Historic Palestine

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Writing a book is a community project—and in a place like Palestine, Texas, the help and support and encouragement throughout
such an endeavor is truly abundant simply because the people are so kind and generous with their time and talent. Therefore, very
special thanks go to Museum Director Dan Dyer; Joy and Richard Phillips; Stuart Whitaker, who painstakingly scanned every Museum
photograph in this book; African-American historian and friend June McCoy; Celsey Rodgers and Bhavil Patel; Theresa Holden at the
Palestine Public Library; and Museum archivist and friend Lizzi Langenkamp.
The writings of Norris White, Bob Bowman, Beverly Odom, Louise Goff, James Smith, Bonnie Woolverton, Mike Thomason, Jack
Selden, and June Welch were rich with detail, while the voluminous narratives of Mary Kate Hunter and the work of courthouse historian
James Neyland and Palestine historian Carl Avera were invaluable in their telling of the history of the area and providing a clear
understanding of its many nuances and personal stories. Throughout the book, many of the earliest and most descriptive quotes about
Palestine and its people come from the pens of both Carl Avera and Mary Kate Hunter and are noted in the text.
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Mary Kate Hunter, c. 1930. Hunter was born outside Palestine in 1866 and tirelessly “recorded, promoted and preserved” much of the Palestine and Anderson County’s first century
through detailed interviews regarding its people, places and events. She was a student at the Palestine Female Academy and became an accomplished pianist. She was also a charter
member of the city’s Self-Culture Club and organized Palestine’s Equal Suffrage Association. Upon her death in 1945, she left her vast collection of historical materials to the Palestine
Public Library, where it remains today in the Mary Kate Hunter Special Collections Room.
COURTESY OF THE MUSEUM FOR EAST TEXAS CULTURE.
A c k n o w l e d g m e n t s ✦ 3