James Postell Douglas (born

Lancaster Lancaster may refer to: Lands and titles *The County Palatine of Lancaster, a synonym for Lancashire *Duchy of Lancaster, one of only two British royal duchies *Duke of Lancaster *Earl of Lancaster *House of Lancaster, a British royal dynasty ...

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, January 7, 1836; died Texas, November 27, 1901) was a soldier, politician, and businessman in the state of Texas. He is regarded as the founder of the

Cotton Belt Route The St. Louis Southwestern Railway Company , known by its nickname of "The Cotton Belt Route" or simply "Cotton Belt", was a Class I railroad that operated between St. Louis, Missouri, and various points in the U.S. states of Arkansas, Tennessee ...

, a major railroad system connecting Texas and Arkansas north to St. Louis, Missouri. Douglas' parents Alexander and Margaret Douglas moved their family from South Carolina to Talladega,

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in 1838 and then to Texas in 1847, settling in Tyler in 1848. After his father died in 1854, Douglas supported the family by working as a school principal while reading law. In 1859 he purchased half-ownership in the ''Tyler Reporter'' newspaper (now the ''Tyler Courier-Times'') and became its editor. After the Civil War broke out, Douglas helped raise a battery of artillery and became a first lieutenant. The only battery of Texas artillery to serve east of the Mississippi River, the First Texas Battery saw action throughout the war. Douglas was promoted to captain in July 1862. The battery was paroled in May 1865 in Mobile,

and Douglas returned to Texas. Douglas returned to being a newspaper editor. In 1870 he was elected to the

Texas Senate The Texas Senate is the upper house of the Texas Legislature, with the Texas House of Representatives functioning as the lower house. Together, they form the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the state of Texas. The Senate ...

, where he was a strong opponent of

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Railroad ventures

Douglas owned farms and canneries around Tyler (as well as possibly the first peach orchard in East Texas) and was interested in finding better outlets for his produce. Douglas petitioned the Texas legislature for a railroad charter in 1870, and the legislature granted one at the end of 1871. After many difficulties in raising sufficient funds in Reconstruction Texas, construction finally began in 1875 and the railroad began operation in 1877. This was the Tyler Tap, basis of the later Cotton Belt Route. Douglas was still unable to pay off his investors, and so he organized a new venture with businessmen from St. Louis, the Texas and St. Louis. The Texas and St. Louis was to extend the Tyler Tap to

Texarkana The Texarkana metropolitan statistical area (MSA), as defined by the United States Office of Management and Budget, is a two-county region anchored by the Twin cities (geographical proximity), twin cities of Texarkana, Texas (population 37,33 ...

to connect more directly to eastern markets. Douglas served as the first president of the Texas and St. Louis from 1879 to 1880, before becoming involved with a different railroad scheme. In 1880 Douglas became the first president of the Texas and Gulf Short Line Railroad, which proposed to connect Tyler to

Sabine Pass Sabine Pass is the natural outlet of Sabine Lake into the Gulf of Mexico. It borders Jefferson County, Texas, and Cameron Parish, Louisiana. History Civil War Two major battles occurred here during the American Civil War, known as the First an ...

on the Gulf of Mexico. The company shortened the task by purchasing an existing

horsecar A horsecar, horse-drawn tram, horse-drawn streetcar (U.S.), or horse-drawn railway (historical), is a tram or streetcar pulled by a horse. Summary The horse-drawn tram (horsecar) was an early form of public transport, public rail transport, ...

line which had track running to

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, Texas. Douglas remained president until 1883, at which point the railroad had 61 miles of track. All three railroads came under the control of

Jay Gould Jason Gould (; May 27, 1836 – December 2, 1892) was an American railroad magnate and financial speculator who founded the Gould family, Gould business dynasty. He is generally identified as one of the Robber baron (industrialist), robber bar ...

around 1890 and were organized into the Cotton Belt Route or St. Louis Southwestern Railroad. In 1889 Douglas and some associates organized a smaller scale enterprise - the Tyler Street Railroad Company. By 1891 the company had about 3 miles of track and 4 mule-drawn cars. The line apparently shut down in 1894, perhaps a victim of the

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Family and legacy

Douglas married twice. He married his first wife, Sallie Susan White, on March 24, 1864; she died August 22, 1872. They had four children together. He married his second wife Alice Earle Smith on July 7, 1874, and they had six children. She survived him by many years, dying June 28, 1955. In 1952 she was presented with a special 75 year service pin by the president of the Cotton Belt Route, in memory of her husband's part in the founding of the line. The Tyler branch of the

Sons of Confederate Veterans The Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) is an American neo-Confederate nonprofit organization of male descendants of Confederate soldiers that commemorates these ancestors, funds and dedicates monuments to them, and promotes the pseudohisto ...

is named in his honor, as is the Douglas Elementary School in Tyler.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Douglas, James Postell 1836 births 1901 deaths People from Tyler, Texas Texas state senators 19th-century American railroad executives Confederate States Army officers People from Lancaster, South Carolina Military personnel from Texas 19th-century members of the Texas Legislature

Railroad ventures

Family and legacy

Further reading

References