Center Point, Camp County, Texas

Center Point is a ghost town settled in 1865 by freed slaves. It is located in Camp County in the U.S. state of Texas, southeast of Pittsburg at the intersection of Farm to Market Road 2057 and County Road 4247. Center Point is the birthplace of mezzo-soprano Barbara Smith Conrad. In 1979, Recorded Texas Historic Landmark number 9790 was designated to commemorate the founding of Center Point.
Settlement.
Center Point was settled by freed slaves in 1865 as one of the Freedman's settlements that resulted from the Emancipation Proclamation. The origin of the settlement's name is said to be from Farm to Market Road 2057 crossing County Road 4247. The Center Point Baptist Church was established in 1873. The community supported a brick kiln, sawmill and cotton gin.
School.
A one-room school established in 1887 served thirty-one black children, during each 100-day term. The school, however, was initially not a very good one. Later school bonds improvements brought the educational institution up in 1916 to a four-room building, raising the school quality to one of the best in Camp County by 1936. The first school principals on the 14-acre campus were Mr. and Mrs. L.B. Cash. At its peak, the school accommodated 279 students. Because of declining community population and, thereby, enrollment, the school consolidated with Pittsburg Independent School District in 1955. In 1996, Recorded Texas Historic Landmark number 9791 was designated to commemorate the school.
Cemetery.
The Texas Historical Commission had noted Center Point Cemetery as CP-C010.
Notable people.
Mezzo-soprano Barbara Smith Conrad was born in Center Point in 1940. Conrad has performed with opera companies around the world. She has sung at the White House, and performed for Pope John Paul II during his 1995 New York City visit. She credits the Baptist church in Center Point as the origins of her love of music.