Mesquiteville

Jacksboro, the county seat of Jack County, is a prosperous agribusiness center located at the intersection of U.S. highways 281 and 380 in the approximate center of Jack County. Attracted by the offerings of the Texas Emigration and Land Office (see PETERS COLONY), settlers first arrived in the Jacksboro area in the mid-1850s. Along the banks of Lost Creek a small community of farmers took root and spread out over the pastureland between the river and the waters of the West Fork of Keechi Creek, south of the original settlement. As the distance from the original site increased and the number of buildings, including a church and schoolhouse, grew, the settlers began referring to the town taking shape as Mesquiteville. The town was chosen county seat in 1858 and renamed Jacksborough, or Jacksboro, in honor of William H. Jack and his brother Patrick, both veterans of the Texas Revolution. That year the first stagecoach arrived from the Butterfield Overland Mail; this service ran until early 1861. Regular postal service to the town began in 1859.

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