Hope

Hope, at the intersection of State Highway 111 and U.S. Highway 77, six miles from Yoakum in southwestern Lavaca County, was named for Hope's trading post. The community was established before the Texas Revolution and is located in Precinct Four, the only dry area in the county. The town reached its height in population just before the Civil War. During the war 100 volunteers from Hope enlisted in the Confederate Army, but only seven returned. A Methodist church was started in 1845 in a log hut on Scarbrough's Branch with twenty-three German founding members. It was moved to a two-acre site on Clark's Creek donated by Christopher Hornberg in 1856; worship services were in German. Charles Martin Hornberg, a son of Christopher, was an ordained minister and served the church at one time. This Methodist church was established in Hope in 1889 with a membership of about 100; at that time it was the only church in the community. The Shiloh Baptist Church, established in 1885, was consolidated with the Mount Herman church; a building was erected at Hope in 1896, after which the church adopted the name of the town and became Hope Baptist Church.

Hope's post office and its first schoolhouse were both built in 1857; the post office closed in 1906. The schoolhouse was constructed of logs and had high steps to keep wild hogs, common in the area before 1900, out of the building. A schoolhouse built in 1902 had been out of use for several years by 1987. In 1948 Hope had a store, a school, two churches, and a population of fifty. In 1986 it had two stores, two churches, and a reported population of ten. The two churches were both attended by people from nearby Yoakum. The remaining citizens of Hope had pooled their resources to purchase the old schoolhouse from the school district so that it could be restored and used as a community center. Another community center, a large white building owned in 1986 by Tom Brown, was used for country and western music performances the first Saturday of every month and for dominoes on the remaining Saturdays. In 1990 the population of Hope was recorded as forty-five. The population remained the same in 2000.

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C. Dijkman | © TSHA

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Adapted from the official Handbook of Texas, a state encyclopedia developed by Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). It is an authoritative source of trusted historical records.

Belongs to

Hope is part of or belongs to the following places:

Currently Exists

Yes

Place type

Hope is classified as a Town

Associated Names

  • (Buchell's Store)

Location

Latitude: 29.21663890
Longitude: -96.99776190

Has Post Office

No

Is Incorporated

No

Population Count, 2009

45