Center Hill (Center Grove, Pine Grove)

Houston County, TX

Status: Located

Year Established: 1850s

Council of Governments: DETCOG

Public History: Early settlers in this part of Houston County established homes in the nearby communities of Corinth, Old Zion, and Randolph. Community life centered around farming and church activities. Settlers met together for worship at the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in Corinth. A building erected there in the late 1850s served as both church and school for the surrounding communities until it was destroyed by fire in 1881. Sensitive to the need for a new church structure to serve area residents, George W. and Loucetta A. Julian donated three acres at this site in 1883 for a new Methodist church building. Because of its central location, it was named Center Hill. A community school, named Center Ridge, also met in the church building. A separate school structure was erected one mile northeast in 1914 and continued in service until 1935, when the school was merged with the Kennard School District. Center Hill maintained its ties to the earlier communities, and area citizens continue to use the cemetery established at Corinth in 1864. Descendants of early settlers remain in the area.

Community History: Center Hill, also known as Corinth, is a farming community 1½ miles west of Kennard in east central Houston County. The settlement grew up around a school, known as Corinth or Old Corinth School, that was established in 1857. In the mid-1930s the community had a school, a church, a cemetery, and a number of houses. Its school was later consolidated with that of Kennard, and by the mid-1960s only a church and cemetery remained in the Center Hill area. In the early 1990s Center Hill was a dispersed rural community. In 2000 the population was 105.

Cemetery: Center Hill

Church: Center Hill

School: Center Ridge