Historical Marker

Raines, C. W.

Mineola · Wood County · Dedicated 2001 · THC Atlas #5499012615

The roadside stories worth pulling over for.

Marker Inscription

A native of Upson County, Georgia, Cadwell Walton Raines (1839-1906) contributed to Texas history as a Methodist preacher, schoolteacher, attorney, newspaper publisher, county official, historian and state librarian. He first came to this state in 1853 with his parents, Thomas and Aletha (McClendon) Raines, and lived in Rockwall and Paris before enlisting in the Confederate army in 1861 under Richard Montgomery Gano. Following the war, Raines married Mary Bowden in 1871 and, after a period spent as a preacher in Arkansas, he began practicing law in Canton (about 20 mi. SW). There he became acquainted with future governor James Stephen Hogg and entered the newspaper business. Hogg sent him here to Mineola to begin publishing The Mineola Hawkeye in 1880. By 1884, the Raines' lived in Quitman (10 mi. N), where C. W. taught at the Concord Academy. He was elected Wood County Judge in 1886 and served two terms. Upon taking office as Texas' first native governor in 1891, Jim Hogg appointed C. W. Raines as state librarian. Serving in that capacity from 1891 to 1895 and again from 1899 until his death in 1906, Raines led the state library through a substantial period of growth and began its Texana collection. Among his many and varied accomplishments, Raines also was a historian, the author of numerous reference books and journal articles, and a co-founder of the Texas State Historical Association. (2001)

About this site

Raines, C. W. is a historical marker in Mineola, Wood County, dedicated in 2001. It is one of 75 historical markers documented in Wood County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 151 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.6625, -95.4899 near Mineola. The nearest cataloged historic site is Mineola (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Site of Coleman Family Drug Store and Clinic, Railroads in Mineola, and First National Bank Building.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5499012615. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.

📍 32.6625, -95.4899 · Mineola, Wood County
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