The old Bedias jail, also called the calaboose. This jail was actually in use from the 1920s until the 1950s, shockingly. It was donated to display at the Bedias Civic Center once decommissioned. The Bedias Civic Center itself was built out of repurposed original bricks from the Bedias High School, which was torn down in the 1960s when they consolidated the tiny town's youth with that of Madisonville for resource management.
The Bedias Civic Center also has the lengthiest Texas Historic Marker I've ever found. But it does aim to describe the entire history of the town of Bedias, including it's subtle fame for the Bediasite stones found here, which I've seen in person at the Bedias Historic Library and Museum.
The marker also mentions the famous sewist Sarah Dodson being buried in the nearby Bethel Cemetery, which has been on my visit list for quite some time now.
"Named for North and South Bedias Creeks, which in turn were named for the Bidai Indians, an agricultural people reputed to have been the oldest inhabitants of the area. "Bidai" means "Brushwood", which may refer to the building material used in their dwellings.
The first white settlement in this vicinity was founded 1835 by Thomas P. Plaster, and for a while it was called Plasterville. In 1903, the community of "Old" Bedias surrendered most of its population to "New" Bedias after a branch of the International & Great Northern Railroad was built to the northeast.
Townspeople from Pankey and Cotton also moved here. The name "Bedias" was retained, but only after a heated struggle in which determined citizens refused to have the town named for a railroad official.
A famous, early resident of the Bedias area was Sarah Dodson, who in 1835 made the first "Lone Star" flag in Texas. She lived here from 1844 to 1848 and is buried in Old Bethel Cemetery, seven miles west.
One of the most unique features of this region is the large number of tektites (also called "Bediasites") found here. These are beautiful, glassy, meteor-like stones which fell to earth 34 million years ago. Amazingly, Indians called them "Jewels of the Moon". "
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