You're driving through Grangerland, a community that owes its very name to Texas's oil boom. Back in the early 1930s, this area was mostly farmland and timber. But in late 1931, oil was struck nearby, kicking off a…
Cut and Shoot, Texas, might sound like a place ripped from a Western, and in some ways, it is. The name itself came from a 1912 dispute over who could preach at the local church, an argument that nearly came to knives.…
You're cruising through New Caney, Texas, a town with roots stretching back to the 1860s. It started as Presswood, named for a pioneer family who settled here in 1862, raising cattle on the open range. Then came the…
Romayor sits just a touch above the surrounding land, a subtle rise of 105 feet. That slight elevation makes all the difference in this part of Liberty County. The pine forests dominate, a sea of green stretching…
You're driving past the site of the Conroe oil field's most dramatic moment. Back in 1933, Standard Oil's Madeley No. 1 and No. 2 wells blew in, erupting into flames that shot 150 feet into the air! Firefighters battled…
You're driving through what is now San Jacinto County, near the Trinity River. Right here, in the early years of the Civil War, was Colita's Village, a major community of the Coushatta Indians. But in late 1862, it…
You're driving through what was once known as Shirt-tail Bend, a place named by river travelers for the long deerskin blouses worn by the Coushatta people who lived here. This land, now in San Jacinto County, was…
You're driving through the heart of Texas's oil country, and right here is where a titan of the industry got his start. Hines Holt Baker, Sr., born in tiny Big Valley back in 1893, would go on to lead Humble Oil and…
You're driving through East Texas, and right here, you're crossing paths with a piece of early Texas history: the Upper Coushatta Trace. This wasn't just any old trail; it was the 'wet-weather route' for early settlers,…
You're driving through land shaped by the East Fork of the San Jacinto River. Settlement began here in the mid-1820s, with pioneers drawn to its banks. By the 1840s, Sam Houston himself built his plantation, Raven Hill,…
You're driving through Waverly, Texas, a town with roots stretching back to the mid-1800s. Right here is where Henry Marshall Elmore, a planter and former judge, settled in 1856. But his real claim to fame, at least in…
You're driving through San Jacinto County, Texas, the birthplace of Robert Scott Lovett. Born right here in 1860, Lovett would go on to become a titan of the railroad industry. He started practicing law in Cold Springs…
You're driving near Coldspring, Texas, the hometown of Ervin S. Perry. Born right here in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="M d, Y">December 22, 1935</say-as>, Perry would go on to break major barriers. In <say-as…
You're driving through what was once Joseph Vehlein's colony in Texas, a place that became home to Revolutionary War veteran Robert Rankin. Rankin, who fought at Brandywine and Germantown, moved here in 1832 after…
You're driving through Coldspring, Texas, a town with a name that hints at its origin. Local legend says Joseph Graves named this spot for the cold, clear springwater he found here. The first post office, established in…
You're driving through San Jacinto County, a place named for the most famous battle in Texas history. But the county itself was officially born on August 13, 1870, carved out of four older Texas counties. Its new county…
You're driving through Polk County, Texas, and right here is where Larkin Green Cleveland lived. He was a farmer and merchant who became a Confederate officer during the Civil War. In 1863, Cleveland enlisted and was…
You're driving through Coldspring, a town that's worn a few names before settling on this one. Before it was Coldspring, this area was part of a Mexican land grant to an American Revolution veteran. The post office here…
You're driving past the site of what was once Hansbro's, a building erected way back in 1870. This structure holds a unique place in Coldspring's history. It was the very first building moved to the new town site after…
You're driving through Evergreen, and the United Methodist Church here has roots stretching way back. Organized around 1862, even before San Jacinto County was formed, it was first called Hickory Grove Methodist. Later…
You're cruising through Coldspring, and right here stands the old San Jacinto County Jail. Built in 1887, this wasn't just a place to lock folks up. The second floor held the cells, but the ground floor was the jailer's…
You're driving through San Jacinto County, near Coldspring, where you can find the resting place of General James Davis. Born in Virginia in 1790, Davis fought as a U.S. Army officer in the War of 1812, including the…
In December 1931 wildcatter George Strake completed his discovery well southeast of Conroe after geologists told him his 8,500 acres held no oil; his June 1932 second well proved the field ('Good for 10,000 Barrels Per…
You're driving past the site of the mighty Conroe Oil Field, a petroleum giant that changed Montgomery County forever. It all kicked off on December 13, 1931, with George Strake's discovery well. This wasn't just any…
You're driving past Oakwood Cemetery, established in the mid-1800s. The earliest marked grave here is John B. Mitchell, who died in 1853. This cemetery holds pioneers, leaders, and veterans of San Jacinto County.
Here in Porter, Texas, the land tells a story older than any of us. We're part of the Gulf Coastal Plain, which means we're built on layers of sediment washed down over millennia. Think sand and clay, the kind of stuff…
You're driving past the site of Council Hill, the former home of Vernon B. Lea. Lea was the brother of Texas legend Sam Houston's wife, Margaret Lea Houston. This spot was a significant meeting place. General Sam…
You're driving through East Texas, perhaps near Liberty County, where a remarkable leader named Colita once served the Coushatta people. Born in the mid-1700s, Colita became chief of the Texas Coushattas around 1838. He…
You're driving north of Liberty in Liberty County, passing through the quiet rural community of Concord. Its story really begins back in 1845, with the founding of the First Concord Baptist Church. Imagine this: Sam…
You're driving through what is now Liberty County, Texas, a place that saw action during the Texas Revolution. Samuel McClelland, an Irish immigrant, arrived here in 1835. He fought bravely at the Battle of San Jacinto…
You're driving through what was once Spanish Texas, and right here in Liberty County, you're passing through the territory of Henry William Munson. Born in Mississippi in 1793, Munson arrived in Texas as early as 1813.…
You're driving near Liberty, Texas, and right here, in the early days of the Republic, you were passing through the territory of Samuel Whiting. He arrived from Connecticut in 1825, quickly becoming a key player in the…
You're driving through what was once Tarkington Prairie, a community founded by Burton B. Tarkington in the mid-1820s. It sprung up near the old Nacogdoches-Lynchburg trail, a vital route connecting inland Texas to the…
You're driving through what was once Mexican Texas, a land of opportunity and hardship for early settlers. William Whitlock, one of Stephen F. Austin's original colonists, arrived here in 1824 with his family. They…
You're driving through Romayor, a community with roots stretching back before the Civil War. Originally called River, this spot on the Trinity River was home to sawmills and even Alabama and Coushatta Indian families in…
You're driving near Liberty, Texas, and right here is a treasure trove of Texas history. The Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, dedicated in 1977, preserves the stories of ten East Texas counties. It was…
You're driving through Liberty County, where the Trinity Valley and Northern Railway once served a vital purpose, primarily for the Dayton Lumber Company. Incorporated in 1906, this railway was built to haul lumber from…
You're in Huffman, one of the oldest communities in northeast Harris County. Its founder, Louisiana native David Huffman, fought in the Texas Revolution, and in 1838 the young Republic paid him twenty-four dollars and…
You're driving past what used to be the town of Grand Cane. In 1843, General Sam Houston himself built a home right here, living in it for two years. A post office opened in 1846, serving this growing community. The…