Commerce Texas

1404 Washington Street,

Commerce, Texas 75428

903-886-6373

1-888-878-6312

Serving the real estate needs of Commerce, Texas and outlying areas of Hunt County for over 40 years.

Welcome to

Commerce Texas

"Bois D'arc Capital of Texas"

Commerce Texas is at the juncture of State Highways 50, 24, 224, and 11 in the northeast corner of Hunt County; and about 15 miles north of I-30 on Highway 50. It is 15 miles from Greenville . William Jernigan opened a mercantile store in partnership with Josiah Hart Jackson in nearby Cow Hill on what is now the northeast corner of the town square. The name "Commerce" apparently came from Jernigan sending his freight to commerce, since the community had no name. In 1885, Commerce incorporated. In 1887, the St. Louis Southwestern Railway ( the Cotton Belt) connected Commerce with Sherman, Texarkana and Ft. Worth. The Texas Midland Railway additionally linked Commerce with Ennis and Paris when it came to Commerce in the 1890's. In 1894, Commerce became a college town when William L. Mayo moved his East Texas Normal College from Cooper to Commerce, both to benefit from the railway service and to collect a $1000 bonus paid by the city.

Commerce had a flour mill, cottonseed oil mill, four cotton gins, a roundhouse rail yard and machine shops, and four banks, by the early 1910's. East Texas Normal College had an enrollment of about 900 and the population of Commerce was near 3000. East Texas Normal College became a part of the state college system in 1917. Commerce continued to grow into the 1950's, albeit more slowly after about 1930. In the early 1950's the roundhouse was abandoned, followed shortly thereafter by discontinuation of passenger service. The population of Commerce fell slightly between 1950 and 1960, but still remained just under 6000. In 1965, East Texas State College became a university and began to replace cotton and railroad as Commerce's economic base. In 1956, the Commerce Industrial Development Association was formed, and began to attract manufacturers. By 1970, Commerce's population peaked at 9534. The enrollment at ETSU peaked in 1975 at 10,000, although the decline stopped by the late 1980's.

In the 1990, East Texas State University became part of the Texas A&M University system and again changed its name to Texas A&M University - Commerce (TAMU-C). Commerce is the second largest town in Hunt County. Current population of Commerce is near 7600. Current enrollment at TAMU-C is about 8500.

Commerce may be small, but we do have a movie theater, 17 restaurants, 3 hotels, 2 bed and breakfasts, and numerous other retail establishments and civic organizations. Visit us during our September festival, the Bois D'arc Bash and enjoy all kinds of entertainment, food and craft vendors on the historic town square. Please visit the following links to find out more of the diversity in small town Commerce.