Author of Trammel’s Trace book visits Linden

By Randy Grider
randy@casscountynow.com

Gary L. Pinkerton, held a book-signing and discussion of Trammel’s Trace at the Cass County Courthouse Saturday afternoon. Pinkerton was the featured speaker following the Linden Heritage Foundation’s annual meeting.
The Houston resident spent a great deal of time in Cass County over the past decade as he researching his book, Trammel’s Trace: The First Road to Texas from the North. Part of the road ran through western Cass County.
Trammel’s Trace was an early 19th century pathway that first brought smugglers from the United States into Spanish Texas and later settlers and historical figures like Sam Houston, James Bowie and Davy Crockett.
“It was really nice coming back here to Cass County,” Pinkerton said. “It helps bring a lot of closure to the history of the trace. 
“But the ongoing story is still trying to find the remains. There has always been parallel interest during the development of the book -- the history and what’s present now. And so now I get to concentrate on what’s present now.”
Pinkerton’s book tells the story of the 180-mile long road, which included two starting points -- Fulton, Ark. and Pecan Point in present day Red River County -- to Nacogdoches, where it connected to the east-west El Camino Real. Trammel’s Trace was named for Nicholas Trammell, a Tennessee native, who was a controversial character when he helped carve out portions of the road from existing Native American trails.
Pinkerton first got interested in Trammel’s Trace when he learned as an adult that portion of the road was on the [Pinkerton] family farm near Mt. Enterprise where he played as a child.
He began reading and researching the road and the more he learned, the more his passion grew. 
Soon he was meeting with landowners across East Texas, documenting the original route. He utilized diaries, old maps, land surveys, satellite photos and mapping software to discover portions of Trammel’s Trace that can still be seen in many areas due to the indentions in the landscape. 
Pinkerton spent about an hour presenting interesting facts about history of the road as well as its namesake. He highlighted portion of the road that passed through Cass County, pointing out areas where the remnants of the road can still be seen. 
Most of it crosses private lands.
In this area, Trammel’s Trace ran north to south along two routes (from Pecan Point and Fulton)  that converged south of the Sulphur River near the old settlement of Old Unionville in western Cass County. Fording two areas of the river, it continued toward present day Hughes Spring, Jefferson, Marshall and points south.
Pinkerton said more sections of the road are still to be discovered in the county.
“I discovered one section of it this morning in Hughes Springs,” Pinkerton said. 
“We identified a section of trace that matches up exactly with where we were looking. That happens with contact with landowners and happened as the result of a talk I did over there.”