Books

Texas Riverman-The Life and Times of Captain Andrew Smyth

by William Seale
This is a life-and-times biography of Captain Andrew Smyth, whose life spanned the history of Texas river transportation and commerce from the 1830s to the 1770s in Jasper County, Texas. With references to Richard Seale founder of Dixie Baptist Church.

Love Cemetery

Unburying the Secret History of Slaves

by China Galland

Lost, forgotten, and unnamed cemeteries lie hidden all throughout East Texas. This is the story of one such cemetery in Harrison County, Texas.

Juneteenth    by Ralph Ellison                                                                                                                                             

Jasper, Texas: The Community Photographs of Alonzo Jordan by Alan Govenar                                           

Tales From the Big Thicket

by Frances E. Abernehy

Abernethy presents the history and folklore of the Big Thicket and its people, including a collection of Alabama-Coushatta tales, a search for hidden Jayhawkers during the Civil War, a nineteenth-century travel account, and a family history of the legendary Hooks.

Paddling the Wild Neches

by Richard M. Donovan

With the goal of keeping the Neches flowing free, East Texas native and riverman Richard M. Donovan takes readers canoeing down a two-hundred-mile stretch of the upper Neches. Through two national forests and mile after mile of remote river woodlands, he chronicles the river’s natural and cultural history, describes its animal inhabitants, recounts stories of early settlers and East Texas hunting traditions, and calls attention to the recreational potential of the river for paddlers and others, whether residents or visitors.

Arvetta

by Herman Wright and Jamie Carter Bollich

• "Arvetta" is historical fiction chronicling the early life of Arvetta Barnett, a black child growing up in Southeast Texas in the early 1900s. The precocious youngster yearns to become a teacher but faces daunting obstacles to achieving her goal. The real-life Arvetta was the grandmother of one of the book's authors, Herman Wright, and his co-author Jamie Carter Bollich is his distant cousin. "Arvetta" includes many true events in the history of the biracial Wright family of Jasper County, Texas. Among its themes and topics are racial reconciliation, freedom colonies, Rosenwald Schools, and the importance of education. Its message is one of hope, redemption and triumph over racism.