A history of The Heritage Village Museum in Woodville
Tyler County Booster - August 2007
By Gayle Burton

  Intending to give a little history of the Heritage Village, I began to gather information. It seems that the Heritage Village really began with the history (somewhat) of Tyler County. For instance, what we call the Collier General store in the Village was actually built in 1853 at Town Bluff, the Z. C. Collier General Store. It sold everything from collar buttons to coffins. It was called “Natches on the Neches”.
  Moreover, the Tolar Family Kitchen built in 1866 was given to Clyde Gray. Mr. Gray was building the “Heritage Gardens” at his studio in Woodville and the Tolar family gave him the family kitchen. The Tolar homestead was located on the highway between Beaumont and Woodville and no wayfarer was ever turned away.
  Miss Sarah and Betty prepared meals on the open fireplace with kettles and Dutch ovens. The meals were always large and they never knew how many would be eating on any given day. The building was made of logs with a shake roof and an under structure of hand-hewn timbers. The “mud cat” construction of the fireplace has been replaced by a stone chimney.
  Fred Platt of Woodville, contractor, was in charge of the moving and reassembling of the building. The Tolar kitchen was dedicated October 1, 1964 and over one thousand people were at the Sunday 3 p.m. dedication. A plaque from the Texas Historical Committee was presented to Clyde E. Gray by W. J. Risinger, chairman of the Historical Survey Committee. Associate Justice of the Texas Supreme Court, Clyde E. Smith, made the dedicatory address. Smith said that the Tolar Cabin was symbolic of many pioneer families such as the Tolars...the Barclays, the Bames, the Hanks, the Works, the Wilsons, the Shivers, the Wheats.. .who settled Tyier County. Rev. Wayne Odom, Methodist church pastor, gave the invocation.
  Country music was played and corn bread and black-eyed peas were served. Women from local clubs, Frances Sturrock, Jo Burgess, Ruth Stanford, Dee Grimes, Hilda Coats, and Marilyn demons did the work.
  Thus you can see that the History of the Heritage Village goes “way-back.” But Clyde Gray must be mentioned BIG. Gray moved to Woodville from Beaumont to become a painter, and after six months of working at being an artist, subsisting in a $25/month farm house, he staged a one man show in Beaumont. He sold all 40 of his paintings and took orders for dozens more.
  “Heritage Village was an accident”, he stated, but people kept giving him things and he made room for them—as the pioneers did. His half acre multiplied to five and then to twenty. The Village became well known in Texas and dreams of making a museum shaped like a star with five points came into his head. He decided to sell his “gardens.”
  Now I must mention another BIG ONE.. .Christine Sanders. Christine had dreams, youth, and energy and she did not think that Clyde should sell to any entity out of Woodville. When a rumor developed that another group in the State was going to buy the Village, she buttoned holed Clyde and he gave an option to her for $5,000.00... she had to raise $125,000.00 in 45 days! Christine vigorously button-holed several local citizens and obtained the money.
  Clyde was given $125,000.00 for his works. He still kept his house adjacent to and east of the Village. The Village has a letter written to Christine from the Texas State Library. It stated “Dear Ms. Sanders: Congratulations on your successful efforts to save the Heritage Village!” This could go on and on, but one thing I want to penetrate into every reader’s cerebrum is this. We have visitors from the world coming to the Village and the average person in Tyier County never sees it from one year to the next.
  The Village needs local “free” help... brains, ideas, muscles, time... and of course always money. But the time and muscles are more important now. Come out to every plea... several times a year. PLEASE.