Boggy Community

With limited resources and many challenges, the Boggy Community was established in 1865 by Robert (Bob) Bowers, a former slave, and Celia North Bowers of the Keechi tribe. The Keechi Indians, until around 1835, maintained an agricultural village on the banks of the Middle Creek north of Centerville. Celia brought to Boggy her agricultural heritage and knowledge which contributed to their success as a community. The area produced cotton, Irish potatoes, corn, peas, tomatoes and watermelon. A typical day in Boggy included working long hours in the fields planting, removing bare grass and harvesting crops. Education in Boggy was an important facet of life and a desire many parents had for their children. The first school was established in 1865 and met in a log building under a hill. Later buildings were shared by Bethana Baptist Church, Masons and Order of the Eastern Star. Bethana Baptist Church was established in 1883 under a brush arbor near Boggy Cemetery. The current church building was built around 1892. The Bowers were one of the first families to settle in Boggy and they had seven children, although two died in infancy. Their son, Newton Amos Bowers, relocated to the Mackay Community near the Pierce Ranch just outside of Wharton. There he established a community very similar to Boggy with a church, school and cemetery. Boggy's founders, Bob and Celia Bowers, and many of its original citizens, veterans, church and family members are buried in the Boggy Cemetery. (2014)