New Columbia

New Columbia was on the Sabine River eight miles east of Burkeville and seventy-five miles northeast of Beaumont in eastern Newton County. It was laid out in the early days of the Republic of Texas and became a thriving riverport town, with a store, several warehouses and homes, a gin, and a racetrack. Accounts in 1865 describe the Sabine River crossing at New Columbia as good. The pine forests, however, made agriculture difficult, and New Columbia struggled until the rapid expansion of the East Texas lumber industry at the turn of the twentieth century.

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.