The first train carload of rose bushes ships
The first train carload of rose bushes was shipped in 1917, to eastern markets.
By the 1940s, more than half of the nation’s rose bushes were grown within ten miles of Tyler.
Tyler no longer grows half the nation’s roses; the local industry has since shifted largely from growing roses to processing them.
Note
The share of the nation’s rose bushes is a 1940s figure, and no longer holds.
Sources
- Handbook of Texas: Rose Industrytshaonline.org
- Tyler Today magazine: Nix Roses, end of an eratylertodaymagazine.com
- Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TXtshaonline.org
- National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (Diane E. Williams, July 2000), THC Atlasatlas.thc.texas.gov
In 1917 the first rail car load was shipped to eastern markets.
- KTRE, 2021-01-25: Mark in Texas History: Smith County Rose Industryktre.com
Checked October 15, 2026. How the cards are filed