Railroads built Longview — and Gregg County

The Southern Pacific Railroad established Longview in 1870 and the town incorporated in 1871. By 1872, multiple rail lines ran through the area, and towns including Kilgore and Gladewater grew up along those routes. By the late 1870s, Longview had become a hub with railroad shops, a plow factory, and a box factory.

Before oil, cotton occupied about half of the county's cultivated land and timber fed the sawmills. The railroads made it possible to ship both. Longview's identity as a regional commercial hub grew from those early rail connections. The Handbook of Texas is the best source for detailed railroad and economic history of the county.