“Downtown Palestine is worth saving as a grand memory in our minds forever. It’s full of great history, color, and great worth,” says Palestine Seventh-grader Madeline Moran.
Madeline was announced as the winner of the 2020 Save Texas History Essay Contest. Sponsored by the Texas General Land Office’s Save Texas History Program, Texas students were asked to answer the question, “What history in your community is worth saving?” Madeline selected historic downtown Palestine as the setting and focus of her essay. She writes that walking in downtown Palestine “makes you feel fuzzy, warm, and special because you are part of such of an astounding history-filled town.”
She details the history of Palestine and describes some of her favorite buildings, such as the Anderson County Courthouse, the Texas Jailhouse, and the Texas Theatre. Her teacher, Mr. Norris White, said he left the essay topics up for the students to decide. When asked why she chose downtown to focus on, Madeline said it’s where she loves to be. Her hope for this essay was to illustrate downtown so that people would want to see it for themselves.
Madeline attends UT Tyler University Academy in Palestine, Texas.
See below for a link to the complete essay: