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Published: February 21st 2020
According to the Cherokee County book, John Dial was a Civil War hero for the South serving under General "Stonewall" Jackson, then under General A P Hill. Later Dial served under General Robert E Lee all the way to Appomattox, Virginia. After that bad war John Dial returned to his homestead and found that General Sherman destroyed his home and farm. Dial then moved to Texas.
According to TexasExcapes.com, in 1866 John J Dial arrived NW of Rusk, Texas and started farming.
In 1882 the Kansas and Gulf Short Line Railroad reached Dial's area. In 1883 John deeded eight acres of his land to the railroad so they added a railroad stop there. Dial opened a general store there by the railroad. John applied for a Post Office in Dial, Texas in 1885; but there was already a Dial, Texas Post Office elsewhere. So later that year the Post Office for Dialville was accepted.
(In 1875 the Old Rusk Tramway was built just North of Dialville for $47,500 USD, built on pine wooden rails. The Tramway had major problems and could not hold much weight. In 1879 the Tramway closed and was sold for about $90 USD.)
Things did not work out well economically for Dialville until about 1897; then a produce market (mostly tomatoes and peaches) boomed with shipping out the produce to East Texas that brought prosperity to the area. In 1899 a school opened and the town grew. The USA Great Depression of the 1920s and 1930s caused the local businesses to close, and the Post office closed permanently; and Dialville was de-funked. They never removed the Dialville signs.
The Cherokee guide told me that in the late 1940s there was seven sycamore trees planted in front of the stores in downtown Dialville. Only one tree remains today, and it is very hollow inside; waiting for a big wind to blow the tree over.
My Cherokee County guide has a farm South of Dialville. He owns an old abandoned railroad going to Dialville (no remaining artifacts). He also owns an old abandoned county road going to Dialville. I helped cutting up the fallen trees to keep open the old trails...and I got free firewood.
Now there are about fifty people living at or near the old town of Dialville. They get their water and mail from nearby Oakland, Texas; that is
South of Dialville and West of Rusk, Texas on US Hwy 84.
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