Arcola, Fort Bend County
In 1824, Old Three-Hundred settlers David Fitzgerald, Thomas Barnett and Moses Shipman received land grants in this area. Fitzgerald fought at Anahuac in 1832; Barnett signed the Texas Declaration of Independence. This location on the northeastern high bluff of Clear Lake, an ample supply of water for steam engines, led to the construction of railroads here by the mid-1800s. Duke was terminus of the Sugar Land Railway for loading sugarcane. The area developed as a major shipping point with a store, hotel, livestock pen, and sugar mills. It was named for Duke Hessey, the storekeeper. Duke had a post office from 1883 to 1922; the first Postmaster was J.R. Fenn. Today, Duke Cemetery is the only remnant of this once-thriving community. (2008)