Pineland

Like many Sabine County communities, Pineland was established as a result of the arrival of the logging industry to the east Texas pine forests. A lumber camp was first recorded at this site along the route of the newly-constructed Gulf, Beaumont & Great Northern Railway in 1902. The settlement was first known as John Adams’ Mill, after a miller who had recently arrived from Alabama, but it soon came to be known as Pineland. The railroad established a passenger and freight station in Pineland, causing the settlement to rapidly grow. The lumber business continues to drive the economy of the town.

A post office was opened in Pineland in 1904, and Walter Everett served as the first postmaster. By 1907 a commercial sawmill began operations in Pineland, and after three years of operation T.L.L. Temple purchased the mill to add to the Temple Lumber Company. In its early years, Pineland was populated almost exclusively by mill workers and their families. The town grew to 1,500 residents by 1925 and incorporated in 1941.

The Pineland State Bank was organized in 1957, and other businesses established in Pineland during the 1960s included a hospital and a supermarket. A library and the Pineland Service Club were also formed, and Pineland Day was first held in 1957.

Pineland Independent School District was formed in 1917, and operated until 1961, when it consolidated with the Bronson Schools to form the West Sabine Independent School District. The African American school in Pineland was added to the district in 1966, and the district continues to serve the community.