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Hosston
A. J. Peace owned much of
the community’s land in the 1840’s; the Hamilton family
operated a plantation just west of Hosston. The early
growth and development of the community stems from the
work of George W. Hale and John S. Jolley. These men
came here as overseers for the Hamilton plantation.
Jolley later bought a large portion of the plantation,
but Hale bought a section of land from the government
and established his own community.
1
It was founded as a farming community in the 1870s.
2
Jolley built the first bridge on Black Bayou, and this
was the forerunner of the present-day bridge on Hosston
Road.
3
He referred to it as Hale, Louisiana, and
it was located about a mile northwest of the present
community where he operated a ferry, Hale’s Landing, on
Black Bayou. The aforementioned Black Bayou Bridge,
which connects Hosston and Vivian, stands at the
original landing site on the
Red River.
4
Hale built the first cotton gin in the area, operated
the post office, and opened a store. One of his sons
served as the postmaster, while another was a mail
carrier.
5
Nathan Hoss had moved to the area from
Tennessee in the 1840’s and spent time in
Greenwood,
Blanchard, and Shreveport; He married Martha Hearne and
they had three sons: Jacob, Andrew, and James M. Hoss,
Sr.. Nathan died in the
yellow fever epidemic of 1873,
but his widow and children continued to live in the
area. James M. Hoss, Sr. moved Hosston from Rodessa in
1880 and farmed some of the family-owned land.6
James M. Hoss gave the town its name.
7
He married Emma Tyson. He was a farmer, owning a large
plantation. James also operated a general store until he
was shot over a ten dollar debt.
8
The Hoss family donated land for the
railroad, as well as for public streets. James Hoss gave
the railroad the right-of-way through his property, and
after his death the following year, his widow, Emma, and
his son, James M. Hoss, Jr., signed the dedication
papers for the town in 1902.
9
The first depot was built three years later; the first
ticket was sold on July 22, 1905. Russell P. Cherry
served as the first depot agent.
10
The railroad gave the community lumber,
cotton, and petroleum production. Timber was cut from
the area and used for railroad ties. A sawmill was built
in Hosston at the end of the 1800’s and operated well
into the new century.
11
In its early years Hosston’s wood yards supplied
steamers.
12
Dr. Ernest Cather moved to Clinton,
Louisiana in 1903. Three years later, he moved to
Hosston, where he set up his practice. Many families in
the community were poor and could not pay him money so
they paid him with homemade syrup.
13
The first post office in the community
was on the Hale tract of land and stayed on that site
until 1900. It was moved to the land that later became
Hosston on May 27, 1901. D. R. Allen served as the
postmaster.
14
In 1908 Ernest McKinney became the postmaster, serving
for six years. Hugh McKinney, his brother, succeeded
him.
15
 Although the first gin in Hosston was not
built until 1906, a gin was located in the area in 1870.
16
A second gin was built in 1913.
17
 The area school was in Caddo Prairie, and
had been established in 1872. A school was established
in Hosston in 1900, and a one-room building was
constructed four years later. A larger school was built
in 1914 and the high school was built in 1920.
18
The present two-story school was built in 1931. At first
it had eleven grades, but it became an elementary school
when North Caddo High School in Vivian was built.
19
Students from Mira were bussed to Hosston to attend
tenth and eleventh grades.
20
Oil has been important to the
community after the first well was drilled in 1908.
Bayou State Oil Corporation was organized in 1926, and
an accompanying oil refinery was
built in 1928.
21
The Hosston Garden Club was
organized in 1935 by women of Hosston and of the
communities of
Gilliam and
Mira. During World War II,
the women sewed and made bandages for the war effort. It
was reorganized in 1959 and became part of the
Shreveport Federated Council and the Louisiana
Federation of Garden Clubs.
22
 The congregation of the
Hosston Baptist Church, organized in 1906, first
worshipped in a large room which had a bell tower. This
structure was at the present site of the Hosston Baptist
Church. The Methodists used this building until they
built their own church. A new brick building was
constructed, and the first service in it was on October
17, 1927. The church used a rain water tank for its
water system until 1952 when a deep well was dug and
plumbing installed. The present building was built in
1986, with its dedication on May 4 of that year.
23
References
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