Region: Gulf Coast
In the late 1800s, Arthur Stillwell, owner of the Port Arthur Townsite
Company, constructed a railroad from Kansas City to Lake Sabine and gave many of
the towns along the way Dutch names because of financial backing from Holland.
It was his hope that Nederland become a Dutch settlement. While many Dutch did
settle here, people also came from other parts of Texas and the United States.
On Dec. 24, 1897, Robert Gilham, civil engineer, filed a certificate describing
the finished survey for the Nederland town site. Rice farming, truck farming and
dairy farming played an important role in the settlement. But growth began in
earnest with discovery of the Spindletop Oil Field, just seven miles north, in
1901. See BEAUMONT.