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Site is on 1835 James Hoggatt grant from Mexico. As late as 1890s, small tracts were homesteaded here. Named for Fox Winnie (1843-1927), a contractor and investor of Newton, Kans., who with L. P. Featherstone in 1895 built Gulf & Interstate Railway through the area. An 1896 storm destroyed G. & I. R. rail bed. The train, caught in Galveston, waited three years to make return run through Winnie to Beaumont. Winnie Loan & Improvement Company sold acreage and town lots from its offices in Galveston, 1896-1911. Late 1800s economy, based on raising of rice, cattle, fruit, and cotton, suffered from 1895 snow, hurricanes in 1896, 1900, and later, and a severe freeze in 1916. Pioneer religious worship, held in homes, was led by such settlers as the Rev. T. W. White, a Presbyterian. Churches were built by Baptist, Church of christ, First Assembly of God, Latter Day Saints, Methodist, and Roman Catholic congregations. The one-room early school evolved into a system with several buildings. Site of Chambers County sub-courthouse, Winnie benefits from payrolls of petroleum and chemical industries, and rice, beef, and catfish farming. Great annual celebration is the Texas Rice Festival. |
