James K. Beene settled in this area in 1845 and established a post office called Flora in 1849. John and Delila Austin and their daughter and son-in-law, Mary and Willis Jones, bought adjacent farms in 1850. Flora community grew up around their properties on the Dallas-Shreveport Road. By 1853, James Monroe Luckey had opened Flora's first store and Carmel Baptist Church was organized nearby. The first sale of a town lot in Flora was recorded in 1855. By 1860 the town boasted three doctors, two blacksmiths, a Masonic lodge and three stores. The hardships of the Civil War years brought about the decline of the thriving community. By 1871 all the businesses were gone, the Masonic lodge had moved to Garden Valley, and Flora became a ghost town. (2001)
Site of Flora
The roadside stories worth pulling over for.
Site of Flora is a historical marker in Lindale vicinity, Smith County, dedicated in 2001. It is one of 90 historical markers documented in Smith County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 272 historic sites cataloged across the county.
The site sits at 32.5530, -95.4615 near Lindale vicinity. The nearest cataloged historic site is Duck Creek Soil Erosion Project (historical marker), about 0.3 miles away. Others within a short drive include Carmel Cemetery, Vial-Fragoso Trail, and Tate-Bundy.
This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5423012385. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.
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