Texla

Texla is a ghost town in northern Orange County, Texas, situated in the southeastern corner of the state. It lies northwest of the city of Orange and just west of Mauriceville. The community began under a different name altogether — the post office that opened in 1905 operated as Bruce, a designation honoring postmaster Charles G. Bruce. Lumber was the engine of early activity here, with the Harrell-Votaw Lumber Company among the first sawmill operations to take root, aided by access to the Orange and Northwestern Railway. The R. W. Wier Lumber Company, based out of Houston, followed the next year.

Today Texla exists in name only, and visitors will find little physical evidence of its former sawmill-era life. The flat, forested landscape of southeastern Texas surrounds the site. Those drawn to vanishing places in the region can pass through, but should expect no preserved structures or formal access points — this is quiet, rural countryside rather than a developed heritage site.