Hawkins is a city in Wood County. It is located at the junction of US 80 and FM 14. In 1873, the town was granted a post office and a railway was built. But even before that, the city has been doing great since it was near a river junction to Belzora, a port and stagecoach crossing on the Smith County side of the Sabine River. By 1884, the city ships lumber, shingles, cotton, and livestock, on top of its numerous businesses. Hawkins became an overnight boomtown in 1940 when the former lightweight boxer Bobby Manziel made the first major oil discovery in the county. Two independent contractors soon hit oil within the city’s limits. As a result, the land prices soared high and were sold for anywhere from $500 to $10,000. To date, the community still celebrates its oil-based economy with an Oil Festival. As of 2010, its population was 1,278.
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